Effective at the beginning of the 2026 school year, current Superintendent Dr. Charles Johns will retire and will be replaced by Superintendent Designate Dr. R.J. Gravel.
Johns has worked in education for 35 years, starting as an English Teacher at Elk Grove High School, working his way up to Associate Principal of Operations at Rolling Meadows High School, becoming Asst. Superintendent for Curriculum at York High School, and finally will retire as District 225 (D225) Superintendent.
The two will share responsibilities for the remainder of the 2024-2025 school year, as well as the 2025-2026 school year to ensure continuity for all ongoing projects in the district, Johns said. This is an industry standard for schools across the state, he added.
“[The district] is growing, and I think it is time to see where the new leaders can take us,” Johns said.
Johns has worked in many different school districts across the north shore, but especially likes working in the high school sector because of the students’ strong passion and drive to accomplish their goals, he said.
“It is such an exciting time to be around young people and help them with their journeys,” Johns said. “I think that [D225 is] the very best at helping students with their passions.”
Watching The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime, this year’s fall play, stands out as Johns’ favorite memory. Watching the acting skills of students improve over the course of their four years at South was especially impressive and heart-warming to watch, Johns said.
Although Johns will miss many things at South, the biggest is the relationships he has formed with students, and staff. However, he feels confident in Gravel’s ability to efficiently lead D225 and replace him as Superintendent, he said.
“[Gravel] is a wonderful man and educator who is very passionate about the district and the people of the district,” Johns said. “The people are very important to him, and I think he is going to be a great next superintendent.”
Gravel started working as a music teacher at the Archdioceses of Chicago, he then transitioned to working in technology for there. Then Gravel worked in Technology at Johnsburg School District and came to D225 to lead the Technology Department.
From there he transitioned to his previous role as Deputy Superintendent, Gravel explained.
Gravel hopes his experience as a music teacher in the classroom will translate into being a good leader for D225, even with his new job being an administrative role.
“Our [District] is very much a symphony,” Gravel said. “It’s a bunch of moving parts [and] a bunch of individuals with their own voices coming together, all working towards the same pathway and idea.”
Additionally, communication and feedback are paramount to Gravel. He strives to be more present in classrooms and gain in-creasingly frequent feedback from parents, students, and teachers.
“[I want to make sure] that these schools represent what our community is looking for in education,” Gravel said. “We want to continue to [be] the best and challenge ourselves to get even better.”
