New Oswego SD308 superintendent forms advisory group to help district determine priorities

New Oswego School District 308 Superintendent Andalib Khelghati has formed a superintendent’s advisory group that will help the district to set priorities.

The advisory group will comprise of parents, educators, and administrators representing each of the district’s schools. The idea was born from the meet and greet sessions that Khelghati has been having with community members after he started on July 1.

“The purpose of this group will be to bring representatives from every single school to engage in some discourse and discussion and to highlight the things that are really percolating to the top,” Khelghati said during the Sept. 11 school board meeting.

Khelghati said the group will meet four times per year during the school year to discuss a variety of topics aligned to the goals of the district, share information and broaden its understanding of school-related issues.

“How do we take what really are limited funds and then use those funds wisely?” he said in talking about the group’s goals. “We don’t want to be in a position where we run too quickly to serve one urgent need and then ignore what may be a greater need down the road,” he said.

Those interested in being part of the group are asked to complete a survey by Sept. 14. The survey is available at https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeFx4AFWkjVdvxZ8OK1LNtQtPvBO9V-gHK_FJRgBG6RrjCYQQ/viewform.

At a special school board workshop June 14, board members voted 6-0 to approve a three-year contract with Andalib Khelghati. He started July 1.

He succeeds Superintendent John Sparlin, who retired at the end of June with a year remaining on his contract. Khelghati has served as Evanston/Skokie School District 65′s assistant superintendent of human resources since 2021. Prior to that, he had served as the district’s assistant superintendent of schools for four years.

He also is a former teacher and principal.

His hiring culminated a nationwide search for a new superintendent. Oak Park-based School Exec Connect put together a profile detailing what qualities the new superintendent should possess based on input provided at staff and community forums and through an online questionnaire. The school board hired School Exec Connect after Sparlin announced he was retiring from the district.

Twenty-nine candidates applied for the position.