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DeKALB – On Thursday, DeKalb School District 428 Board Chairwoman Sarah Moses issued a statement marking the district’s leadership transition.
Superintendent Minerva Garcia-Sanchez began her new role Thursday. According to her contract, Garcia-Sanchez will earn $210,000 annually. The contract is able to be renewed after Jan. 1, 2024. She also will receive a $2,500 automobile allowance.
Garcia-Sanchez previously served as the Pilsen/Little Village chief of schools, a position she held since 2015.
Garcia-Sanchez took over from interim Superintendents Griff Powell and Ray Lechner, who had been in the role since Jamie Craven announced his resignation in April 2020.
“This was certainly the most challenging year we have faced, and I feel that we were incredibly fortunate to have their guidance and wisdom to steer our district through the storm of uncertainty, as we navigated unprecedented challenges,” Moses wrote. “They remained steady, student-centered and worked to foster and nurture relationships with the board of education, our unions and central office staff, as well as the community, always committed to leave the district better than they found it.”
Moses also extended “a word of welcome and gratitude” to Garcia-Sanchez and remarked on how she volunteered time in the district before starting the leadership role.
“Her servant leadership style, dedication and work ethic, along with her passion for student-centered education, has clearly shown through over the last six months since she was selected as our leader, to begin July 1st,” Moses wrote. “She has freely given great amounts of time and energy to forming relationships within the district and the community, understanding and assessing our needs, and sharing her vision of success for our children and community. I am very excited for our district today, Dr. Garcia-Sanchez’s first official day as superintendent of DeKalb Community School District 428. Please join the board of education in welcoming her.”