‘I have always known that the community of St. Joseph values and supports its schools’

Lance Landeck knows how important its schools are to St. Joseph.

That’s why he applied to be the new superintendent of the St. Joseph Grade School District.

“Growing up, as well as spending my entire professional educational career in East Central Illinois, I have always known that the community of St. Joseph values and supports its schools and that is the type of community and district I was looking for.”

The Board of Education hired Lance Landeck during the Nov. 14, 2022 Board of Education meeting.

Landeck replaced Todd Pence who retired on June 30, 2023 after leading the district for 21 years.

Landeck has over 26 years of experience as a teacher, coach, principal, and Superintendent. He began his career as a seventh-grade world geography and PE teacher in Tuscola. He then served as principal for the pre-K through eighth-grade students in the Atwood-Hammond School District. From 2011 to 2023 he served as the Superintendent of the Oakland Schools.

Landeck said during the hiring process he met with all seven school board members.

“ I went in with the strategy of simply being myself and if being myself demonstrated that I was the person they were looking for then we had a match,” he said.

He then met with the administration, teachers, and support staff.

“ I felt the interaction with all three groups only solidified for me that St. Joseph Grade School 169 was a district I wanted to be a part of,” he said.

Landeck said he considers himself to have a transformational leadership style and wants to encourage, inspire, and motivate all members of the district to be the best possible version of themselves they can be.

“When everyone is operating at their best, the organization itself can be its best self,” he said.

Landeck said the biggest challenge facing districts today is the shortage of educators, teachers and administrators. Landeck said he believes the superintendent sets the tone for the culture and climate of the district.

“I want school to be somewhere students and staff alike look forward to going to each and every day,” he said. “No one wants to go to work somewhere every day where they are not enjoying themselves.”

Landeck said Oakland had a much higher and growing rate of students that qualify for free and reduced lunch than St. Joseph. Many of those students are considered low-income and often have personal factors that impact their learning, Landeck said.

“The challenge is to help educators that may not have an understanding of what some of our student’s lives outside of school are like to gain understanding,” Landeck said. For some of those students reading and math are the least of their concerns and we have to understand that when trying to educate them.”

Landeck said his decision-making process for the district is focused on what is best for students. He also wants parents to know he will listen to their concerns.

“That doesn’t mean I will always agree with them but I will listen with an open mind,” he said.

Landeck said he doesn’t have an agenda of things he wants to change within the district.

“My first year will be what I have referred to as my ‘Look, Listen and Learn Tour,’” he said. “I don’t want to just learn the procedures and systems of the district but I want to learn the why behind them.”

Landeck said he also wants to work with stakeholders within the district to identify common priorities and goals of the district and then a strategic plan to work towards those priorities and goals then in five years’ time the district will re-evaluate what it is doing and work towards those identified priorities and goals.

“We should be asking ourselves if we still have the same properties and goals five years later and if not what our new priorities and goals are,” he said. “I am excited to be a part of the St. Joseph 169 community.”