Bhavna Sharma-Lewis, superintendent of Diamond Lake District 76, reads to a kindergarten class this week. She has held the position for 10 years but will leave it at the end of the current school year.
Courtesy of Diamond Lake District 76
The school year at Diamond Lake Elementary District 76 in Mundelein began this week with big news from its top administrator.
After leading and advancing the small district for 10 years, Superintendent Bhavna Sharma-Lewis will leave at the end of the school year “to write the next chapter of my story,” she told staff and families.
“When I joined the district, I had a vision to create an environment that emphasizes academic and professional excellence, cultivates a healthy and supportive culture, and focuses on the holistic well-being of every student and staff member,” she wrote.
Those goals have been met – and even exceeded – she added. The district’s SparkleOn brand, an acronym for service, passion, advocacy, respect, kindness, love, equity, opportunity and nurture, is well known in the schools and community.
“That’s our mindset. That’s our culture,” she said Thursday.
According to the most recent state statistics, Diamond Lake had about 856 students, 54% of whom were classified as low-income.
Sharma-Lewis has been a teacher for 33 years, nearly half of which have been as a principal. Since arriving at District 76, she has pursued her stated priority of being “visible, responsive and collaborative with students, teachers, parents and the community.”
School Board Chair Joy Hail said Sharma-Lewis has “created a climate and culture for the district where every student, staff member and community member feels safe and valued when they enter our buildings.”
During the pandemic, Sharma-Lewis has ensured that students’ educational needs were met and has worked to build “significant community outreach” to support families, whether with food, Wi-Fi connections or other necessities, she added.
In 2017, Sharma-Lewis led the district through a successful referendum against tax increases that allowed the district to upgrade and modernize facilities, Hail said. More recently, Sharma-Lewis led the district’s consolidation from three buildings to two: the Diamond Lake school and the West Oak campus, which serves third through eighth grades, she added.
Improving student achievement was a priority, with Sharma-Lewis saying 92% of students had made progress in English and 94% in maths.
“We are slowly closing this performance gap,” she said.
Hail said the district will look for a new leader to continue Sharma-Lewis’ work.
“We believe her work has been meaningful and are looking for a leader to advance the district’s mission and vision of ‘Embrace, Empower, Excel: Each Child, Each Day,'” Hail said.
On Thursday, Sharma-Lewis planned to read a book about being a “bucket filler” to all classes. The lesson is to be kind and sharing, rather than negative and a bully, she said.
“When you fill other people’s buckets, you continue to fill your own,” she explained.
In addition to being a place to teach and learn, District 76 has become a thriving family where everyone is valued, supported, loved and inspired to reach their potential, Sharma-Lewis told staff and parents.
She hasn’t said what her next chapter will look like, but she plans to finish successfully and celebrate this year’s milestones as they come.
“You always want to leave a place better,” she said.
