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Village Board to consider additional candidate for Village Manager post

Feb. 1, 2022 – The Village Board will interview an additional applicant this week as part of the ongoing search to find the best candidate to be the next Village Manager, the top municipal administrative post in Oak Park.

Kevin Jackson, who most recently served as Deputy City Manager of Long Beach, Calif., has been added to the field of three candidates who have already been vetted through a recruitment process guided by the Northbrook-based executive search firm GovHR USA.

Jackson, who spent the past four years in the number two administrative spot in the California city of nearly 468,000 residents, will undergo essentially the same interview process as the other three candidates, Village officials say, including interviews by Village leaders, partner organizations and community stakeholders.

Even with the addition of a fourth candidate, officials say they are confident a decision could come as early as this week.

“While any one of the finalists could do a fine job with the Board’s leadership, my colleagues and I concluded that it was our responsibility to consider all suitable talent for this crucial role,” said Village President Vicki Scaman. “We have had to balance process with the realities of a very competitive labor market.”

Jackson is scheduled to be interviewed remotely by panels of senior municipal staff, community partners and community members on Wed., Feb. 3, followed by interviews with the board beginning at noon on Thurs., Feb. 4.

The Village Board will then reconvene at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, with the goal of reaching consensus on the candidate to be Oak Park’s next Village Manager.

Scaman said the Board is not obligated to the additional candidate and could still select a Village Manager from among the original three finalists. But when the search firm made the Board aware of Jackson’s recent availability and interest in Oak Park, the consensus was he should be interviewed.

“We are remaining open-minded as we conduct our due diligence, and we look forward to appointing a Village Manager who can most effectively serve the Oak Park community,” she said.

The other finalists are current Oak Park Interim Village Manager Lisa Shelley, Carpentersville Village Manager Eric Johnson and former Petersburg, Va. Deputy City Manager Lionel Lyons.

More information about the selection process is posted at www.oak-park.us/managersearch.

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Candidate Kevin JacksonKevin Jackson
Education:  Master’s Degree in Public Administration, Arizona State University; Bachelor’s degree in psychology and sociology, Arizona State University

Work History: In his role as Deputy City Manager of Long Beach, Kevin Jackson’s responsibilities included oversight of government and community, which included managing a variety of boards and commissions such as the Citizen Police Complaint Commission, Cannabis Oversight, Sustainability and ADA Compliance. He also was involved in initiatives related to regional planning, equity and cultural heritage. Prior to his current role, Kevin spent more than nine years as Neighborhood Services Director for the City of Champaign, after serving in progressive roles in city governments in Arizona.