Cass School District 63

Superintendent Mark Cross will retire in June of 2026, and the Board of Education has started the process of planning for his replacement. The process and timeline is shared below in the letter to the school community from Board President Lana Johnson. This includes the recently completed community survey, which had over 200 respondents. The vacancy announcement and job opening is expected to be posted on August 27, 2025.

Dear Cass School District 63 Community,

The Board of Education would like to share that Superintendent Mark Cross will retire at the conclusion of the 2025–26 school year. Since joining Cass School District 63 in 2020, Mr. Cross has led with dedication, integrity, and an unwavering commitment to our students, staff, and families. His leadership has made a lasting impact on our school community, and we are deeply grateful for his service. He will be greatly missed.

In preparation for this transition, the Board has developed a process and timeline to ensure a new superintendent is in place on July 1, 2026. Selecting our next superintendent is one of the Board’s most important responsibilities, and we are committed to a transparent and inclusive process. We highly value input from all stakeholders, including families, CARE, staff, and community members, as we work to define the qualities and priorities for our next district leader.

The Board of Education greatly appreciates the responses from over 200 people who took the time to provide input on our superintendent search survey. We are in the process of reviewing those results to develop the qualities and priorities of our next leader in District 63. Both the overall survey data and the vacancy profile and announcement will be shared with the school community once completed. In the meantime, we will keep this search page updated every step of the way. 

Thank you for your continued support as we look forward to partnering with you in this important process.

Warm regards,

Lana Johnson, President
Board of Education