District 33 promotes assistant superintendent
By Jake Griffin Daily Herald Staff Writer
Posted February 06, 2004
http://www.dailyherald.com/dupage/main_story.asp?intID=3802339

As expected, West Chicago Elementary District 33's board hired an assistant superintendent to replace outgoing chief Jon Mink.

By hiring Ed Leman, the district's current assistant superintendent for student learning, the financially conscious board will save thousands of dollars on a search process and gain a leader who already knows the district's positives and negatives, board President Marie Doll said.

"I appreciate the expression of confidence and thank you to Dr. Mink for the five years of mentoring where I've stretched and grown," Leman said after the announcement was made Thursday night.

Mink is leaving for the Aptakisic-Tripp Elementary District in Buffalo Grove at the end of the school year.

"We are being fiscally responsible ... and we believe we have found the best match right here in our own educational community," Doll said.

Leman was hired unanimously by the board.

The meeting wasn't full of good cheer, though. Besides replacing Mink, two other administrative posts were also filled internally at the district's junior high school. Board member Robert Lemon objected to the process of selecting the two candidates.

"The position(s) should have been posted, interviewed and documented," complained Lemon. "I have no information for this hire and no cause."

The junior high school is losing both its principal and assistant principal at the end of the year.

Other board members argued Lemon had an opportunity days before the meeting to discuss the recommendations with district officials.

After some heated words from both Doll and Mink, only Lemon voted against hiring Patricia Roszkowski as the school's next principal and Julio Del Real as the school's next assistant principal.

"Please make sure they know this is about the process that could have been done differently, and not about the people," Doll said.

All the administrators will finish out the school year.