D122 School Board Applications Due Today

Editor's note: Originally published June 21

Think you have what it takes to be a New Lenox school board member? District 122 is now accepting applications to fill the vacancy left by Sue Gillooley, who resigned earlier this month following stalking accusations. 

At a June board meeting, President Nick DiSandro presented a plan to fill the vacancy.

To apply, a resume and letter of interest must be submitted by 4 p.m. Monday, July 2. They may be emailed to boeapplications@nlsd122.org, mailed to the , c/ o BOE Applications 102 S. Cedar, New Lenox, IL, or dropped off at that location.

UPDATE: Because of the storms over the weekend, the district email was down and might not have received applications. If you applied and didn't receive a confirmation email, .

After applications are received, the board members will review them for about a week. DiSandro said he hopes to conduct interviews around Wednesday, July 11. 

By law, the board has until July 26 to fill the vacancy. If it fails to do so by then, the Regional Office of Education superintendent will make the selection. 

The board must schedule a special meeting before that date to make a public vote on its selection. 

Gillooley resigned June 11 following public accusations that she was stalking a resident. A Will County judge ordered that she and the accuser remain at least 100 feet apart for three months, giving them "an opportunity to calm down."  

Although Gillooley was re-elected to a four-year term in April 2011, the person appointed would only serve until the next local election, which is in April 2013. At that point, the appointee could run for election or leave the board. The winner of that election would then serve the remaining two years of Gillooley's term. 

That means five of the seven board seats will be up for election in 2013. DiSandro and Maureen Broderick were also elected in 2011, but the seats of Deb Kedzior, Pat Martino, Kathy Miller and Sue Smith will be on the April 2013 ballot. 

DiSandro said he wasn't sure if all applicants would receive interviews from the board. 

"If we get three, I think we interview all three," he said. "If we get 75 applications, I think we’d have another meeting to go through them."

Supt. Mike Sass said the board got about eight or nine applications the last couple of times there was a vacancy. 

Applicants for the Board vacancy must: 

• Be a United States Citizen.
• Be at least 18 years of age.
• Be a resident of Illinois and the District for at least one year immediately preceding the appointment.
• Be a registered voter.
• Not be a child sex offender.
• Not hold another incompatible public office.
• Not have prohibited interest in any contract with the District.
• Not hold certain types of prohibited state or federal employment.

According to a District 122 news release, applicants should show familiarity with the board’s policies regarding general duties and responsibilities of a board and a board member, including fiduciary responsibilities, conflict of interest, ethics and gift ban. The board’s policies are located at nlsd122.org.

The position is not paid. The school board meets the third Wednesday of every month, but there are other meetings and events associated with the position.