At the May 5 meeting, members elected to the District 161 Board of Education read the oath of office before appointing a new president, vice president, and secretary.
One new member, Ashly Giddens, was sworn in, along with Theartris “Tre” Childress III, Carolyn Theard-Griggs and Cameron Nelson. Voters reelected Theard-Griggs and Nelson on April 1, and elected Childress and Giddens for the first time in the same election. The board appointed Childress in October 2023 to fill a vacant position.
Board members voted 4 to 3 for David Linnear to replace Theard-Griggs as president. Theard-Griggs has presided over the board since 2021 and served as vice president before taking that role. Linnear was first elected to the board in 2019 and reelected in 2023.
The board voted Childress vice president 4 to 3 over Nelson. Board members voted Nelson into that position over Linnear in 2021. The board voted 5-2 for Giddens to take over the role of secretary from Christina Vlietstra. Vlietstra was first appointed secretary in 2021.
In the vote, Michael Rouse II supported Linnear, Childress and Giddens, each of whom voted for themselves and each other. Nelson’s vote for secretary was for Giddens.
Other Business
Before the leadership restructuring, the board voted to approve the scope of work planned for the summer of 2026 at Flossmoor Hills, Western Avenue, and Parker Junior High. The estimated cost of the projects is $12 million and includes classroom refreshes, new technology and other improvements.
Wold Architects and Engineers will complete drawings that allow the district to start the competitive bidding process. Winning bids will be brought to the Board for approval by January 2026.
Board members questioned the contingency fees Wold had included in the plan, but they decided to revisit the contract with the architect later so that the work schedule would not be delayed.