Best of luck in whatever you do

I remember when Dr. Wyllie came to Lincoln-Way. It was great teaching there for 36 years. He is a great superintendent and I was honored to work with him.

While he did many things he unfortunately ran the schools more like a business than a school. LW is in need of some fresh blood and ideas. Maybe the schools nepotism "policy" will finally be enforced.

We, a group of concerned parents, have been dealing with #210 in a legal capacity almost 3 years now - knowing there is more to this administration than meets the eye. We've dealt with their gatekeeping, listened to their propoganda and waited for the day to come to prove that District 210 happyland full of "least spending per capita" (because they save funds by putting minimal money into students with hidden disabilities) and "high standardized test scores" (because they "teach for standardized testing" and the scores of students with IEP's are skewed to a higher percentage with a multiplier just like our property taxes) when something would break. Finally, it has. Our complaint against District #210 is due back in the next week. We are confident it will come back in our favor and will post such when received.
The resignation of both Dr. Wyllie and Dr. Eddy on the same day (salaries of 250k & 202k respectively in '10), REEKS of hidden agenda. We don't expect specifics of to be publicized willingly, but it's highly unlikely both administrators decided to resign at the same time without something more to the story. These resignations - as welcome as they are to us - warrants explanation to all of us who pay these salaries with our outrageous property taxes. We will push for further media attention to this as the situation unfolds, and while we welcome the new superintendant - we hope accountability for whatever pushed these resignations is not far behind.

Maybe we can finally close West now which never should have been built and save the rest of 210 which is swimming in red ink.

No surprise that Tom Eddy will be leaving. Everyone who works there, or has worked there, has speculated that no other person other than Wyllie would had ever hired Eddy for that role. He was not well liked by many over there.

I was a student at East in early 2000s. I remember then principal Dr. Gardener made all the students sign a huge Christmas card that was to be given to Wyllie... and never hearing about it ever again afterwards. No thank you or anything. As a student, Wyllie -- while not a bad guy -- came across as the hidden corporate CEO who wanted nothing to do with the little people (aka students).

I do wish him well, and hope that he is retiring in good conscious, and enjoys retirement with his family for many, many years. Regardless of the current state over there, Wyllie is leaving LW better than when he first arrived.

Aside from all the financial decisions and problems that cmc is speaking about above, you have to respect the man and have nothing but well wishes for him and his family in the future. I'm sure the decision he made was certainly not an easy one.

In addition, I am both a former student and former employee, and while yes, I felt there was some nepotism. He hand groomed certain people to move up and encouraged them to further their education to be ready for the future higher positions he would hand down to them. Unfortunately due to my young age, I was not at the point yet of being worthy of a promotion, as I was told by Dr. Eddy.

Regardless of all, Dr. Wyllie was still a respectable and great boss to work for and I wish him nothing but the best in retirement.

It is about time!!!!! May miracles never cease!!

Oh boy Santa came early. Merry Christmas! I do not agree with the above comment " you have to respect the man and have nothing but well wishes for him" Respect for a man who had no interest of listening to parents or students.....especially the students. I hope his replacement will be a person much like Dr Gardner who has gone above and beyond expectations. Who makes each student feel heard and valued! May you retire comfortably Wyllie at our expense. Enjoy a nice cup of eggnog watching a old classic "A Christmas CArol"

BB,

Dr. Wyllie dedicated his life to Lincoln-Way. As a student, he did take interest in us. He would walk around the lunch room, heck, I remember he sat down at my lunch table a few times and asked us how things are.

CPS teachers and administration don't care. Wyllie put such an emphasis on education and learning. Look at the graduation rate under his tenure as Superintendent.

Numbers don't lie.

You're entitled to your own opinion, and that is fine, I can tell you don't like him, but please, don't make a blanket statement such as "he has no interest in listening to parents or students" because that is clearly false.

Solid evidence can only make you sound less ignorant.

