The Oak Park and River Forest High School Board rejected a consulting contract for former Superintendent Dr. Joylynn Pruitt-Adams last week.
On Thursday, July 22, the board considered the consulting contract, which outlined services Pruitt-Adams would have provided for Superintendent Greg Johnson during the transition.
For $175 an hour, the contract would have provided for Pruitt-Adams to provide transitional support to the superintendent, including feedback to existing projects and initiatives, providing guidance on “navigating politically-charged community issues,” and tackling other projects as determined by the superintendent, according to the contract.
Pruitt-Adams also would have mentored and provided guidance to the Assistant Superintendent and Assistant Superintendent for Learning in the areas of relationship building, systemic leadership and “district-wide focus pertaining to their roles and responsibilities,” the contract stated.
The contract was not to exceed eight hours a week on average and could not exceed 288 hours for the school year, with meetings being held Tuesday through Thursday.
Board member Fred Arkin raised concerns about the contract.
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“I think the team Greg has put together, along with Greg, are highly competent professionals,” said School Board Member Fred Arkin. “Our taxpayers are willing to spend a lot of money and to hire the best.”
Arkin said his concern had nothing to do with Pruitt-Adams, who he said did a lot for the district; rather, he was concerned with the potential cost. “I think we need to move on from the Pruitt-Adams era to the Greg Johnson era, and I think there’s a fairness we have to have because we do ask our taxpayers for a lot,” he said. “I know it’s a not-to-exceed contract, but it could end up being a pretty hefty sum of money, almost a full teacher’s salary.”
Three board members – Kebreab Henry, Tom Cofsky, and Arkin – voted the contract down. Board members Mary Anne Mohanraj and Sara Spivy voted in favor of it.
The Board unanimously approved the hiring of Johnson as the next district leader in April. The three-year contract pays Johnson $237,500 a year. Johnson had served as OPRF’s associate superintendent and worked at OPRF in an administrative role for four years. Pruitt-Adams retired as superintendent on July 1, when Johnson took over.
Johnson has been with the district since 2017, when he was hired as assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction. He was promoted to associate superintendent in 2019.
As part of the process to hire a new superintendent, the Board contracted with Hazard, Young, Attea and Associates to conduct a national search. OPRF considered 14 applicants from seven states before settling on Johnson.