Lee named interim superintendent for Quincy

8 months, 1 week ago by Jamie Busen

Dr. Cal Lee recently retired as superintendent at Moline

The Quincy School Board voted unanimously Friday morning to hire Dr. Cal Lee as the District's interim superintendent, effective Monday.

Lee, who got his start teaching in Quincy, most recently served as the superintendent of Moline School District No. 40 from 2001 to June 2012. He has permanently retired, said Board President Bill Daniels, and doesn't have an interest in applying for the superintendent position.

"He said when he retired, he didn't think about doing an interim," Daniels said. "But because he got his start here, Quincy has a special place in his heart and he contacted me to express interest."

Lee, who was not present at the Board meeting Friday, will sign on for 100 days at $600 a day, the same contract as Bud Martin signed. Martin's last day as the interim superintendent will be Monday or Tuesday, but he's meeting with Lee on Monday to help with the transition.

Lee was interviewed earlier this week and Daniels said they felt even though they had "two good candidates, we felt like Cal was the right one."

"From what I've heard from others he has an excellent reputation," Daniels said.

He said Lee will be good at leading the District while they transition to the new principal and teacher evaluation laws put in place by Illinois. Daniels said by the time Lee's interim session is up, they should have a permanent candidate in mind, ready to take over at the earliest in the summer.

Lee graduated from Quincy University in 1976 and holds a Doctor of Education from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

In the late 1970s through the mid 1980s, Lee taught at St. Mary, Chaddock, St. Anthony de Padua and Irving Elementary before leaving for administration positions in Champaign.

The permanment superintendent will replace Lonny Lemon, who left for a job in the Chicago suburbs in June, also applied for the superintendent job in Moline to replace Lee. Moline hired David Moyer as its new superintendent.