On April 1, 2025, the District Board of Education had their most recent election. There were five seats open for election which included four 4-year terms and one 2-year term. The new board members were sworn into office on April 28, 2025. Ms. Nina Austin was elected for the two-year term while Mr. Doug Fleegle, Ms. Wes Polen, Mr. Rahul Deshmukh and Mr. Mithilesh Kotwal were elected for the four-year term as board members for District 128.

Mr. Doug Fleegle

Mr. Fleegle grew up in Western Pennsylvania and was very involved both academically through his studies and socially with his extracurricular activities. His high school experience inspired him to become a board member for District 128.

“One of the reasons for those strong memories and successes was seeing families, friends and school board members participate throughout the school system,” Mr. Fleegle said. “Because of that reason, I want to be involved here at District 128 [and] certainly play my part in helping to make strong memories for our current students.”

Mr. Fleegle has been a healthcare executive for three decades and during that time has served different administrative positions and participated in professional boards.

“I think that experience brings a lot for me to hopefully be just as successful while serving on the board of District 128,” he said.

Mr. Fleegle believes that the community is struggling to have trust in the board leadership and school administration.

“The most important thing for me is to re-establish trust and credibility between all of the stakeholders in the school system and push an emphasis for community involvement by everyone to support our teachers and our students and the magic that happens in the classroom,” he said. “[We need] to make sure that we carry out our words with actions, and that those actions support trust and credibility and grow so that the community has faith in where the school system is moving forward.”

Mr. Fleegle also wants to help make sure that the students and teachers feel included and that their voices are heard.

While Mr. Fleegle feels comfortable with the relationships that he has made, he hopes to continue to strengthen the relationship between and collaborate more with the other board members.

“Our goal is for all of us to draw consensus for the greater good, that even when we disagree, those disagreements are handled respectfully, cordially and professionally,” he said.

Mr. Fleegle is excited for his role as a board member and believes in the district.

“I really do believe that District 128 is a good, solid school system,” he said.

Ms. Nina Austin

After high school, Ms. Austin decided to go to secretarial school instead of going off to college. She sees life as a valuable learning opportunity that teaches people a variety of skills.

“Working in different environments with different types of people is really helpful [and] exposing yourself to different cultures and different people is a great way to learn [about] the world,” Ms. Austin said.

Hearing about education in the news has concerned Ms. Austin and therefore motivated her to run for the school board.

“I just wanted to make sure that public education remains public education, which is what it is and what it should be, and it should be available to everyone, and everyone should be able to get a great education,” she said.

Specifically, she is concerned about the effect that Covid-19 has had on students not just in our school district, but across the country.

“I think it’ll continue to be an issue just because there are the kids who’ve gone through Covid through elementary school [who] would be coming up through the system in high school, and I think there are long-ranging effects that we’re going to still be feeling from that,” she said. “That’s something I think we just need to kind of keep an eye on and make sure that we’re paying attention to when we’re planning our curriculum and our basic ability to make sure that, socially, our students are prepared.”

Like Mr. Fleegle, Ms. Austin hopes to build strong relationships with the other board members.

“I’m certainly hoping that we can come together as a group and form a good bond and be able to communicate well,” Ms. Austin said.

Ms. Austin believes that the students should be their primary focus. She wants to feel connected to them.

“I’m really hoping to get involved in coming to the events and things that are going on in the school, and being able to reach out to the students on a one-on-one basis,” she said.

Ms. Wes Polen

Ms. Polen grew up in Rock Island County, Illinois and went to a smaller school district that didn’t have a lot of diversity. After high school, she moved to Los Angeles and attended college at the University of Southern California (USC).

“At that point, I knew that I would always want to raise my kids in a more diverse community, so that they could experience a real-life situation during their schooling,” Ms. Polen said.

She grew up in a politically active family. Her mom was on the school board and her dad was a city council member.

“Serving my community was always ingrained in me from an early age,” she said. “Wherever I was involved, my parents were involved.”

Because of her life growing up, she wanted to give back to her community and be involved in her daughters’ life when they attended school at Hawthorn District 73. She spent eight years on the Hawthorn school board, being first elected in 2017 and then re-elected in 2021. Her term ended this past April. Then, she looked into being a part of the D128 district.

“I thought about getting involved in the District 128 foundation, so I’d still be involved and active, but just a different type of role [that is] very important because I really believe in our foundation,” she said.

Ms. Polen is a huge advocate for public education.

“Strong schools build strong communities and strong school districts are the number one driver of economic development in communities,” she said. “I believe in that because I love my community and I want it to be the best that it can be, so I’m committed to that.”

