Unit 4 Brings on Interim Superintendent

The Champaign Unit 4 School District has named a new superintendent to replace Arthur Culver, who leaves his post at the end of month.

Bob Malito will serve on an interim basis while a national search takes place for a permanent replacement.

"We spent a great deal of time deliberating on the selection of an interim superintendent," Champaign School Board vice-president Stig Lanneskog said. "There were several excellent options, but we believe that Dr. Malito is a very talented leader who best matches the District's needs at this time."

Malito has 20 years of experience working as the superintendent at different school districts, including 11 years at McLean County Unit District No. 5, three years at Township High School 211 in Palentine, and most recently, six years at the Parkway School District in Chesterfield, Missouri.

Malito said he is ready to get to work in Champaign.

"The district has done quite well, and the board is just dedicated to see that we can raise to the next level academically for our students," he said. "We're going to be high-speed rail going through Champaign get the job done for our students."

Malito's new job is effective July 1, but because he is coming to Champaign on an interim basis, state law indicates he can only work for a hundred working days. Lanesskog said it may take up to a year to hire someone full-time, which means another interim superintendent could be named.

"We're going to do our best to use those hundred days for as long as possible, as strategically as possible for the good of the district, and then at that point certainly we need to have a superintendent named until we have a superintendent full-time," he said.

There will be a series of public forums in the coming months to gather community input about the search for a permanent superintendent. More information about that process can be found at ChampaignSchools.org

(Photo courtesy of the Parkway School District)