Lockport High School appoints new board member and principal

Lockport — The Lockport Township High School District 205 Board made two appointments at its Tuesday meeting, filling a vacant seat on the board and selecting the successor of John Greenan as East Campus principal.

Lance Thies was selected from a pool of 16 applicants to fill the vacancy left by Marty Boersma after he resigned from the board in December.

Thies is a multidisciplinary landscape architect and planner who currently works for the city of Lockport as director of community and economic development. He holds a bachelor’s degree in landscape architecture from Ball State University and a master’s in business administration from Concordia University in Chicago.

Thies and his family have lived in Lockport for more than 20 years, and both of his children attended Lockport High School.

“I’ve always been passionate about education,” Thies said when asked why he chose to pursue the open board seat. “My kids thoroughly enjoyed their time here, and my position with the city interacts well with the role.”

“We are very happy that Lance Thies is part of our board of education,” board President Ana Lopez-Caneva said. “His expertise in architecture will help us as we move forward with Central Campus improvements. His community involvement will also help keep our board connected to our stakeholders.”

“I want to be a team player,” Thies said in looking forward to his time on the board. “I want to be supportive of the board and the staff, and also of the taxpayers. I want to know I’m having a positive impact while I’m here.”

Thies will serve the remainder of Boersma’s term, which is set to expire in April 2025. At that time, he can choose to run for election to the seat, although he said he wants to see how the first year goes before making that decision.

The board also voted to approve the hiring of a new principal for East Campus, which will be effective July 1.

In January, the board announced that Greenan would be taking on the role of new assistant superintendent of personnel, taking over for Anthony Cundari, who is set to retire in May after 12 years in District 205.

Greenan has been with the district for 22 years, working as a teacher, coach, dean and assistant principal.

“After serving for five years in the role of East Campus principal, Dr. Greenan has developed the people skills and knowledge to lead a human resources department that serves our most valuable resource: our staff members,” Superintendent Robert McBride said. “Dr. Greenan is making a natural step in his leadership and commitment to Lockport Township High School District 205.”

Greenan’s role as principal will be filled by Jacqueline Johnson starting in July. Johnson started teaching at Bloom Trail High School in 2002 and has spent most of her career at Community High School District 218, which operates high schools in Palos Heights, Oak Lawn and Blue Island.

She currently is serving as the director of equity and articulation in District 218, where she previously served as an English teacher, dean of students, curriculum director, cheerleading coach and student council sponsor.

“Dr. Jacqueline Johnson comes to the role of East Campus principal with a career of experience in teaching and learning, building and district leadership, equity and diversity in public high schools, and articulation with middle schools,” McBride said. “She also has a statewide reputation as an educational and thought leader, serving on several statewide committees and boards. We are excited to welcome her to East Campus and our district.”

Johnson earned her bachelor’s degree in English education at Illinois State University and her master’s degree from Concordia University. She received her doctorate from the University of St. Francis in 2020.

“I’m really excited to be here at Lockport,” Johnson said after being introduced at the meeting. “This has been an amazing process for me. I’m excited to be here, and I’m looking forward to working with everyone.”

Johnson is married to Derek Johnson, who is a business educator, and they have three children. She was chosen from a pool of 14 applicants for the principal position and will be the first Black woman to serve Lockport Township High School in this role.