[il-talk] ISD Superintendent to Lead ISVI Too

[Bill Reif]

I have pasted below, text of an article in today's Jacksonville 
Journal-Courier. At least now, it can be said that the Illinois School 
for the Blind has a superintendent, even if only temporarily. An 
administrative team is necessary at the school to supervise people for 
whom there has been little accountability and can't be with her divided 
responsibilities. One wonders how the state proposes to save money this way.

Cordially,
Bill

ISD superintendent to lead ISVI, too
State tests dual stewardship at schools
September 10, 2010 5:35 AM
JAKE RUSSELL
The five-year superintendent of Illinois School for the Deaf has 
accepted a role
to oversee both state-run schools in Jacksonville.
ISD Superintendent Marybeth Lauderdale stepped in as the interim dual 
superintendent
of both ISD and Illinois School for the Visually Impaired.
Since ISVI Superintendent Reggie Clinton left last summer, the Illinois 
Department
of Human Services, which oversees both schools, moved forward with an 
initiative
to combine a superintendent for both schools in an effort to save money 
and because
both schools are relatively small and located in Jacksonville.
The application deadline for the dual superintendent process was Aug. 
31. The department
will conduct interviews, but there is no official timeline for a 
permanent superintendent,
Spokesman Tom Green said.
Lauderdale began serving as interim dual superintendent Sept. 1.
“This will be a trial period so we can see if it’s a fit on both sides,” 
said Lauderdale,
who served as an acting superintendent for a year when she first became 
the superintendent
at ISD.
Lauderdale applied for the dual position and will still be interviewed, 
she said.
The salary for the interim position is $106,000, Green said.
For now, she is gathering information at ISVI, looking at class 
schedules and getting
to know the people. She has been to one administrative council meeting 
and will lead
the next.
“I haven’t really figured out how I’m going to divide my time,” 
Lauderdale said.
“Right now, I am learning how ISVI operates because in some ways it’s 
the same as
ISD and in some ways, it’s very different. I do know I’ll need a very 
strong administrative
team at both schools for this to be successful.”