New principal chosen for Westmont High School

Kevin Weck was approved unanimously Feb. 28 to be the next principal of Westmont High School. He will assume the role July 1, filling the position that will be vacated when principal Jack Baldermann takes the reins as the new superintendent for Westmont Community Unit School District 201, according to a news release.

Weck earned a bachelor’s degree in history from the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana and a master’s in teaching from National Louis University. Recently, he earned a doctorate in educational organizational leadership from the University of Illinois. He has 17 years of experience as an educator, with 10 spent at Westmont High School as the assistant principal, where he has been instrumental in helping the school become one of the best in the country, according to the release.

During Weck’s tenure as assistant principal, Westmont High School has been recognized as exemplary by the Illinois State Board of Education every designation year. As the recipient of the 2020 DuFour Award, the school received national recognition for being the best “professional learning community” in the country.

With the highest free and reduced student population in a regular public school, Westmont High School won the 2021 National Blue Ribbon Award, according to the release. Over the past six years, the school has received the best 5Essentials Survey results in Illinois. The school had the fifth-best chronic absenteeism rate out of all Illinois high schools last year. Weck’s commitment to student-centered leadership helped reduce out-of-school suspensions from 126 a year to fewer than 20 a year over the past 10 years, according to the release.

In recognition for his many efforts, Weck was selected the assistant principal of the year for DuPage County in 2020.

“Perhaps his greatest strength is his ability to build relationships and lead people,” Baldermann said in the release. “Dr. Weck’s interpersonal skills are extraordinary. He knows how to connect with people effectively, and that is why our teacher, parent, student and administrative selection committee of 27 overwhelmingly chose him as our next principal.”

Weck said he “is excited and prepared to support and lead innovative teaching and learning to help improve student achievement.”

Weck plans to tap into his “experience in building a positive school culture, supporting best practices for teaching and learning, providing staff development and leading district initiatives,” he said in the release.