David Bonnette, who served for 13 years as the superintendent of Riverside Elementary School District 96, and later came out of retirement to serve for two years as interim superintendent at Riverside Brookfield High School, died in Michigan last month. Bonnette was 83.
Bonnette died April 28 at his home in St. Joseph, Michigan. Bonnette, a native of Michigan, had moved to St. Joseph a few years ago after living in Riverside for more than two decades. Bonnette died with his wife Louise by his side, according to an obituary posted by a funeral home. No cause of death was given.
Bonnette was born in Holland, Michigan. He graduated from Hope College, then began working as a science teacher and taught for one year at Niles West High School before returning to Michigan. He earned a master’s degree from Eastern Michigan University and a doctorate in education from the University of Michigan. He became a superintendent in a small district in Michigan at 31. He came to Riverside Elementary School District 96 in 1992 and stayed until 2005, when he retired.
Bonnette seemed like a superintendent straight out of Central Casting: a big man, tall with a strong physical presence who typically wore a blue suit. He had a deep voice and a dignified, professional, yet friendly manner. He radiated authority and confidence but also gentleness.
He built the orchestra program in District 96 and helped pass two referendums and a bond issue. The 2004 operating tax referendum put District 96 on solid financial footing, which has continued since then, with the district regularly operating in surplus.
In the 2004 referendum campaign, Bonnette was not above using scare tactics to secure “yes” votes, claiming that the district would have to close its two smallest schools, Blythe Park School and Hollywood School, and cut hours at L.J. Hauser Junior High School if the referendum failed to pass.
After retiring from District 96, in 2005 Bonnette served for one year as an interim superintendent in River Forest District 90 and taught at Northeastern Illinois University.
In 2009, he was called out of retirement one more time to take over as the interim superintendent at Riverside Brookfield High School after the abrupt departure of former Superintendent and Principal Jack Baldermann.
Bonnette was a steady hand at the helm of RB. He recommended the hiring of former principal Pamela Bylsma as he and the school board chose her over the in-house candidate Troy Gobble, who has gone on to serve as the principal of Stevenson High School, which typically is the highest rated non-selective enrollment public school in Illinois, according to the U.S. News & World Report rankings. Bonnette also helped force out long-time former football coach and athletic director Otto Zeman.
But Bonnette could not pass a referendum at RB. In 2011, Bonnette’s final year at RB, a referendum for an operating tax increase was overwhelmingly defeated with 76.66% of voters voting against increasing taxes.
After leaving RB in 2011 Bonnette found ways to help District 96. In 2014, he led searches that brought interim superintendents Patrick Patt and Griff Powell to District 96 to replace superintendent Bhava Sharma-Lewis. Bonnette also led the search that resulted in the selection of Merryl Brownlow as the district’s assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction.
And one year later in 2015, the District 96 school board tapped Bonnette and former Lyons Township High School District 204 Superintendent Dennis Kelly to lead the search for a new superintendent. They recommended hiring Martha Ryan-Toye, whom Bonnette had worked with in River Forest District 90 when Ryan-Toye was the special education director there.
Ryan-Toye stayed at District 96 and is now finishing her eighth year as superintendent. Bonnette kept in touch with Ryan-Toye and maintained a keen interest in what was going on in District 96.
“He would check in periodically,” Ryan-Toye said. “He would send a note.”
Bonnette is survived by his wife Louise and his four children: Paul, Jean, Roy and Leslie.
Correction: May 22, 2024, 3:11 p.m.: An earlier version misspelled the name of an in-house principal candidate. He is Troy Gobble. We apologize for the error.