LM Jan 2021

2021 Illinois Superintendent of the Year: Dr. Donna Leak

By Jason Nevel IASA Director of Social Media and Publications

No matter where she goes, Dr. Donna Leak keeps a notebook handy to help her stay organized. The note-taking habit is something Leak, superintendent of CCSD #168–Sauk Village, developed early on and has continued throughout her impressive career, which culminated last month with Leak being named 2021 Illinois Superintendent of the Year. When Leak received the phone call about the award, she was so overwhelmed she fell to the floor in excitement and humbleness, knowing she was selected out of the more than

852 superintendents in Illinois who admirably serve and lead approximately 2 million students. But the award also meant so much to Leak because of all the challenges and obstacles she overcame along the way—both in her personal life, being raised primarily by a single mother, and professional career as an African- American woman breaking into a leadership position that has historically been dominated by white males. Take the notebook, for example. In 2010, Leak applied for her first superintendency, in a district where she served as the assistant superintendent,

4

LM January 2021