Kimberly Norton: From Cross-Country Runner to Leading Heritage School District with Dedication and Experience
By FRED KRONER
Kimberly Norton’s background in athletics has come in handy as she prepares to make the transition to the role of superintendent for the Heritage school district in July.
A former cross-country runner at Georgetown-Ridge Farm (Class of 1991), Norton has hit the ground running at Heritage, a rural southeast Champaign County school district that has fewer than 400 students.
“I didn’t think anyone went to more Heritage events than myself in the past 30 years, but she is already outdoing me in that category in her first five weeks (since her hiring was announced in February),” retiring Heritage superintendent Tom Davis said. “She has shown already how much she cares about our students and stakeholders.
“She is very hard working and motivated and that shows in that she has been working her full-time position at Urbana while also attending many events and some meetings already with Heritage teachers and staff and also with the school board.”
That commitment has taken place on her own time as Norton remains on the job in her current position as assistant superintendent for the Urbana School District.
In her 27 years in education, Norton has worked in five Illinois school districts (Watseka, Armstrong, Westville, Danville and Urbana) as well as one in Kentucky (Berea).
She is ready for her next move.
“I look forward to the opportunity to meet with students, families and stakeholders to have a direct impact and develop a shared vision and goals,” Norton said. “My focus is to work closely with students and families to help them achieve their dreams and goals.”
Her career in education has come full circle. She was raised in a rural school district in southern Vermilion County and her first three jobs in Illinois were at relatively small school districts.
For the past 17 years, she has worked in larger school settings, including the last five in Urbana.
“Reflecting on my fondest memories at Armstrong (where she taught fourth grade from 1996-2001), I realized this was my chance to get back to my roots,” Norton said. “The culture/climate (at Heritage) was evident immediately and was definitely something that I desired to be a part of.
“I felt at home during the interview and knew it would be a pleasure to work with the (School) Board.”
Davis believes Norton will be prepared for the challenges that will await.
“There is probably no problem or situation she will encounter that she hasn’t experienced,” Davis said, “but she has experienced it on a larger scale, so she will bring her vast background to a smaller school but the same qualities I have seen in her so far like integrity, intelligence, dedication, genuine, and strong will all serve her well no matter our size.
“She totally understands all the components of a district and although we are on a smaller scale than a Danville or Urbana, what she knows and has experienced will mean she starts far ahead of a “first-time.”
Norton expects her background to be beneficial.
“I have multiple experiences to draw upon that provide the opportunity to understand best practices based on the various sizes of districts I have served,” she said.
Her background includes serving as an administrator at all building levels as well as working with the Illinois State Board of Education. She has evaluated staff at all levels and mentored several growing leaders.
Besides her collection of experiences, Norton has been under the influence and tutelage of exemplary role models during her years in education.
“I always wanted to be an educator and worked with some phenomenal leaders such as Mr. Wayne Scarlett, the Superintendent when I began teaching at Armstrong Elementary, Mr. Mike Hogg, who encouraged me to pursue leadership when I taught in Berea, Ky., and Mr. Mark Denman in Danville, as he challenged me to be more mindful in my strategies,” Norton said. “I am thankful for Dr. Alicia Geddis in Danville and Dr. Jennifer Ivory-Tatum in Urbana for the opportunities they provided me.”
Norton comes from a family of educators.
“My father is a retired teacher and administrator, my brother is an administrator in Danville, and my oldest son (Chase) teaches Spanish at Danville High School,” Norton said.
She began her teaching career 28 years ago in Watseka at Glenn Raymond School. Norton taught sixth- and eighth-grade language arts during the 1995-96 school year.
She then taught fourth-graders at Armstrong-Ellis for five years. Those years made a significant impact.
“My fondest memories are Armstrong-Ellis Grade School as it was my first love in education,” Norton said. “We were a family and it was a close-knit atmosphere.
“The time at Danville High School was my most formative experience as there were many opportunities to unite, collaborate and grow.”
Davis was not a part of the interview team at Heritage, but served as “the greeter,” when Norton arrived.
Though he and veteran Heritage athletic director Lori Archer are both retiring at the end of the school year, Davis said some key personnel will remain.
“I shared (with Norton) that a major advantage was that we had an experienced bookkeeper in Deana Wolf, who has been here getting close to 30 years,” Davis said. “Anyone in administration, especially a small district like ours, knows the financial dealings handled between the Superintendent and bookkeeper are the most crucial role, right up above No. 2, which is working with building Principals and other district-level positions like transportation and athletic director.
