Orland D135 HR Head Remains On Paid Leave, Resignation Date In June

ORLAND PARK, IL — The official resignation date for Orland District 135 HR Director Suzanne Owens is set for June 30, 2026—though she was removed from the district website earlier this month.

Owens is on administrative leave now through her employment end date, her resignation agreement reads, and is still considered "a non-certified administrator" that "is to be reasonably available for remote duties if requested by the Board President," the agreement reads.

Orland District 135 board members on Oct. 14 voted unanimously to approve the resignation agreement and release for Owens. The effective date and other terms of the agreement were not known immediately, and have been obtained via Freedom of Information Act request filed by Patch.

Owens' contract in place began July 1, 2025, with the end date set for June 30, 2026.

Under the resignation agreement and release, Owens will be on paid leave and receive her full salary through Feb. 28. From March 1 through May 25, Owens will be paid using 58 accrued and unused sick leave days. From May 26 though June 30, she will be paid using 24.5 accrued vacation days and 0.5 personal day.

She'll also be paid for all legal holidays, and the District continues to pay hospitalization, major medical, dental, vision, life insurance, tax-sheltered annuity benefits, and her required contribution to the Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund (IMRF), based on her annual salary during this period, the agreement reads.

If she resigns sooner than Feb. 28, the District will pay her at a per diem rate of $576 (less applicable withholding) for any days from resignation through that date, and she'll be paid for 49.5 accrued and unused vacation days.

If she changes the date to after Feb. 28 but before June 30, the District will pay her for accrued and unused vacation days as of that date at the same per diem rate. All other compensation and benefits end on the new resignation date.

If Owens does not change her resignation date, she will be paid for all accrued and unused vacation days post-June 30, 2026.

The agreement also releases both Owens and the district from any claims arising from Owens’s employment or resignation, including but not limited to:

• Illinois Human Rights Act
• Americans with Disabilities Act
• Rehabilitation Act
• Title VII of the Civil Rights Act
• Family and Medical Leave Act
• Age Discrimination in Employment Act
• Any constitutional claims or common law claims such as defamation, breach of contract, retaliatory discharge, or emotional distress.

The District also agreed not to dispute if Owens files for unemployment after her resignation date.

Owens had reportedly been on leave since August, though district officials have repeatedly declined to comment on her status. An email sent to Owens Aug. 25 was answered with a canned response disclosing her absence, with no end date noted. A source on background confirmed Owens never returned from leave.

Under the agreement, the District may post and hire an acting or interim director of human resources prior to June 30, 2026.

Owens has been with the district since 2016, and has served as HR director since July 2017, according to her LinkedIn.

Owens was one of three administrators named by district parents in a petition seeking their removal. The online petition–which has since been removed from the internet—pointed to "unsettling actions" by Superintendent Dr. John Bryk, Associate Superintendent Dave Snyder and Director of HR Suzanne Owens at the root of issues in the district.

The petition surfaced amid controversy in the district regarding its board of education over the hiring of one administrator and the ousting of two others. Parents sought community support intended to push the board to action on "the power three" of Bryk, Snyder and Owens.
At last viewing, the petition had gained at least 2,000 signatures.

The board has been attempting to right a ship rocked by controversy over the hiring of Century Junior High Assistant Principal Tremaine Harris. Community members, staff and alumni in late-July accused the board of negligence in Harris' hiring, with allegations of poor vetting, lack of experience and oversight of content some found offensive on Harris' social media.

Harris was hired in July, and though the public called for his job offer to be rescinded at a July 28 special meeting, Harris remains in the role, alongside new Principal Jeana Naujokas.

Following the July 28 meeting, some indicated that Harris' hiring—and the outrage around it—is indicative of more deep-rooted leadership issues within the district. Parents said that their upset was compounded by the shock around position changes of beloved former Century administrators Dr. Brian Horn and Dr. Heather Conrad.

Both were shifted out of their principal and assistant principal roles, respectively, at the end of the school year and with no public explanation, one parent told Patch. Horn had served as principal at Century since 2012, according to his LinkedIn, and Conrad became assistant principal in 2019.
In May, board members approved Horn's resignation as principal at Century effective June 30, and his assignment as a language arts teacher at Jerling Junior High effective this August.

Previously in March, board members approved a resolution for non-renewal of Conrad's administrator contract, and her reclassification as a teacher within the district. She's teaching at Orland Junior High this year.

Some have since called for the resignations or removals of not only Owens, but also Bryk and Snyder.

A petition calling for the removal of Snyder is currently being circulated.

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