District 210 Board Approves Three-Year Contract with New Superintendent

has officially hired its next superintendent.

The District 210 Board of Education voted unanimously Monday night to approve a three-year contract with Mary Ticknor, an associate superintendent in the Burr Ridge-based Community Consolidated School District 181. She will assume her post July 1 at annual salary of $185,000.

Ticknor will replace outgoing Superintendent Sandra Doebert, June 30, 2012, after leading District 210 for the past decade. The school board Dec. 26, ending a five-month search for Doebert’s successor.

The approval of Ticknor's contract was met with a loud round of applause from board members and district administrators. Board President Beverly Marzec welcomed her to Lemont, and said the board "did a great job" selecting her as the next superintendent.

"Mary's experiences in education made her a strong candidate for the position, but after getting to know her through the interview process, it became quite evident to the Board that she would be the right person to lead our district," Marzec said in a presse release last month.

Ticknor has served District 181 since 2004, when she took over as principal for Hinsdale Middle School.

In 2007, Ticknor became District 181’s assistant superintendent for human resources. She has served as an associate superintendent since 2008—first as associate superintendent/chief of operations (2008-2010) and currently as associate superintendent for human resources.

Over the past four years, she has been charged with oversight and management of the district, which comprises seven elementary schools and two middle schools and serves 4,000 students across Burr Ridge, Clarendon Hills, Hinsdale, Oak Brook and Willowbrook. Ticknor's responsibilities have included curriculum and technology, human resources, finance, pupil personnel services, buildings and grounds, and accountability and communications.

Prior to her time in District 181, Ticknor worked in education for 20 years in South Dakota. She served in both public and private school settings, and within elementary, secondary and post-secondary education.

During the meeting Monday, District 210 board members also formally approved Doebert's retirement and thanked her for her years of service.

"It's been an honor and a privilege," Doebert said.