“Dr. Norton impressed me from that first conversation and on the Saturday morning a couple weeks later (Feb. 3) we were able to have a longer discussion after her official hiring that day at a special board meeting.
“Her experiences at Danville, Urbana, and her districts before are massively impressive and shows she has worked with all levels of students, parents, teachers and employees. In just the short time since her hiring, we have had many chances to talk, meet, and email and I am very excited she is the person taking over. She will be fantastic at Heritage.
“She was truly seeking a Superintendent position and with our finances and buildings and test scores all very positive in the past couple of years since COVID, she is coming at a great time.”
And yet, there will be work to be done almost immediately.
“She will be an integral part of the search for some open positions due to retirements which includes district nurse, AD, Health teacher, Industrial Tech teacher, PE Teacher, bus driver, Library Aide, and Technology Coordinator (a position Davis has held for the last 30 years),” Davis said. “She has met already with the two Principals, Kristi Sanders at the Heritage K-8 at Homer, and Corey White at Heritage High School.
“I am hoping they will continue as a team with Dr. Norton, which will be a superlative administration group with vast experience and backgrounds.”
Norton served six different roles during her 12 years in the Danville school district: sixth-grade language arts teacher at North Ridge Middle School from 2007-09; District 118 Title I Grant Coordinator from 2009-11; Curriculum Coordinator 2011-12, North Ridge Middle School Assistant Principal 2012-13, Northeast Elementary Magnet School Principal 2013-15, and Danville High School Principal 2015-19.
At Urbana, she has served as Assistant Superintendent of Student Learning for five years.
There will be other challenges in addition to the various vacancies that need to be filled.
One includes the completion of roof work at both schools in the district, which Davis said, “will complete a three-phase process the last three years as both schools were approaching 20-plus years since major roof repair and restoration work was done.
“This will be in the $1.8-1.9 million dollar range and will take most of spring/summer 2024 through Tremco, which completed the first two phases.”
The district bonded for $1.5 million with the rest of the money coming from reserves, 1 percent sales tax funds, TIF grant, and state maintenance grant funds.
Norton will be greeted by plenty of good news as well.
“The budget and finances for the district look great, the best in my 11 years as Superintendent, and by design, the district is entering the third year of a five-year contract with our Heritage Education Association which encompasses almost all teachers and staff positions and which calls for 4 percent raises for all positions,” Davis said. “The tax levy extension has shown growth with county and local growth contributing in home, property and farm values, and most importantly, student achievement has been noteworthy with both schools (high school and K-8) receiving commendable ratings on the last school report cards from ISBE.
“The schools combined were in the top 10 out of 47 area districts in achievement scores last year for reading, math, and science according to The News-Gazette rankings posted throughout the year. We are very strong in the arts and music and our sports are competitive and improving each year.”
Moving into administration wasn’t a part of Norton’s early career path in education.
“It didn’t occur to me until six or seven years into teaching due to the leadership opportunities provided to me by a wonderful leader (Hogg) in Kentucky,” Norton said. “He ensured I was exposed to experiences to foster my growth.
“I decided to get into administration while in Kentucky and continued in pursuing my master’s at Eastern Kentucky University.
“I made the decision to pursue this role when I considered pursuing my doctorate and completing it this last year.”
Norton has four degrees: a Bachelor of Science in Education from Illinois State University (1995), a Master of Arts in Instructional Leadership from Eastern Kentucky University (2006), a Specialist in Education from Eastern Illinois University (where she received the Distinguished Graduate Award in 2017), and she completed her doctorate from Illinois State University (2023).
Norton was among approximately 10 individuals who expressed interest in the Heritage superintendent position.
“I think the board did an excellent job in working through the process with IASB and they deliberated for a lengthy amount of time in coming to a consensus in their decision,” Davis said. “To get someone from a larger district with Dr. Norton’s experience is a big plus.
“I have enjoyed working with her to date and know she will be outstanding and that the parents, teachers, and staff of the district will enjoy working with her.”
Norton is appreciative of Davis’ help and willingness to welcome her to the district.
“Mr. Davis and I are already communicating and strategizing,” she said. “I am fortunate to work with someone as incredibly talented as him.”
Norton and her husband live not far from the Heritage elementary and middle school.
“My husband Andy and I enjoy the outdoors and working on our 22-acre farm, landscaping and gardening,” Kimberly Norton said. “We enjoy spending time with family (three sons, daughter-in-laws, and parents), friends and pets.
“We don’t travel much as we prefer the comforts of pets and home.”
Her background as a runner won’t allow her to slow down.
“I continue exercise through running and the self-discipline required to be successful,” she said. “I always enjoy the solitude and the time to self-reflect.”
