SH SD151 renews financial agreement with Thornton Township Trustees of Schools amid reporting inconsistencies

The South Holland School District 151 board agreed to continue its financial relationship with the Thornton Township Trustees of Schools despite years of recordkeeping issues. 

The Thornton Township Trustees of Schools is tasked with managing the revenue and expenditures of eight school districts in the area, including South Holland School District 151. 

“Over the last several years, we’ve had some serious concerns about the effectiveness of the treasurer’s office for a variety of reasons,” outgoing Superintendent Teresa Hill said during the board’s meeting on Feb. 2.

Chief among those issues was that over the course of three years, there was a near $1 to $2 million variance between what the eight schools assumed their bank balance should be and what was actually in the bank. For SH SD151, it’s mild in comparison: a $200,000 to $300,000 variance.

In 2025, the HWH reported that the district’s audits were not verifiable by an auditor due to township treasurer’s inconsistent bookkeeping, then led by Mark Sheahan. This problem has reverberated for other districts, including Harvey School District 152.

Hill explained that because the district was legally required to participate in a treasurer’s office, they had no choice but to stay.

In July 2025, former Pembroke Superintendent Nicole Terrell-Smith took over as township treasurer. Meanwhile, school districts were then permitted to find other means to manage their funds if desired, whether that meant switching to a different treasurer’s office or managing their own finances. The SH SD151 board ultimately chose to stay with the Trustees of Schools. 

During the meeting, resident Alicia Murchison asked for clarity on the board’s decision to continue the partnership with the Trustees of Schools.

“One of the reasons that some board members chose to stay [with the Trustees of Schools] was because there is a new treasurer, and there was a desire to see how well this new treasurer would do given that person’s background and experience,” Hill said.

Some board members expressed concerns with the board’s ability to manage its own finances because of the upcoming changes within the district, including hiring a new superintendent. Others wanted to give a new township treasurer one year to assess their experience and impact.

“I feel that [the Trustees] have taken money from us in the past. I’m not going to trust them again in the future,” one member said.

Ernestine Proctor-Harris was elected in April 2025. Upon learning the new role and that the district’s loss due to unverifiable audits was between “$200,000 to $300,000” as compared with multi-millions of other dollars, coupled with a new treasurer who was making genuine strides to improve finances, she voted to renew. “I saw some growth with another district,” Proctor-Harris said, who had attended meetings around the area to discern the new township treasurer’s impact.

Superintendent search 

The district held a special meeting on Feb. 4 in preparation for the search for a new superintendent. Hill will be the Homewood District 153 superintendent starting July 2026. Hill said she has started preparing her transition plan, “which is designed to ensure that we set up the district for as much success as possible.”

Student arts immersion

Since 2019, the district has partnered with Van Moody Arts Academy to expose students to arts education. Students across the district can participate in piano lab, strings, band, and theater and arts. 

Mario Moody, director of the Fine Arts Program and founder of VMAA, celebrated district teachers that lead the programs. He also celebrated a SH SD151 alum, famed guitarist, and Harvey native Robert Gueringer. Gueringer has won Grammys with the likes of SZA and Leon Thomas in 2026 for his album MUTT, performed at the Oscars with Rihanna, and performed at the Super Bowl with Eminem and Dr. Dre.

“He’s going back to come back in the fall. He wants to come back and talk to our kids and possibly do some things with our district as well,” Moody said.