Oh, and I learned to write so well due to my education at Lincoln-Way, with a caring staff, all under Dr. Wyllie.

The BIG question still remains as to WHY these two resigned on the same day. There is much more to this story. In any normal situation the Assistant ("Deputy" for some reason in our community) Superintendant would step up to be Superintendant. To have both removed at the same time surely signifies "Illinois Politics" as it's been proven these last few years. Wyllie handpicked Eddy and Eddy is an arrogant, bullying, manipulating man with a Napolean complex the size of Mt. Rushmore. Read between the lines here.... a whole article on Wyllie and one liner on Eddy? It will come out eventually. Something is being kept under wraps. No best wishes for either of you. Glad to see you both go! Let's get back to educating ALL of our children and stop twisting test scores and offering up half-truths to the parents of 210. A lie of ommission is a lie nonetheless.

My comment was not directed to you. I also don't know how long ago you were a student. What I can tell you is many parents tried to reach out and be heard by Dr Wyllie and we the parents as well as the students were shown no respect. I respect your right to your opinion and would hope you can respect my right to mine as well. I can't tell you how many e-mails we the parents have sent to him that were returned with one simple line. "Thank you for your e-mail"

If you were to conduct a survey I think you would be surprised as to just how little respect parents and students have for Wylllie.

So the district announces two top-level retirements and their replacements at the same meeting? Only at LW... Every other large suburban district would go through a nationwide search for replacements given that scenario. Even if those districts hire from within, they still go through the process of interviewing highly qualified candidates from great districts across the country.

LW is stale and needs fresh leadership. They don't need handpicked successors who were groomed in the "Lincoln Way". The same "Lincoln Way" that overbuilt a district and focused more on land speculation and building Olympic size swimming pools than installing technology in the classrooms.

Wyllie would have been a great CEO. I always thought he wished he would've gone that route. He always seemed more comfortable hosting Rotary meetings and mingling with business professionals than he did meeting with students and teachers. He spent his time at LW making it as businesslike as possible. He used the district and its resources as a vehicle for economic development, speculated on land when real estate values were high and built a district that can house 12,000 students when the enrollment is only 7,400.

He was a great leader. No one can deny that. He just may have been in the wrong profession. Best of luck in retirement.

I couldn't agree more with you on Eddy leaving. I was turned down for a promotion and told right to my face that I'm far too young for a position like that. He is a jerk.

I never thought I'd see the day that Wyllie would retire, but when I worked there, always speculated that they would go out together.

I'm sure there is a hidden agenda here, it seems as if the entire District administration staff has been taken out of the game all in one night. And no public interviews for the next Superintendent? Tingley has been groomed for that position for years. I'm sure Mark Cohen will be appointed next Deputy Superintendent too.

I still have a respect for Wyllie that is second to none.

One thing I want to know is why we have an 'Assistant Director of Technology'. That was a made up position two years ago to appease somebody who thought they deserved the position after previous Director retired but was passed over for the promotion.

Somebody needs to get this made up title/position revoked. Tax payers are paying a salary of $95,361 to a person who threatened to sue the district if she did not receive a promotion.

I attended Lincolway during the 2000's and value the education I received all four years. It is frustrating to me to hear all of the negative comments from students and parents alike when I think about how lucky the students at LW are. I would like to add that I was never a top 25 student, instead, I ranked in the middle of my class. Upon attending college I felt very well prepared and it was abundantly clear that LW prepared me better than other high schools prepared my peers. Just yesterday I met with a friend from high school. We began asking each other about friends we had from high school. We all are employed and comfortable in our lives. How many people can say that today?

As a LWE 2003 graduate, I am primarily pleased with my education. I am fortunate that my parents had the foresight and were financially able to move to the LW area so I could receive my education.

LW has done a lot of things right, no doubt. But I also think there may be plenty of room for some of the negative comments. For all the good that has come from LW, it doesn't mean they did everything right.

