In Memoriam: District 97's Superintendents (2021-2026)

This post is a follow-up to The Authority Vacuum, written just six days before everything changed again.

On November 30, 2025, I wrote about Oak Park District 97’s superintendent instability. I documented four leadership structures in four years. I noted that the same interim team from 2021-2022 was back for 2025-2026.

I concluded optimistically: “Powell and Wernet will serve through the 2025-2026 school year. That’s good—stability matters.”

Three days later, Wernet announced she’s resigning.

Effective December 19, 2025. After three months. Citing a “medical procedure.”

So let me update my records.

In Memoriam: District 97 Superintendent Leadership (2021-2026)

Dr. Carol Kelley

Tenure: June 2015 - June 2021 (6 years) Departed: For Princeton Public Schools, New Jersey Circumstances: Took “medical leave” for final 45 days before departure Legacy: Eliminated 3rd-5th grade math acceleration program (2017); later resigned from Princeton after “tumultuous” 2.5-year tenure Remembered for: The 276-to-26 acceleration gap that persists to this day

Dr. Griff Powell & Dr. Patricia Wernet (I)

Tenure: 2021-2022 (~1 year) Role: Co-Interim Superintendents Circumstances: Brought in to stabilize after Kelley’s departure Legacy: Kept the lights on during COVID recovery Remembered for: Being available for a sequel

Dr. Ushma Shah

Tenure: June 2022 - August 2025 (~3 years) Departed: Days before the 2025-2026 school year began Circumstances: Resigned citing board’s plans for “punitive action” and breakdown of “mutual respect”; board denied seeking punitive action and claimed to be “in shock” Contract status at resignation: Had received 2-year extension just 6 months earlier Remembered for: The August surprise

Patrick Robinson (Acting)

Tenure: August - September 2025 (~1 month) Role: Acting Superintendent Day job: Assistant Superintendent of Elementary Schools Circumstances: Stepped in after Shah’s abrupt departure Legacy: Denied my daughter’s mid-year partial enrollment request (March 2025); classified her as “homeschooled” (November 2025); admitted state law doesn’t prohibit what he denied (November 25, 2025); declared “this will be my last communication” to end discussion Remembered for: “We do not have all of the detailed work readily available to provide”

Dr. Griff Powell & Dr. Patricia Wernet (II)

Tenure: September 2025 - December 2025 (~3 months) Role: Co-Interim Superintendents (reprise) Circumstances: Same team, back for round two Departure: Wernet resigning December 19, 2025, citing “medical procedure” Remembered for: The shortest comeback tour in education history

Dr. Griff Powell & Patrick Robinson

Tenure: January 2026 - ??? Role: Co-Interim Superintendents (pending December 9 board vote) Circumstances: Robinson promoted to run day-to-day operations; Powell continues one day per week Status: Not yet begun Remembered for: TBD (but we have some guesses)

The Numbers

Leadership structures since 2021: 6

Permanent superintendents hired: 1

Permanent superintendents who completed their contracts: 0

Co-interim appointments: 4

Times the same retired superintendent has been called back: 2

Medical-related departure language: 2

• Kelley (2021): “medical leave” for final 45 days
• Wernet (2025): “medical procedure”

Months of Wernet’s second tenure before resignation: 3

Days between my “Authority Vacuum” blog post and Wernet’s resignation announcement: 3

A Timeline

What “Stability” Means in District 97

When I wrote “stability matters” on November 30, I meant it. Stable leadership allows:

• Principals to exercise discretion without fear of being overruled
• Policies to be implemented consistently
• Institutional knowledge to accumulate
• Trust to develop between administrators and families

Here’s what District 97 has instead:

• Six leadership structures in five years
• Principals who won’t make decisions without district approval
• Policies that depend on who’s in charge this month
• Families navigating a bureaucracy where nobody has authority

And now, the administrator who denied my daughter’s requests, misclassified her enrollment status, admitted state law didn’t support his position, and cut off communication—Patrick Robinson—is being promoted to run the district day-to-day.

The “Medical” Pattern

I want to be clear: I have no reason to doubt that Dr. Wernet has a medical procedure scheduled. People have medical needs. That’s real.

But I also notice a pattern:

Carol Kelley (2021): “Medical leave” for final 45 days → departed for Princeton

Patricia Wernet (2025): “Medical procedure” → resigning mid-year after 3 months

When “medical” language accompanies superintendent departures, it tends to provide graceful cover for what might otherwise be uncomfortable questions about why someone is leaving.

I’m not accusing anyone of anything. I’m observing that this language appears at convenient moments.

What This Means for Families

Every time the superintendent changes, families like mine lose ground.

The context we’ve built—the emails, the appeals, the careful documentation of what we were told and when—becomes less relevant. The new leadership wasn’t there for those conversations. They inherit a file, not a relationship.

The positions harden because new leaders don’t want to reverse their predecessors’ decisions. “We reviewed the matter and stand by the previous determination” is easier than engaging with the substance.

And the clock keeps running. My daughter is in second grade. She was denied acceleration in first grade. By the time the superintendent situation stabilizes (if it ever does), she’ll be in third grade, then fourth, then fifth.

The district’s instability doesn’t pause her education. It just makes advocating for her harder.

The Questions I Asked Six Days Ago

In “The Authority Vacuum,” I asked the board:

“Why can’t we keep a superintendent for more than three years?” “What are we doing that creates such instability?” “How is that instability affecting students?”

Three days later, the co-interim superintendent resigned.

I’d still like answers.

Looking Ahead

Patrick Robinson will be running District 97’s day-to-day operations starting January 1, 2026.

This is the same administrator who:

• Denied mid-year partial enrollment citing a discretionary deadline as mandatory
• Provided guidance classifying partial enrollment as “homeschool”
• Denied assessment access for a partially-enrolled student
• Admitted “State law does not prohibit” what he had just denied
• Declared “this will be my last communication” to end discussion

He’s being promoted.

I’m sure the board has its reasons. But from where I sit—as a parent whose requests Robinson denied, whose daughter Robinson misclassified, whose questions Robinson stopped answering—this doesn’t feel like accountability.

It feels like the authority vacuum continues. Just with a new name on the door.

In Closing

To Dr. Wernet: I hope your medical procedure goes well. Genuinely.

To Dr. Powell: Thank you for coming back. Twice. That’s more commitment than most.

To Dr. Shah: I never interacted with you directly, but I hope wherever you landed treats you better.

To Dr. Kelley: The acceleration gap you created in 2017 is still hurting students. Including mine.

To Patrick Robinson: Congratulations on your promotion. I look forward to our continued correspondence. Or not, since you declared our last exchange would be your “last communication.”

To the families of District 97: Good luck. I mean that sincerely.

We’re all going to need it.

Related Posts:

• The Authority Vacuum - The post that aged poorly in three days
• The Leveling Down - How the 2017 changes created the current system
• The Acceleration Gap: 276 to 26 - The numbers that tell the story

This is part of an ongoing series documenting one family’s experience with gifted education acceleration in Oak Park Elementary School District 97. The superintendent count is accurate as of December 6, 2025. Check back next week for updates.