WEST COLUMBIA, SC -- At a special called board meeting Tuesday, Lexington Two’s Board of Trustees selected Dr. Nicolas Wade as the district’s next superintendent.
Dr. Wade will begin work in the district in August. He will serve as superintendent-elect until the retirement of Superintendent Dr. William B. James Jr. at the end of the 2020-21 school year.
Dr. Wade currently serves as superintendent of Elmwood Park Community Unit School District #401 in Elmwood Park, Illinois, a position he has held since July 2017.
“I am very much appreciative of the opportunity given to me by the Board and humbled by their faith in me to continue moving Lexington Two forward,” Dr. Wade said. “I look forward in the coming weeks and months to learning from all stakeholders about Lexington Two’s history and collaborating with them on future directions in championing children through diversified opportunities and supports.”
Watch: Board announcement and Dr. Wade's remarks: https://youtu.be/hYLnaol27NQ
Dr. Wade, 36, earned a bachelor’s degree in English and secondary education in 2006 from Bradley University in Peoria, Illinois; a master’s in education in 2010 from Benedictine University in Lisle, Illinois; and a doctor of education in 2012 from Argosy University-Schaumburg in Schaumburg, Illinois.
Dr. Wade started his career as an English teacher at Crete-Monee High School in Crete, Illinois, later moving to Bolingbrook High School in Bolingbrook, Illinois. He became an assistant principal in July 2011 at Winnebago High School in Winnebago, Illinois, serving there two years before being named assistant principal at Elmwood Park High School in his current school district. In July 2016, he was named the district’s assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction, where he oversaw and supervised the district’s curriculum and instruction, student support services, and technology and instructional technology departments, among other duties. In 2017, he was named superintendent, with initiatives that included launching full-day kindergarten, instructional coaching programs, and dual enrollment and certification pathways partnerships with local colleges. Under Dr. Wade’s leadership, the district also raised state report card scores and high school graduation rates, led capital improvement and referendum projects for school construction and upgrades, and expanded community outreach programs.
His first day in Lexington Two will be August 1.
“Our Board is excited for the opportunities that Dr. Wade will bring to Lexington Two,” said Chairman Bill Bingham Jr. “His vision and experience will be invaluable assets to the community, and his dynamic personality will fit well with the Lexington Two family.”