Feb.

13, 2012

Dear District 98 School Board President, Mrs. Barbara Krause, I have thought long and hard about my decision to write this letter, however, I feel it is in the best interest of the students and families in this fair district to convey to you my deepest concerns about one of your applicants. I understand that Dorothy Wunderlich has applied for the superintendent vacancy that will occur at the end of this school year due to the retirement of Mr. John Belmont. I feel compelled to convey some of the inappropriate behaviors I have witnessed regarding her brash demeanor and the many unprofessional comments displayed and made by Mrs. Winderlich in recent years. I have, on several occasions been witness to her negative comments in front of district personnel in a variety of district meetings she holds for several purposes. Mrs. Wunderlich speaks very poorly of Mr. Belmont, rolls her eyes, comments about his lack of ability in virtually every aspect of leadership. Staff members have shared their discomfort and their concern about her inability to effectively lead this entire district. She is in violation of board policy # ___ Chain of Command ______________, as she has surpassed building principals, listens to idle gossip then acts upon the gossip she has heard. If Mrs. Wunderlich is granted the opportunity to lead this district, employees have expressed their fear that key administrative and teacher leader positions in all buildings will be replaced with loyal followers or outside personnel that have demonstrated their loyalty to her somehow in the past, rather than selection of the absolute best candidate for any particular vacancy. People have shared with me that they would rather leave the district than serve under her leadership. A true leader remains fair and objective in all actions and interactions with people at all times and not simply pacifying people with their words. Mrs. Wunderlich has been observed making inappropriate comments within earshot of staff and parents. She has verbally attacked other administrators in my presence. She uses brash tactics and finger pointing to convey whatever message she chooses in any manner she chooses. She is loud and argumentative, and makes many people feel very uncomfortable. She exhibits bullying behaviors and has made threats to me personally under the guise of helpful advice. Her communication is quite demeaning and unprofessional. Mrs. Wunderlich has also never had the professional experience of being a building principal. It is doubtful that without this experience she will effectively be able to lead building administrators. She simply does not know the complexities of these daily challenges without first hand experience. It is unlikely she would fully understand how to balance the delicate and multifaceted matters building

principals face on a daily basis in order to fully support these efforts. Public school administration requires consistent empathy, compassion, patience, a nurturing demeanor, the caring and feeding of teachers, sound judgment, decision-making, problem solving, trouble shooting, and it requires tremendous people skills and ongoing negotiation, collaboration, logic, creativity, calmness, and above all communication. These are not among the behaviors routinely demonstrated by Mrs. Wunderlich. It can be especially challenging to juggle such priorities and delicate issues, and unless she fully understands the scope of such daily responsibilities, will she truly know how to support such administrative efforts. It is certain that without this building level experience Mrs. Wunderlich will remain ineffective in her ability to lead in such a capacity. She has already damaged her relationships with a majority of district administrators with her inability to fully comprehend our ongoing building level efforts and her brash communication. The damage has been done. Mutual respect is not observed. Mrs. Wunderlich has lost a great deal of respect of many that have witnessed her making negative comments about Mr. Belmont in front of other district personnel, whether it is in district level team meetings or administrative meetings just before he arrives. She has also been observed getting defiant and oppositional to colleagues at administrative team meetings. One recent example is that of principals questioning the role and responsibilities of a district coordinator. When administrators inquired into the specific schedule of a district level employee so we would know where the person is available in each building, Mrs. Wunderlich brashly retorted that the person works with her and that she designates the person s schedule, that building administrators need to ask her directly about availability of this resource. I would hope the school board would agree that a compensated, district level resource employee should be available to all of the schools, the teachers and the students directly rather than be under the sole priority or management of Mrs. Wunderlich. Mrs. Wunderlich has also demonstrated her very boastful behavior on many occasions, too. She and has been observed bragging about the money she is responsible for allocating and bringing into this district via grants. She gives specific dollar amounts routinely and people squirm in their seats with many of her snide remarks about Mr. Belmont and how much better she would do in his role. This kind of brash, boastful behavior is inappropriate and unprofessional. In fact, if this school board could actually witness any one of these tempestuous displays, it is doubtful she would still be employed let alone a candidate for this most important role. There is too much water under the bridge so-to-speak. Mrs. Wunderlich has damaged many of the key relationships and rapport with district personnel and administrators. If she is granted this leadership opportunity, it will surely set a negative tone district wide and send the message that brash tactics are rewarded. Please consider your decision most carefully as you surely will. The role of superintendent sets the tone, the climate, the instructional integrity, the goals and the upward motion of any district. A breath of fresh air is what is truly needed. Someone without a personal agenda, political ties, or strongholds on others is what we need to flourish and to thrive as a district. We require someone as wonderful as Mr. Belmont to lead with compassion, knowledge, integrity, building level leadership experience, dignity, creativity, kindness and great care. Yours is the most important decision that you could possibly have ever had to make. It is monumentally important for so very many people, please

proceed with great care and consideration for everyone. We long for our new leader to possess an innate level of understanding of teaching and learning, genuine integrity and compassion for those less fortunate and someone who can move this district forward as Mr. Belmont did for so many years. He will be genuinely and deeply missed, but it can certainly be a fresh new beginning for all of us if you choose as wisely as everyone believes you will. Thank you.

Sincerely, Stephanie Mitchell