PEORIA — After a controversial search, the Peoria Public Schools Board of Education narrowly approved a Texas-based educational service association to assist the board in its search for a new superintendent.
The 4-3 vote Monday night selected From the Heart International Educational Services, based in Arlington, Texas, to help the district select a new superintendent by the end of the 2025-26 school year, when current PPS superintendent Sharon Desmoulin-Kherat retires.
Board President Gregory Wilson voted in favor of the firm, along with board members Martha Ross, Larry Ivory and Lynne Costic.
Proposals for the search were due to the board July 31, and included submissions from six firms:
The board was slated to approve a hire during the Aug. 11 meeting, but the board also voted 4-3 during that meeting to table the discussion after From the Heart prematurely posted an opening for the superintendent position online before the firm was hired and without the board’s approval. The ad, which presents an error message when clicked, also contained false information about the district’s size and stated the superintendent has to live in Peoria even though they do not.
‘Come clean and talk to us as taxpayers’
Board members and community members expressed concern about transparency in the decision, worried choosing From the Heart would damage the district’s credibility. Four audience members Monday night addressed the board during public comment with their concerns.
Peoria father Andres Diaz questioned the firm’s integrity since it has not previously conducted a superintendent search, and CEO Walter Milton was fired from his past superintendent role in Springfield.
“Without an explanation, the rumors of board members having a conflict of interest and the allegation that a superintendent has already been selected, and this is just some sort of kabuki theater to continue to linger in this community. It can’t happen,” Diaz said. “If you don’t come clean and talk to us as taxpayers and residents, all of this will come out at some point.”
Doug Shannon noted ties between Milton and the district already, as Milton is also the founder and CEO of Black History 365, an education entity that provides learning curriculum to the district. Another concern directed toward Milton was his past experience leading Fallsburg Central District in New York, where a state audit found Milton hired a person convicted of child sex abuse to a high-paying consulting job.
Mary Beth Cunningham said the district should evaluate whether From the Heart meets the standards parents and students deserve. While many of From the Heart’s leadership are former superintendents, Milton confirmed to the Journal Star on Monday the search with PPS will be the firm’s first superintendent search.
“At minimum,” Cunningham said, “those standards should include: a proven track record of successful superintendent service, clear deliverables for community engagement and transparent, reasonable costs without hidden or unclear expectations.”
Board debates firm cost, potential conflict of interest
Board members at Monday night’s meeting were split, with some supporting From the Heart and others skeptical. Some board members, including Vice President Paris McConnell, pointed out hiring From the Heart will add travel fees compared to an Illinois firm since From the Heart will need to travel from Texas.
McConnell expressed support for BWP, saying the firm has been working in Illinois for many years and that she liked the idea of keeping PPS money in the state.
From the Heart is also the most expensive firm the district considered. A request for proposal submitted to the district by From the Heart estimated its cost for services at $44,500. The consulting fee for BWP would have been $27,500, according to PPS documents.
Another firm considered by the board was the Illinois Association of School Boards, supported by board member Brenda Wilson. IASB conducted the district’s last search for Desmoulin-Kherat, and submitted the lowest cost estimate at $13,400. Wilson said IASB’s relationship with PPS would minimize the cost compared to other firms and foster trust in both the firm and the district.
However, board member Martha Ross said she did not think IASB did a good job during the previous search. Only Wilson and board member Christina Rose voted for IASB.
Ross is also a member of Black History 365, which led Rose to ask the board attorney to consider whether she should recuse herself from a vote. The board attorney stated she did not have enough information to make that determination, and it was up to Ross whether or not she wanted to vote. Ross did not recuse herself, and she voted in favor of From the Heart.
Following the board’s selection of From the Heart, the firm said it will begin looking for candidates, with the goal to select the next superintendent by January or February.
Community members object selection
After the board selected From the Heart, many who opposed the firm during public comment walked out of the meeting. Snickers and expressions of disbelief could be heard in the crowd.
“How do we select a firm from Texas with no experience?” Shannon told the Journal Star after the meeting. “What they did tonight was to do a favor for one of their friends, rather than to look out for the best interests of our 13,000 students. They don’t want to take accountability that they messed up.”
Diaz, the father of four, said he is worried about the potential conflict of interest between Ross and the board as a whole with Milton, and is concerned for student safety after Milton’s Fallsburg controversy.
“Everyone deserves a redemption story and all that, but when it comes to kids, redeem yourself somewhere else,” Diaz said. “This is the kind of stuff that will drive people to run for school board.”
How will From the Heart find Peoria’s next superintendent?
In an interview Monday afternoon, Milton, the CEO of From the Heart, told the Journal Star the superintendent opening posted prior to the board’s selection of the firm was a mistake by an IT employee.
“It was a glitch on our behalf,” he said. “When we discovered that our new staff member at the IT department had made the mistake, we immediately took it down… Sometimes people make mistakes, but it’s how you recover from those mistakes and progress forward.”
While From the Heart has not conducted a superintendent search before, Milton said a majority of the team’s leadership have been in the field for multiple years, either having served on superintendent search boards or having been superintendents themselves.
“We have the ability to know the practical side of leadership in the superintendent’s role, so we’re kind of excited about that,” Milton said. “I think that some research firms, sometimes people are not practitioners. It’s one thing to live the life of really making a deep and lasting impact in the lives of children. When you live in that seat, which a number of us have, we understand it first and foremost.”
As for how From the Heart will conduct the search, Milton said their job is to find interested candidates with the skill sets and prerequisites necessary.
“Our job will be to bring some really good candidates that can make a lasting impact in the lives of students in Peoria,” he said. “Sometimes superintendents are right in the backyard of Peoria. Maybe it’s a neighboring district. It could be someone in the school district.”
This article originally appeared on Journal Star: Amid controversy, Peoria school board narrowly approves superintendent search firm
Reporting by Christina Avery, Peoria Journal Star / Journal Star
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