GLENVIEW — Getting to know Glenview and team building will be two of the first priorities when Dane Delli becomes superintendent of Glenview School District 34.
The District 34 Board of Education unanimously approved a three-year contract hiring Delli January 12 during a special meeting at the District offices in Glenview. The decision ended a more than six-month search that began in June.
Dr. Dane Delli
A 16-year Highland Park resident, Delli will start his new job July 1. He comes to Glenview after spending nearly 10 years as superintendent of the three-school River Trails School District 26 in Mt. Prospect. District 34 has eight schools.
Delli said River Trails has approximately 1,500 students. He looks forward to the new situations that will come when he takes the reins of the 5,000-student District 34. His management style will be no different, though his job description will.
“There are more resources here,” said Delli. “Now I’m the superintendent, the communications director and the human resources department. I wear a lot of hats. I look forward to building a strong team here.”
Before he officially starts, Delli said he will start getting to know the district and the community. He will work with interim Superintendents Griff Powell and Patricia Wernet to get a sense of the decisions will await him when he arrives.
“My next step is for me to get to know the community of Glenview and give people an opportunity to know me,” said Delli. “I am a democratic leader (and a) social leader. I learn by interacting with people and learning what inspires them.”
The first thing Delli did after his contract was approved and he had a chance to address the board and more than 60 people in the room was introduce his family. His wife, LeeAnn, teaches kindergarten at Sprague Elementary School in Lincolnshire. He has a son at Highland Park High School, a daughter at Edgewood Middle School and another girl at Ravinia Elementary School, all in Highland Park.
“We talk about education a lot at home,” said Delli.
Board President Cathe Russe said the district started its search with 52 applicants, and narrowed it to six for initial interviews. Three came back for a second round before Delli was hired.
“We are here to celebrate our search for a new superintendent,” said Russe. “Every constituency was part of this process.”
Delli will earn a base salary of $245,000, according to the contract. The board will determine the salary for the remaining two years of the contract, but in no event will payment be less than the initial amount.
Before working in Mt. Prospect, Delli spent more than 15 years as a high school teacher, middle school principal, high school principal, assistant superintendent and a university professor, according to the district.
A Cleveland-area native, Delli earned his undergraduate degree in English from Bowling Green State University in Ohio. He has a Ph.D. as well as a masters in educational leadership from The Ohio State University as well as a M.S. in education from John Carroll University, also in Ohio, according to the district.