LOMBARD – Come July, Glenbard East High School in Lombard will have two new administrators, including one who once played for the Chicago Bears.

On July 1, D’Wayne Bates will begin his role as assistant principal for athletics and Joan Witkus will transition into her new position as assistant principal for instruction.

The appointments were approved March 24 by the Glenbard Township High School District 87 Board of Education, according to a school district news release.

Bates comes to Glenbard East from LaSalle-Peru High School, where he served as the director of athletics and student activities for the past three years.

Bates was a highly decorated high school, college and professional athlete, the release stated. After being drafted out of high school to play major league baseball, he turned down the opportunity to attend college instead.

Bates accepted a full athletic scholarship to attend Northwestern University and play football. After his collegiate career, Bates spent three seasons with the Chicago Bears, two seasons with the Minnesota Vikings and a short stint with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers before retiring from the NFL, according to the release.

Witkus has served six years as Glenbard East's English Department chair. In that role, she strengthened the English Professional Learning Community structure while focusing on student learning and common assessments, the release stated.

Witkus has been a key facilitator of the work that has gone into the development of the district-wide English assessments, according to the release. She also has worked closely with Glenbard East’s sender schools to ensure students experience a smooth transition to high school.

Witkus began her career as an English teacher at Glenbard East in 1995, and she is a graduate of Glenbard West High School.