I personally am tired of the negative talk, I was a LW grad and my kids were Lw grads.
Why is there a hidden agenda because some moves up in rank, stature and income? (Jealousy!)
He worked very hard and diligently for our community, and I 1000% supported all he did- whether I agree with it of not .
Those who have nasty comments are only showing your own true colors by bringing strife and starting up issues that you have only offered one sided opinions!
If you think he did such a crappy job, why didn't YOU do his job?

This is great news the bad news is that he gets a big fat pension. That has been funded by all the taxpayer's blood sweat and tears. I hope that the new Super can at least come up with an orginal graduation speech.

Thank you CMC!!! Donna it is true there is many things I could have said to back up my so called blanket remarks but with all due respect they would have been removed. We can all have our opinions. But how can you support someone 1000% if you do not agree with them? I have 2 students at LWN and have had experiences dealing with Wyliie who only will address issues if they see fit to him. As for him being wonderful to the students I have to disagree. I think he has bullied staff and this is a positive move and I am happy to see the change! Happy New year!

Maybe given what happened today in Connecticut we should all be grateful that our kids probably go to one of the safest schools in the state and just say THANK YOU!

For all you conspiracy theorists out there it's always been pretty common knowledge that Wylie and Eddy would retire together. No LW employees are shocked by this at all.

My neighbor's kid tried out for the soccer team at East and got cut. Dr. Wylie wouldn't even take his phone calls and give him a reason why! He scored the most goals on his park district and travel teams but apparently that's not good enough at East!

I think that if you 3 or 4 Debbie Downers can find a better district to live in, you should move there. While I might not have always agreed with his decisions, he has done a great job!!! Best of luck to you Larry!!

As I have said we are all entitled to our opinions otherwise we would not be allowed to post comments here. As for a better district to live in......We do not live in the BEST school district we live in ONE of the better districts but indeed there are BETTER school districts.

Mokena Mike....I feel for your neighbors child. Wyllie has done many petty things to not only the Athletics department but lets talk about what he did this past year to the Arts department. He created total chaos! Not only did he create this chaos he refused to give reasons for doing so. There was a board meeting last spring where many parents and the children attended and were hardly even heard and NEVER once given a solid reason for the chaos created.

I'm sorry this is not the BEST school district people are fooled to think that it is because WE pay dearly to have OUR children in this district! I'm not bashing my children s education but I am not pleased at all with the politics and the misuse of our money.

So lets just hope who steps into his place actually CARES about the CHILDREN and not $$$$$. Let's hope this person can get the district out of the RED! or your kids won't be living in one of the BETTER school districts they will be living in one that starts to make program cuts or want more money to continue those programs........which I see slowly happening anyway.

It is incredible to me that all these comments are so negative . Disgruntled employees , and people who do not have the facts straight. I applaud both gentlemen on a job well done wish them well. I have worked with both for years and watched my children excel at LW. The fact that people move here because of the outstanding high school speaks volumes. Don't bash the careers of two gentleman that gave so much to this district. It's just sour grapes on your part shame on you.

Congratulations to Dr. Wyllie on a job well done. Best wishes for a long and successful retirement you deserve it.

As a former student from LW, I agree with JE. I was an average student in high school and I am proud of the education I received from LW. While I do not know Dr. Wylie personally, I know of him through his family and friends. He may have been paid a great salary, but he worked for it too. While still at LW, he would say hi to me in the halls even though he did not know who I was. He has generously given back to his community with all of the donations he gives to local organizations. The same goes for Mr. Eddy. I spent a period as an aide in the office and he would always stop and ask me how my classes were going and seemed genuinely interested in me as a person and student. I wish them both the best. We need more positive people in this world and saying negative things will only make you an ugly person.

