The Evanston/Skokie School District 65 board voted Monday, Aug. 10, to extend interim Superintendent Eric Witherspoon's contract through Jan. 31, 2027, giving the district's leader an extra month past his original Dec. 31 end date as officials work to hire a permanent replacement.

The extension adds one month. It was made possible by a new Illinois law that expands the number of days retired educators can work, according to Patch. Witherspoon retired from Evanston Township High School in 2022 after a 16-year tenure as superintendent there.

At the same meeting, the board discussed hiring a search firm to find a permanent superintendent. The goal is to name a new leader by late January 2027 for a July 1, 2027 start date.

The vote delivers the outcome previewed in our Aug. 9 report on the pending contract extension. It comes two weeks before the District 65 school year begins Monday, Aug. 24.

Financial challenges on the agenda too

The contract vote wasn't the only significant item Monday. Witherspoon also addressed the district's $3.4 million operating deficit from the last fiscal year and the possibility of school closures as part of a cost-reduction strategy, the Evanston Roundtable reported.

"As we consolidate or reduce our footprint, we're going to be able to focus the dollars we have to get more done in the buildings that we're investing in," Witherspoon said at the meeting.

The financial picture is one reason the board moved to keep Witherspoon in place longer. In a June 30 interview with Evanston Now, the day before he started the interim role, Witherspoon said he wanted to help position the district for its next leader and acknowledged the financial challenges needed to be tackled "head on."

Search timeline

The board first signaled its intent to launch a superintendent search in June, when board President Nichole Pinkard and Vice President Chris Van Nostrand announced Witherspoon's initial appointment. At that time, they said the district would issue a request for proposals for a search firm.

The Aug. 10 discussion moved that process forward, though no specific deadline for selecting a firm has been announced. The board's stated timeline targets a permanent hire by late January, with the new superintendent starting July 1, 2027.