Superintendent Adrian Talley of Indian Prairie School District 204 announced Wednesday that he will not renew his contract and plans to step down at the end of the 2025-26 school year.
Talley has led the district for 5 years since taking over in July 2020 from previous Superintendent Karen Sullivan.
He came to District 204 with more than three decades of experience in education, including in large districts in Maryland and Virginia, and he led the district through most of the COVID-19 pandemic.
‘Thankful’ for Talley’s leadership at IPSD 204
In an email to the Indian Prairie community in parts of Naperville, Aurora, Bolingbrook, and Plainfield, Talley said he’s proud that student “achievement data has returned to — if not exceeded — pre-pandemic levels.” He called leading the nearly 26,000 students and 3,300 staff members of District 204 “one of the greatest honors of my career.”
School board President Laurie Donahue said the board is responding to Talley’s decision to leave at the end of next school year by beginning the process of selecting a new superintendent.
“We are thankful for Dr. Talley’s leadership in the district and grateful to have him with us through the 2025-26 school year,” Donahue said in her message.
Next step: Find a search firm
The board’s first task will be to hire a search firm to recruit the next superintendent. The district used Ray and Associates, a nationwide school executive search firm based in Iowa, to conduct the search that brought in Talley.
Donahue said the district plans to send a request for proposals to select search firms on Friday, with a deadline to receive proposals two weeks later, on April 25. The board then plans to choose semifinalists by May 5 and approve a search firm by June 9.
Talley said announcing his intent to step down more than a year in advance allows the district “ample time to conduct a thorough search for the next superintendent, who will begin on July 1, 2026.”
Donahue said getting input about what the community wants to see in the next superintendent will be a key part of the process.
Photo courtesy: IPSD 204
If you have a story idea, we want to hear from you!
