Orland D135 Makes Quick Hire for New Superintendent

Orland District 135 pulled from its past to secure its future superintendent Monday night. The board voted to hire DJ Skogsberg, who had previously served as the district’s assistant director of curriculum.

Board President Laura Berry was Skogsberg’s boss during his previous role with D135. Skogsberg, 41, left the district in 2012, for his current position as superintendent of Taft School District 90 in Lockport, which serves students in kindergarten through eighth grade.

The board approved a three-year contract for Skogsberg, who will make $182,500 in his first year. In comparison, outgoing Superintendent Janet Stutz will make $185,650 in her final year, Daily Southtown reports. Skogsberg begin in his role on July 1. Stutz, 52, will leave when her contract expires June 30.

“I was really humbled by the opportunity to return to Orland,” Skogsberg said, as reported by the Southtown. “It’s a phenomenal district.”

The district was pelted with criticism for the quick hire, with parents citing that there had been no open application process for the role. The board retorted that they “knew what they were looking for” and wanted to avoid a potentially lengthy and expensive search process.

“We really wanted someone that had familiarity with our school district, that had worked with our school district and that had a strong reputation in the Southland area ... We wanted an experienced superintendent,” Berry said. “Each situation is unique, and we felt because of our prior knowledge [of Skogsberg], and really the skills that we were looking for in our superintendent, that the situation didn’t warrant those additional steps± and cost.”

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