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Elmwood Park board extends superintendent contract through 2030 amid public objections
Summary
The Elmwood Park CUSD 401 Board of Education voted to extend Superintendent Dr. Leah Gautti’s contract to June 30, 2030, after public commenters urged postponement and raised concerns about safety and grading changes.
The Elmwood Park CUSD 401 Board of Education voted July 1 to extend Superintendent Dr. Leah Gautti’s contract from July 1, 2025, through June 30, 2030.
Board members approved the contract in a roll-call vote after a motion from a board member and a second; the motion carried with all members voting in favor. The vote followed public comments urging the board to postpone action until newly elected board members are seated.
Public commenters raised safety and accountability concerns and asked the board to delay the contract vote. At the start of public comment, resident Robert Doyle said the district still lacks adequate language-access measures for non-English speakers and urged the board to allow high-school Spanish students to serve as volunteer translators at meetings. Doyle also said a firearm had been brought into the building in March (as recorded in his remarks) and asked the board to require an annual public safety update from the district security team.
Another resident, Damien Estrada, urged the board to delay approval so newly elected trustees could participate. Estrada also criticized the district’s recent handling of grading reforms and staff retention, and he called the proposed superintendent salary for 2025–26 “outrageous,” saying it would start at $230,000 under the extension. "Start tonight by postponing the motion," he said.
Board members who spoke after the vote praised Gautti’s work and supported extending her contract. At the meeting’s close, a trustee thanked Gautti for her service and expressed optimism about continuing the relationship through the extended term.
The meeting record shows the motion to approve the contract was made and seconded on the July 1 agenda and that the board confirmed the contract extension by voice/roll-call vote. The transcript did not provide the full motion text beyond approving the superintendent’s contract for the stated dates. The meeting minutes linked the item to the consent and action items on the agenda.
No other contractual terms (salary schedule beyond the $230,000 starting figure mentioned by a commenter), severance provisions, or performance benchmarks were included in the public transcript; those details were not specified in the public record provided at the meeting.
Looking ahead, several public commenters asked that the district provide clearer, regular updates on building safety and language-access measures and that the board consider deferring contract decisions until newly elected members join the board.
