Diana Smith Told She Will No Longer be Principal of York High School

UPDATE 10 p.m. Feb. 22: District 205 Board President Peggy Ostojic said Tuesday night in front of a packed board room: "Given this transitional period, no action will be taken on Diana Smith’s assignment. She will continue as York principal for the 2011-12 school year." (Full story to come.)

EARLIER:

Elmhurst Unit District 205 Superintendent Lynn Krizic has told Diana Smith that she will no longer be the principal of York High School.

“On Friday, the superintendent informed me that she would be transferring me,” Smith said Monday. “She didn’t say where or when. I immediately requested a hearing with the Board of Education.”

Krizic would not confirm that she had the conversation with Smith.

“As it relates to any personnel issues of any individual, until such time as anything is posted to Board Docs, I cannot speak outside of the context of the process on any staff member, teacher or administrator. That’s the process, and I just feel very respectful to the process. I don’t think there is anything on Board Docs that speaks to personnel changes at York.”

Board Docs is the district’s e-governance Web site that announces what will be on the agenda for upcoming meetings. It shows for tomorrow, Feb. 22, the board will go into closed session to discuss the employment of employee prior to the regular board meeting at 7:30 p.m. There is no indication on the agenda that the board will take action during open session on anything discussed in closed session Tuesday.

“In terms of process, all personnel recommendations are acted on by the board of education (and that includes issues of) hiring, tenure, reduction in force, that could mean re-assignment, termination,” Krizic said. “The process is always the same. Recommendations are put forth and the board acts on them in a public meeting. But as you will see on our agenda, there is no action to be taken out of closed session on  Tuesday night.”

Smith said she has not been notified of when her hearing will take place.

“I am consulting with an attorney on this right now,” she said.

She also is not sure whether the hearing will take place in open or closed session.

“I’m not sure about that,” she said. “The next step is, I would need to hear from the board.”

Board member David Carlquist said Monday he has “no awareness” of the move to transfer Smith.

“If I did, anything personnel-related would be confidential,” he said. “I’ve had a few folks informally asking me the question (about Smith’s transfer).”

He said he plans to call Krizic to “get the lowdown.”

The move comes at a time the district is facing many administrative and personnel changes. with the district will not be renewed; her last day as superintendent is June 30. Three School Board members also are not seeking re-election in April.

When asked if the move is related to the retirement of principals at Hawthorne and Lincoln, Krizic said, “We are just doing our first-round interviews for the principals at Hawthorne and Lincoln. There won’t be recommendations about principalships at those two schools for several weeks.”

Smith said the notification of her transfer took her by surprise. She was not able to speak to the reasons Krizic gave her for the move.

“My perspective on her rationale will be presented at my hearing with the board,” she said.

Smith said her concern is for the big issues the district is facing, and especially for the issues facing York High School.

“Our work has been focused on the work of the EEPRT committees,” she said.

, known as EEPRT, have been charged with evaluating all operational and educational programs in the district to determine their value relative to their cost. Rankings made by the committees are being discussed by the School Board as they prepare to make between $3 million and $5 million in budget cuts.

“Our staff has spent a great deal of time on that and in advocating for the programs that we think are so important for students. That’s where the attention should be right now,” Smith said.

Smith has been with District 205 for 15 years. She has spend the last seven years as principal at York, and she was an assistant principal for curriculum at York for five years before that. She also was a social studies teacher at Sandburg Middle School for three years.

“I care a great deal about the school and the school district,” she said. “I raised my children and they went through the Elmhurst schools. I’m very supportive of the work the board is trying to do in moving (the district) in the right direction. I certainly feel our efforts should be spent working on these serious issues that we’re all facing.”

She said she feels fortunate to be the principal at York.

“It’s a great school, it’s a wonderful community,” she said. “I am grateful for the opportunity I’ve had here.”

The board meeting tomorrow night will be held at 7:30 p.m. at the administrative building, 162 S. York St. The meeting will begin with comments from the public, followed by a continued discussion of budget cuts.