Ms. Polen appreciates the incredible resources that the district is able to provide for students.

“All of our students deserve to have a high-quality education and have access to top-notch educators, which we have in our district,” she said. “We’re fortunate to be in such a great community where we have the resources, and I want to keep that going.”

Ms. Polen believes that the education system is working for some students, but not all.

“There’s always room for improvement, so we need to figure out a way how we can take what’s working for some and make that apply to more of our students,” she said.

In past years, she was a registered lobbyist and did government relations, crisis communications, political fundraising and campaign management. Because of this, she believes in the power of relationships.

“When I was a lobbyist, I had to work both sides of the aisle and try to find common ground,” she said.

She was a competitive athlete and went to University South Carolina on an athletic scholarship. Because of this, she loves working together and as a team.

“I understand how we might not always be friends, but if we can find some common ground that we can agree upon, like a common goal and work towards that, anything’s possible,” she said.

Ms. Polen was motivated to run for the school board because of what happened last spring with then D128 superintendent Dr. Denise Herrmann, which she was heavily involved with. She started a Facebook group to communicate with people about what was going on. There was a lack of communication with the parents and a plan which frustrated Ms. Polen because her oldest daughter was going to be an incoming freshman at Vernon Hills.

“The teachers continued to go to board meetings month after month, and no one was listening to them,” she said. “It’s frustrating for me as a parent to know that they were the ones being tasked with implementing everything and there was not a plan and there was not the support [and] resources that were promised to them.”

One of Ms. Polen’s goals is to make sure that everyone – especially teachers, staff and Education Support Professionals – feels valued in the district.

“[We need to be] repairing those relationships [and] rebuilding the trust is important,” she said.

As a board member, she also wants to do more community outreach.

“I was elected to serve all community members, whether or not I like what they have to say or even how they say it,” she said. “I am just trying to engage with the community.”

Mr. Mithilesh Kotwal

With Mr. Kotwal’s son being in high school, it inspired him to become a board member for the district.

“That got me intrigued to serve the community and the district,” Mr. Kotwal said in an email interview.

Having already been on the board for the last one and a half years, Mr. Kotwal is motivated to continue the work that he has done for the students and teachers.

Mr. Kotwal has a background in problem solving and has led transformation projects for multiple organizations.

“Currently, I lead a few consulting practices that help clients with optimizing how they use their resources, help with decision-making tools and I am looking to bring that experience to serve on the board,” he said.

Mr. Kotwal hopes to continue to work on enhancing the district’s Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTTS) which helps students who are struggling in school – academically or behavioral – and helps them with their individual needs.

“[We need to be] focusing on students with IEP and focusing on connections with employers in this area,” he said.

Mr. Rahul Deshmukh

Mr. Deshmukh has a connection to D128 through his children: a 2024 VHHS graduate and a VHHS incoming freshman.

“[They have] motivated me to actively contribute to the school district,” Mr. Deshmukh said in an email interview. “Through them, as well as through other students and community members, I hope to gain deeper insights into the strengths and opportunities within our schools.”

Mr. Deshmukh has experience as an educator and scientist.

“I bring a blend of community insight, classroom experience and data-driven thinking,” Mr. Deshmukh said. “I’ve trained future healthcare providers and collaborated on policy and curriculum decisions in higher education. These skills translate directly to thoughtful, inclusive and strategic governance for D128.”

Mr. Deshmukh believes in the impact that public education can have to strengthen students in the community.

“I ran to ensure every student in D128—not just my own—has access to a high-quality, compassionate and future-ready education that equips them for life, not just college,” Mr. Deshmukh said.

In order to engage with the other board members, Mr. Deshmukh believes in the power of teamwork to help have a positive impact on the district.

“I believe in consensus-building and respectful debate,” Mr. Deshmukh said. “I’ll work to define clear goals, ensure accountability and bring in fresh ideas while valuing the experience and insights of all members.”

Mr. Deshmukh has many goals for the district: rebuilding trust, fostering communication, promoting academic excellence, providing relevant curriculum, celebrating diverse voices and supporting educators.

“I will address these by advocating for inclusive dialogue and evidence-based policymaking,” he said. “Collaborative solutions across stakeholders which include students, are key to elevating student outcomes.”

Mr. Deshmukh is committed to the students and the district.

“I am ready to listen, collaborate and work alongside the community to ensure D128 continues to be a place where every student can dream big and feel confident charting their own path to success,” he said. “I look forward to continuing to learn from the student experience and finding meaningful ways to make high school a memorable and enriching journey for all students.”