District 113A Names New Superintendent

LEMONT, IL — The District 113A board of education voted unanimously at its Feb. 11 meeting to hire Dr. Anthony McConnell as superintendent of schools. The district said McConnell currently serves as the Superintendent of Schools for Deerfield Public Schools District 109.

He will take over July 1 from current superintendent Dr. Courtney Orzel.

“Dr. McConnell is a highly regarded and experienced superintendent who has done amazing work in his prior district," Board president Damon Ascolani said in a release. "We look forward to him applying his talents in District 113A to continue the tremendous progress that we are making in the district.”

McConnell has served the Deerfield Public School District #109 for the past seven years, the district said. During this time, he has served as an assistant principal, principal, assistant superintendent and has served as superintendent since 2018. Previous to that time, he was a high school social studies teacher at Rock Island High School. McConnell earned a Doctorate in Educational Leadership from Western Illinois University and holds a Superintendent endorsement.

As principal, McConnell led his school in construction of STEM learning spaces, implementation of 1:1 learning, and adoption of The Leader in Me process. In his final year as principal, his school was also recognized as a National Blue Ribbon School of Excellence, the district said.

Under McConnell’s leadership, his district was recently featured in Fortune magazine and named as a Chicagoland Top Places to Work and has 5 out of 6 schools designated as National Blue Ribbon Schools of Excellence. He is also the co-author of The Principled Principal: 10 Principles for Leading Exceptional Schools, the district said.

However, in McConnell's current Deerfield district, a group of concerned parents, 109 Demand For Change, submitted a letter to Deerfield Patch opposing the renewal of McConnell's contract. The group said McConnell had no interest in working with parents and teachers, and the district needed a more qualified leader.

Ascolani said McConnell emerged from over 40 candidates as the best candidate to District 113A. The district said McConnell interviewed with over 30 stakeholders including parents, community leaders, administrators, staff members and board members.

During the interview process, parents described him as “a student advocate, innovative, and a strategic planner,” while community leaders said he’s “personable, approachable and genuine,” and staff described him as, “experienced, very student-centered, energetic, passionate about what’s best for students, and instantly likeable.“

“I am so very honored to join the District 113A community,” McConnell said in a release. “As I have come to know the outstanding teachers, staff, parents, community and board members in the district, I have learned about their well-deserved pride and the great progress toward meeting district goals. I look forward to continuing working collaboratively with the community to continue that progress. I believe that working together, with a clear focus on students, the possibilities of District 113A are limitless.”

McConnell also serves as a developer and facilitator of the Illinois Principals Association Aspiring Principals Program for Illinois, the district said. He and his wife Cayce have two children, Aurelia, age 12, and AJ, age 7.

In the next few months, McConnell will be introduced during voluntary staff and parent meetings that will be held at Old Quarry and the Oakwood/River Valley campus.