OPRF superintendent plans to retire
Effective July 1; Pruitt-Adams has served since 2016
Joylynn Pruitt-Adams, the superintendent of Oak Park and River Forest High School since 2016, announced her intention to retire at the conclusion of the current school year.
The announcement came during the school board’s Thurday meeting, in which board members unanimously approved her retirement. It will be effective July 1.
“What started out as a one-year interim agreement in 2016 has grown into a five-year commitment and labor of love,” Pruitt-Adams said. “I have grown so much personally and professionally being here in Oak Park. I would be remiss if I didn’t say it’s also been a challenge. Being a superintendent is an extraordinarily intense job in the best of times. Being away from family has been difficult. Doing this job while my husband and family have remained in St. Louis has been doubly hard. The toll has been tremendous, both personally and professionally. It’s bittersweet for me, but I know it’s time for me to return home.”
While her retirement is looming, Pruitt-Adams said she and her administrative team remain focused on completing the current school year amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
“There will be time for farewells later,” Pruitt-Adams said. “In the meantime, my team and I have a lot of work ahead of us. We are keeping our eyes on the big picture right now: continuing to deliver a quality education in the midst of a pandemic while moving our equity and curriculum work forward. It ismy hope that when I leave in June, that I leave it in a better place than when I came in 2016.”
Since arriving at OPRF High School, Pruitt-Adams has led the district’s equity initiatives, which included approval of a racial equity policy in April 2019 and creation of a student equity policy in May 2018, which provided protections for all OPRF students regardless of their gender identity.
In 2019, she led a reorganization of the district’s administration, which included elimination of the high school principal position following the resignation of longtime principal Nathaniel Rouse. Rouse’s former duties were divided up among remaining administrators. The restructuring included the hiring ofLeVar J. AmmonsinApril 2019 to anewly-created role of director of equity and student success.
Two years ago, OPRF came into the national spotlight through the Steve James docu-series “America to Me,” which aired on the Starz network. The series was filmed during the 2015-16 school year, before Pruitt-Adams arrived in Oak Park, however, she led the district’s equity initiatives in the wake of the show.
Board members praised her work in leading the district through the current pandemic, and her continued work in developing a
“What started out as a oneyear interim agreement in 2016 has grown into a five-year commitment and labor of love.” — Joylynn Pruitt-Adams, the superintendent of Oak Park and River Forest High School
plan to safely return students to campus.
“It has been a pleasure to work with Dr. Pruitt-Adams,” school board president Sara Dixon Spivy said. “She has led the district with quiet grace and confidence. Through it all, our students’ well-being has remained her constant focus. Her legacy cannot be overstated. She has championed racial and gender equity, and built an executive cabinet brimming with talent. While the board is very sorry to see her go, she is leaving uswell-equipped to meet the challenges ahead, and we are grateful for her service to the district.”
Board member Jackie Moore commended PruittAdams for her accomplishments of the past four years, adding she is grateful for all she has given the district and community.
“(We) continue to be grateful for all that Dr. Pruitt-Adams has given to our district and given to me personally as a friend,” Moore said. “We’ve done a lot of learning and growing. I only have appreciation for all she’s done.”
Last year, the OPRF school board approved a three-year contract with Pruitt-Adams that was set to run through the 2021-22 school year. Pruitt-Adams first joined OPRF as its interim superintendent in summer 2016, and was named its permanent superintendent that December.
Before joining OPRF, Pruitt-Adams had retired as superintendent of the School District of University City in University City, Missouri, a position she had held since 2007.