Retired Hinsdale D86 Official Returning As Consultant

HINSDALE, IL – A Hinsdale High School District 86 official who retired in the spring is coming back as a consultant.

Keith Bockwoldt, the district's chief information officer, left April 30. His replacement, Michael Swanson, started July 1 in the position, handling information technology.

In a special meeting Monday, the school board voted to bring Bockwoldt back as a consultant who can work for $125 an hour for up to five hours a week through December.

Because of the two-month gap, the department had limited opportunities for a transition, according to a district memo.

Board member Bobby Fischer said it was standard for such transitions to have some help.

"You're interested in this type of mentoring and coaching with Keith?" Fischer asked Swanson.

Swanson said it would help, noting the gap in the transition.

"It gives us a good runway to December to engage with him as needed," Swanson said.

On the day before Bockwoldt's departure, the board voted to give him a 6 percent raise retroactively for the contract year before his retirement.

Under the contract's previous wording, Bockwoldt would have been required to provide written notice of retirement at least one year in advance. He apparently did not do that.

Six percent was not an arbitrary number.

In many Illinois schools, including District 86, teachers negotiate 6 percent pay hikes annually for their final four years, provided they submit irrevocable notices of retirement.

Salaries for teachers and administrators in their final years are a big factor in how much they make during retirement.