Plainfield Administrator Hired as New Oswego High School Assistant Principal

The District 308 Board of Education approved Tania Shepherd as the new assistant principal for Oswego High School. Shepherd was selected from a slate of nearly 110 interested candidates for her leadership experience within public school education, as a teacher, and as a department chair. 

“We are very pleased to welcome Ms. Tania Shepherd to the Oswego High School leadership team,” said Oswego High School Principal Mike Wayne said in a press release. “Tania’s vast background and her student-oriented philosophy made her a stand-out among a strong and impressive list of candidates.” 

Shepherd began her career in education in 2003 as an English teacher at Plainfield South High School in Plainfield. She moved to Plainfield East High School in 2008, where she became the English department chair. Since 2013, she has worked as chair of the Humanities Division while teaching English at Plainfield East. 

Shepherd also worked with Plainfield East High School students as academic dean since 2008, acting as a liaison between teacher, counselor, and the dean on behalf of students at risk of failing. As academic dean, Shepherd generated action plans and consulted with the parents or guardians of students in danger of failing.

Beyond these responsibilities, Shepherd has also created teacher schedules, managed a department budget, acquired and managed textbook inventories, worked on a wide range of committees and teams, including a school improvement team, managed a staff of 28 teachers, assisted in teacher recruitment and mentoring, and helped with curriculum alignment, including Common Core. 

Shepherd also coached girls basketball at both Plainfield South and Plainfield East, served as a peer advisor at Illinois State University, facilitated junior and senior class student council meetings, and helped organize fund-raising events. 

“I am honored and excited to join Oswego High School as assistant principal,” said Shepherd. “I look forward to using my experience to have a positive impact on student achievement. I will work hard to build on the great tradition of success at Oswego High School and School District 308.” 

Shepherd, a resident of Plainfield, earned her Master’s in Educational Administration from Governors State University, University Park in 2007, and her Bachelor’s in English Education in 2003 from Illinois State University in Normal.

Shepherd will begin her position as assistant principal with an annual salary of $87,000.