Sycamore school board members get shoutout for elected service: Past few years have ‘been tough’

SYCAMORE – Sycamore school superintendent Steve Wilder gave a shoutout this week to District 427′s elected officials, saying the past few years have been especially tough for the school board.

The remarks were made during Tuesday’s school board meeting as a part of School Board Members Day in Illinois.

The board’s seven members also were given a mug from the district.

“Being a school board member is a volunteer position, it’s not paid,” Wilder said. “It’s oftentimes thankless because you’re responsible for a lot of the decisions that have to get made.”

Accompanying Wilder’s gratitude were two videos from SpartanTV and SpartanTV Junior. Both productions featured students from throughout Sycamore Community School District 427 expressing their thanks.

“Over the last couple of years it’s been pretty tough,” Wilder said. “Tough to be in that spot across the country, let alone some of the issues we’ve dealt with here.”

North Elementary School principal Thomas Franks highlighted what he said was the board’s commitment to listening to area residents.

“I find all of you approachable and collaborative,” Franks said.

Longtime board member Eric Jones was given a special shoutout, as he recently was recognized by the Illinois Association of School Boards as an established board leader for his work since first taking office in 2013.

“It’s nice to be appreciated after, you know, nearly a decade on the school board,” Jones said. “It’s consumed a lot of time and energy and it’s nice to get any sort of recognition for that, and so I’m thankful for those people for recognizing me.”

Jones’ school board interest was piqued after a board vacancy was created when a friend of his stepped down early.

“I had no idea what it meant to be on a school board at that time,” Jones said. “I didn’t know anything about the educational field, other than having gone through it as a student.”

Jones ran as a write-in candidate and has been on the board ever since. His term will end at the beginning of 2025.

“It’s been a great experience getting to dive into the inner workings of the educational system,” Jones said.

Board member Steve Nelson also was recognized by the Illinois Association of School Boards.

“You guys have done a lot, endured a lot. You stuck it out, and although there were a lot of times to really kind of get hung up on the negatives and the challenges that we face,” Wilder said, “I know that we were constantly looking for the opportunity to do good things.”