Minooka 201 hires new superintendent

MINOOKA – A new superintendent has been hired for Minooka Community Consolidated School District 201.

At a special board meeting held Monday, the board voted to hire Kris Monn to replace former superintendent Al Gegenheimer who left his contract a year before it expired. The contract approval came after a 75-minute executive session.

Two board members, Ed Cronin and Curt Jebens were absent and Doug Martin voted via phone, along with the rest of the board in attendance. Monn’s contract spans from 2015-2018 with $161,000 per year salary, and 2015 pro-rated.

Monn comes to Minooka 201 from Batavia Public School District 101 where he was the Assistant Superintendent for Finance. In Minooka he will assume a role as superintendent and also do the finances for the district.

Board President Jim Satorius said those in the district should expect Minooka 201 to continue with the great schools is has along with continuing the pursuit of the Bright Star Award, which is given to school districts that are in the upper third of the districts for academic performance, yet in the bottom quarter for expenditures per pupil.

Interim Superintendent Stef Palaniuk said he thinks Monn is good for the district because “he has good people skills, is open, positive and has a ‘what can we do together’ type of attitude.”

Monn is pleased to take on this role.

“I am ecstatic about this opportunity. When I saw what Minooka 201 was looking for, it sounded like a perfect fit. I had aspirations to become a superintendent, and in doing research, Minooka seems like a close-knit community,” Monn said.

The willingness to be open and a sense of group camaraderie was what impressed board member Vicki Allen.

“Dr. Monn was willing to open up and share, answer questions and give explanations. I think we will be going to the drawing board together on issues and he will work well with everybody,” she said.

On Aug. 1, Monn will take on his new role with the first step of getting to know the people.

“I want to meet with the board members, district administrators, teachers and support staff to find out current needs and get a comprehensive look on how the community views the district," he said.

Satorius said “we got the right person. I think his personality came through and he was the overwhelming choice of the focus group and board. No doubt we got the top candidate.”