Following the resignation of longtime community educator Gladys Davis as a member of the Danville District 118 school board, another longtime Danville educator has been named to fill the post.
Board members appointed retired District 118 administrator Johnnie Carey to fill Davis’s seat on the board Wednesday evening. Her term runs through April 2023. Carey worked in the district for more than 30 years, including as a guidance counselor at Danville High School. She retired in 2009 as principal of Cannon Elementary School and has also served as the director of human resources and coordinator of student services for the district.
Carey says she is honored to fill Davis’s seat on the board, noting that Davis “has a love of the district in her heart and she wishes the best for years to come.”
Fellow board members also thanked Mrs. Davis for her years of service to students in the community. Board member Shannon Schroeder noted that Davis is a “beacon for kindness” and she focused on recruiting good teachers, especially minority ones. Darlene Halloran says she enjoyed how Mrs. Davis interacted with students in the district.
“I valued how she spoke to our students in disciplinary hearings,” she explained. “I valued how she spoke to parents, how she always made us think of students first.”
Board Vice President Dr. Randal Ashton says that the district could install a brick outside Danville High School with her name on it. Pastor Thomas Miller also noted that she would be a good candidate for the school’s Wall of Fame.