I am a parent of 4 LWE graduates. I never gave a penny to the Lincolnway Foundation, I was never on a board, I never had a football star athlete, but I did have IEP meetings, for my son with special needs. I requested Dr. Wyllie at the meeting and he never answered my email. At first things were great, then things got progressively worse to the point I can say I hope LWE closes. The administration from Dr. Wyllie down to the special ed and regular ed teachers who dont know how to control their classrooms need to go. The teachers stay because some one from the administration "likes" them. Parents should not have to get a lawyer to get the appropriate public education in the State of Illinois. My family has been retaliated against since my child was in grade school. I went before the school board and was retaliated against. My children were intimidated not by their classmates, but by administrators and teachers. Public schools are for every child regardless of race, religion, or disability, not just for the rich or the football stars, and not just for the families who know the state rep who has family on the board. I know I cannot change this but some day, maybe some one will be able to and the school will be a better place for every child.

Student I think you may be one of the only students I have heard besides the others who have posted here say anything nice about him. In fact having an extremely close relationship with my children have heard some pretty rude remarks that that man has made. He favors certain departments and that's for sure. I have yet to see him make n appearance at events my children are involved in . I'm happy that there seems to be a very select few who he touched in a positive way. But when parents want answers, when parents are kept in the dark, when e-mails and appearances at board meetings have been ignored and brushed under the rug like dirt....that's where my respect went down the drain for this person......who ahould have retired a LONG time ago.

If any parents of students with special needs/IEP's would like to join our group please email all210kidscount@gmail.com. We are a quickly growing group of parents of students with varying degrees of special needs, have an advocate and attorney we consult with and are on the verge of a two-year in the making media interview. Major media outside of New Lenox. It's time someone objective hear the story of what goes on here. Please feel free to email... one person speaks for the group and all others remain anonymous. When the time comes everyone will be asked for permission before any names are mentioned. Power in numbers. It's too late for my child... she'll be out of high school soon... but, I'm not stopping. I will stay on this until true change comes about and all children receive the education they are entitled to and afforded by law.

I don't think there's a legitimate argument to say Lincolnway didn't provide an excellent education to many students. However, in a District where almost 30% of the students have IEP's there absolutely is a legitimate argument to say that Dr. Wyllie and Dr. Eddy both value their "high end" student body more than the ones that need a little extra help. #210 provides excellent services to the average and above student and the severely disabled. All others are pushed through - with low expectations and high grades. If more parents actually looked at their child's work instead of just their grades this would be incredibly obvious. (I, personally, had to make a special request and have it put into my child's IEP that I get to see her actual work - and tests and quizzes. Once out of grammar school very little work comes home. What I saw was pathetic!) For this reason alone - good riddance to both for robbing so many children the opportunity to reach their potential! I am SO grateful to see a parent with a special needs child comment here. We have been fighting this District for many years and have a state complaint filed and pending litigation following the State's decision. We DO NOT live in the BEST District. Our District falls below most surrounding ones when it comes to special education. Oak Forest & Tinley Park blow us out of the water. These two men were at the helm of the creation and implementation of effort that goes into special education. Their exit is a welcome one

I will be passing on that information to my friend who's child is only in 1st grade and has special needs but his needs are not being met by the school. I know the parents are very frustrated.

Wait- 30 % of the kids have IEP's in the district? That doesn't sound right.

30%. What is this place? Molaki?

Well said, Jo Jo.

This entire process stinks. The superintendent and one of his highest-ranking assistants announce their retirement at the board meeting right before Christmas. No notice to the public ahead of time. Same meeting, the board jams through a 40-year old replacement -- not an interim, mind you, a permanent replacement. No search process, no public comment, no involvement from anybody.

Scott is probably going to make a good superintendent. But it is unheard of for a board of education that oversees $200M+ and nearly 8000 students to make this type of decision completely in secret.

The good ol' boys club at its finest.

Larry did an excellent job. He had a board that he handpicked, and then he handpicked his successor.

My husband is a LW teacher. I asked him how many IEP/504 students he has. He said less than 10 out of approximately 135 students. 30% seems WAY HIGH on that special needs estimate.

