The community of Oak Park has called for universal student success. This year, District 97 is embarking on a redesign process that will change the way we work—increasing collaboration, creating new opportunities for engagement, and implementing stronger organizational structures—in order to deliver on that promise. Details about these shifts and the district’s preparation for “Portrait of an Oak Park 8th Grade Graduate” were shared at the Feb. 7 and March 14 board meetings.
As a next step in this process, during its regularly scheduled meeting April 11, the District 97 Board of Education approved the appointment of three senior leaders for the 2023-24 school year:
- Dr. Luis Fernando De León will serve as the assistant superintendent of middle schools.
- Patrick Robinson, the current principal of Whittier Elementary School, will serve as the assistant superintendent of elementary schools.
- Luis Rodriguez will serve as the district’s chief legal and equity officer.
District 97 Superintendent Ushma Shah said that the newly appointed leaders will be key figures as the district prepares for Portrait of a Graduate and the organizational shifts planned for the upcoming school year.
“The three leaders we have hired not only reflect our district’s values of equity and inclusion, but also have a record of success in their respective fields,” Shah said. "We are thrilled for them to join our team and to lead this next phase in our work.”
Biographies of the appointees are included below.
Dr. Luis Fernando De León, Assistant Superintendent of Middle Schools
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Dr. Luis Fernando De León joins District 97 from School District U-46 in Elgin, where he has been the principal of Tefft Middle School for the past six years. He started his career as a bilingual teacher, a position he held for six years before serving one year as an administrative intern and four years as an elementary principal. He previously worked as an ESL adult education instructor at Elgin Community College.
De León earned a doctorate in educational leadership and a master’s degree in teaching from Aurora University, as well as a bachelor’s degree in agricultural engineering from Antonio Narro Agrarian Autonomous University in Mexico.
De León was born in Mexico and is bilingual. He and his wife have three children.
“I am thrilled to be joining District 97 as the assistant superintendent of middle schools, and I am looking forward to working with the students, staff and families at Brooks and Julian,” De León said. “Through meaningful collaboration, we can learn and grow together, addressing the inequities of systems and ensuring that all our students have access to rigorous, culturally-responsive learning and instruction.”
De León will join District 97 on July 1.
Patrick Robinson, Assistant Superintendent of Elementary Schools
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Patrick Robinson is currently in his fifth year as principal at Whittier Elementary School. Prior to joining District 97 in 2018, he worked at Urban Prep Academies for Young Men in Chicago, serving as the principal for West Campus for three years and the program’s director of curriculum and instruction for the three years before that. He was also a new teacher induction coach for one year at the New Teacher Center in Chicago, and taught for six years at elementary schools in Galesburg and Chicago.
Robinson earned his bachelor’s degree in elementary education from Monmouth College, and his master’s degree in school leadership from Concordia University, where he is currently pursuing his doctorate in educational leadership. He and his wife have three children.
“It has been a privilege to lead a school community of resilient students, a dedicated staff, and a supportive family community,” Robinson said. “We have collaboratively achieved many outstanding things as a community that positively impact the lives of all our Whittier Wildcats. I am honored and incredibly excited to continue that work in my new role, serving all students, staff, and families of District 97.”
Whittier will remain Robinson’s primary focus through the remainder of the school year. He will begin his new position July 1.
The search for the school’s next principal will begin immediately and will include opportunities for staff and community involvement. Further details will be communicated to staff and families this week.
Luis Rodriguez, Chief Legal and Equity Officer
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Luis Rodriguez comes to District 97 with more than 20 years of legal experience, including 15 years in public education. After leaving private practice in 2008, he served four years in Chicago Public Schools as an attorney and assistant general counsel and nine years as the assistant attorney to the chief legal officer of District U-46. Most recently, he served as the deputy general counsel for Elgin Community College.
Rodriguez earned both his Juris Doctor and bachelor’s degree at the University of Illinois. In his free time, he loves to travel, read books, and scuba dive all throughout the Caribbean Sea.
“I am extremely excited to join Dr. Shah and the District 97 leadership team,” Rodriguez said. “Continuing my legal career in public service provides me the opportunity to continue to live out a quote my mother shared with me before she passed, which is now my ethos: ‘Treat people right, believe in something bigger than yourself, and help others. That’s it son.’”
Rodriguez will begin his new position on or before July 1.