Three outgoing Sycamore School District 427 Board members bid farewell

SYCAMORE – Three outgoing members of the Sycamore School District 427 school board gave their farewells at their final meeting this week.

Of the board’s seven members, three – Kris Wrenn, Steve Nelson and Julenne Davey – did not run for reelection in the April 4 consolidated election. Tuesday’s school board meeting was the final function of their time in public office.

Jim Dombek, District 427 board president, gave a short speech, thanking each of the leaving board members for their service.

“Julenne, I want to say thank you, and I want to acknowledge the fact that you brought with you to the board the wit, the sensitivity, the understanding of a guidance counselor who’s worked in the school system, who knows the hearts and minds of the students, and you always spoke up for that,” Dombek said.

Davey thanked her colleagues and said her departure is bittersweet.

“I’m leaving here with mixed emotions because I really, really enjoy hearing from the kids and what the teachers are doing, but it’s time – it’s time for new people,” Davey said. “It’s time for new ideas. And thank you for the support, thank you for your positive comments. I really appreciate that. I will miss you all.”

“I’m leaving here with mixed emotions because I really, really enjoy hearing from the kids, and what the teachers are doing but it’s time, it’s time for new people.”

—  Julenne Davey, outgoing Sycamore District 427 school board member

As a part of the board meeting, the three outgoing members were given a plaque by Dombek for their work and dedication to the school district.

Dombek heralded Wrenn’s connections to her constituents and her voice on the board.

“I think you did that on a number of occasions and made us understand, I think, or helped us understand just exactly the majority position that was out there so that we could do our job a bit better,” Dombek said. “And we’ll miss that perspective; we’ll miss you, we’ll miss your service, and thank you very much.”

Wrenn said that when she went home from her first board orientation meeting 12 years ago, her head swimming with school district business, one thing stuck with her.

“I’ve held onto it all these years, and it was actually some advice that Jim gave me. He actually said, ‘You may not always agree with every decision our board makes, but I hope when you leave the meeting you understand why we made it, and you have respect for that decision,’ ” Wrenn said. “And to be completely honest, I laid in bed that night and thought, ‘Oh, I’m not sure this gig is going to be a very good fit for me,’ but much to my surprise, it was.”

Dombek said the departure of Nelson – who leaves after 17 years on the board – was a hard one, calling the outgoing official his “wingman.”

Nelson said he’ll miss the camaraderie of the board members.

“I will miss working toward a common goal on a number of things, even when we didn’t agree on things,” Nelson said. “And that’s true not only of this board but the other boards going past.”

Nelson also served the Illinois Association of School Boards in a variety of different roles while he was a Sycamore school board member.

“I’ve seen a lot dysfunctional boards, a lot of grandstanding boards, and our board has not been that –at least the time that I’ve been on here,” Nelson said.

Newcomers Alex Grados and Beth-Marie Evans were jointly sworn in Tuesday.