I would bet if parents made more time for their children, didn't get divorced, and held their kids more accountable without looking for shortcuts we would see less IEPs. The most consistent problem with IEP students is their apathy. They simply don't do their homework and come unprepared for daily lessons in the classroom. I'm so tired of how our society lacks accountability. How about just do the work? Come prepared? Be inspired to learn and better oneself? All these virtues need to be fostered by parents from the get go.

Really? Well how about you enlighten me? How will giving a student extended time on tests and making sure an extra textbook is available in the classroom for him because he can't be responsible to bring his to class help prepare him for the real world? I recognize that some kids truly have developmental issues and/or conditions and IEPs do help them, but there are plenty who abuse the system to make school easier and attain higher GPAs. And if you don't think that divorce drastically impacts the academic performance of these kids, talk to any teacher about the common denominator behind student apathy and poor homework preparation. Most of these kids come from broken homes. It's very sad. Don't blame the schools for this.

Jen, you poseted the most ignorant comment I've ever seen! Parents have absolutely no control over their child's learning disabilities! Really?! If I spend more time with my child she will no longer need glasses or a hearing aid?! Same concept applies to a learning disability. MOST parents of disabled children spend countless hours working with them trying to make up for what the school doesn't do. Just do the work?! How about the school modify it appropriately for their challenges?! Be inspired to learn?! How about teaching them they CAN learn instead of having no expectations of them, giving them easy A's and creating a false sense of academic success?!

How DARE you blame parents for their children's disabilities! Clearly you don't know what an IEP is, or that a diagnosis must be made before a student can have one. Most times homework isn't done it's because it wasn't modified appropriately! How about we put you in a workplace where you don't understand the language? How well would you do?! Would you blame your mommy for not spending enough time with you because you couldn't understand the instructions for your job?! This has NOTHING to do with accountability unless you want to consider the school's lack of accountability for how they mismanange IEP's and 504's. Your comments display clear lack of knowledge and abundance of ignorance. Was your own mommy not home enough to help you? Learn before you speak or judge.
Anyone interested: email All210KidsCount@gmail.com

Help me to understand the notion that LW cannot compete academically with schools such as Sandburg, Andrew, and Lockport. The Trib ranked all four Lincoln-Way schools in their Top 50 list: http://schools.chicagotribune.com/lists/best-overall-psae. Andrew & Lockport didn't even make the list while West & East are both ranked ahead of Sandburg. On average Sandburg's student body is higher up on the socio-economic food chain than the kids going to West, yet the more middle-class West students outperform the sons & daughters of doctors, accountants, lawyers, etc? Why are people saying that LW schools are only good and not great since they only exceed the Rich & Joliet schools? Please, help me with this. I am confused.

It appears this thread has gotten off track a liitle. While the education of all students is important, we should be focusing on this current issue. People, we just had two officials announce retirement and a new suprintendant chosen in one meeting!! Does anyone know if this was on the meeting aggenda? How is this allowed to happen? Where's the outrage? CMC, maybe your legal action can put an end to this, if not, I'm certain it will be business as usual at the school board meetings.

http://newlenox.patch.com/articles/lwhs-district-210-supt-larry-wyllie-reflects-on-career-retirement-plans

Maybe some of you missed this article. The man is 75 years old! How many superintendents have had such successful careers? Let's also mention that pensions for educators are so up in the air right now. As the state continues to take from TRS, educators near retirement are announcing their retirements prior to any more changes. Take a break from the bashing and educate yourself. There are many educators on their way out. For the gripers out there complaining that he is retiring or claiming to be able to do a better job, get a hobby. Leaders will never make everyone completely happy. This superintendent successfully runs four high schools. My children valued their time at Lincoln-Way; I think it is appalling that people complain that he runs the schools as a business. They are businesses! His knowledge of finance and education are what keep our schools running!

His lack of communication when people and students reach out to him as well as his lack of financial smarts are why we are in the state we are in. 75 year old man has our money .......schools in the red .....lets retire now and let Minnie me pick up the mess!!! Please!!!

I'm not 100% clear on your Disney reference (not sure if it's what you intended), but I'm positive that 4 high schools have provided so many opportunities for kids. To the soccer team complaint, what chances do you think your son would have making the team if the schools had not split? Is it really a grievance to bring to the superintendent when Johnny doesn't make the team? These complaints sound like sour grapes. I'm not saying that life is perfect, but the negativity on here is so disheartening. So many look for a scapegoat.

JackieV I agree with you.. First of all if your child has a disability they should have done testing in grammar school. If you are not happy with the teaching methods used by LW go to another school. You as the parent CMC are looking for a scapegoat to your childs disability. Knocking the retirement of two amazing educators is not going to help your child or any other child. Most of the complaints on here are no doubt from parents who have always dropped the children off at the door of the school and never gotten involved. Say what you want about LW but your arm is not being twisted to stay in this school district.

"In the know" you have no idea of the details of our situation or the people in our group in the same boat. Please feel free to contact me regarding specifics. There is no scapegoat here. There is accountability. The District has acknowledged the errors they've made. The sad part is that they cannot fix them. There is no argument here as to what was done. It is FACT. I welcome the retirement of two individuals we have found place a higher value on those that excel than those who have learning disabilities. Plain and simple. FYI - our child was tested in grammar school. They tested incorrectly and did not implement properly. The high school tested improperly- using multiple results from the previous incorrect testing. As most parents, we had no way of knowing this until it was too late and retained outside consultants. I assume your "name" signifies you have some secret squirrel inside track. If you truly do, you would be aware of the facts of our situation. They are not a secret. Your comment indicates ignorance and lack of information. So, it seems you are not as "in the know" as you may believe yourself to be. Also, if you have the means to simply pick up and move to another District that provides better services you are better off than most of us. The housing market and economy doesn't afford all of us such opportunity. Being "in the know" and wealthy enough to just pick up and move in this housing market is a good place to be in. Enjoy.

Thank you, "In the Know." People work their entire lives. Enough of the negative comments about someone's life work to improve education. The dedication shown by these men is admirable. The work ethic sets the tone for an entire district. I think the majority of these negative people need to recognize that real life is not always an article from US Weekly or OK! Magazine. There isn't always a hidden story full of drama. The cruel comments on here are uncalled for. Turn off the Bravo and E! and get a life.

I can't say enough about the education that my sons received at Lincoln Way. They have both been successful in college (pretty good schools too). They have both said that LW prepared them well for college. One has now finished his masters and the other is in law school.

Now I'm a bit old school and think that you get out of school what you put into it. So I understand that there are those who don't think that the education is that great.

All I can say is it was for my boys.

Again cmc you have your facts wrong.. Very wrong. And all the babble you have been spewing is nothing but sour grapes and maybe some guilt because you as a parent were not more proactive before this became such a nightmare for your child. Sorry you have had to go through so much. I just think no I know I would have handled it differently. And I would not be blaming an excellent educator for my own failure. Just trying to say how I feel.

Please people proof again about how wonderful these schools are is now breaking news on the patch!!! Also you who want to think you know what cmc went through should sit back and think about it ..... You know nothing. Sour grapes!!! Go back to drinking it!

And as for the Jen who posted .... I sure hope you never teach my kids even though they are not special needs.

Walker you are correct in your final comments however perhaps cmc would not have been so passionate if he hadn't been so disrespected and obviously by teachers!

NJT
What a beautiful, and dedicated person he is. I wish him all the health and happiness, He deserves it

Hope he can live off his $4,000 a week pension....YES a WEEK

Who cares pay the administrators more. Those poor souls can’t live on 4k a week plus 3.5k retirement a week pension...can't we start paying them at least a million

yes, I heard that rumor this weekend. while it's a rumor - it's likely he's will be getting some type of high paying consulting position. if it's within this district it would be incredibly wrong. but, when we have a mayor making $100k+ a year as super of Union School district with only 110 (approximate) students - why would we expect anything different in this area?