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Keisa Garrett, Chief of Schools
Keisa Garrett is proud of her heritage within East St. Louis District 189 where she completed her entire K-12 education. For the past 21 years, she has served as a teacher, instructional coach, assistant principal, principal and now as Chief of Schools. Ms. Garrett particularly values her days within the classroom when she worked directly with students. She moved into administration based on a deep internal desire to have a greater impact for all students in East St. Louis. Throughout her leadership positions, Ms. Garrett uses data and relationships as methods to strategically and positively impact student's lives. Some of the milestones of success during her educational career include seven years as an Illinois Spotlight or Honor Roll School (Alta Sita Elementary School) and earning the district's first star on Schooldigger.com with movement from the bottom 10% of state schools (Mason-Clark Middle School). She hails servant leadership as the banner with a quote from Pete Hoekstra, "Real leadership is leaders recognizing that they serve the people they lead". As Chief of Schools, Ms. Garrett serves the community of East St. Louis School District 189 including students, parents, teachers, principals and directors. Her departments address key services including Social Emotional Learning, Attendance and Truancy, Student Services, College and Career Initiatives and Instructional Reform. Ms. Garrett is honored to continue to serve the great "City of Champions." As a licensed educator and administrator, Ms. Garrett holds a Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education and a Masters in Educational Administration from Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville.
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Jennifer Brumback, Chief Academic Officer
For more than 25 years, Jennifer Brumback has had the privilege of working with students, teachers, and administrators in the areas of secondary mathematics, assessment, curriculum, school improvement, and data analysis. She earned her BA in Mathematics from The University of North Texas in 1992 and her M.Ed. in Administration, Curriculum and Supervision from the University of Oklahoma in 2003. After relocating to the Metro East Area, Jennifer joined East St. Louis SD 189 in January 2013 as an Assessment Specialist, and, In 2015, was named Director of Research, Evaluation, and Assessment.
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Delfaye Jason, Chief School Business Official
Delfaye Jason is a strong and dedicated finance professional with several years of experience in governmental accounting, auditing, corporate accounting and school finance. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Finance and a Master's in Business Administration (Finance) from Southern Illinois University in Edwardsville and a Chief School Business Official certification from Southern Illinois University in Carbondale. Since joining the East St Louis School District in 2018, Ms. Jason is known and respected for enforcing strict conformance to written policies, guidelines, rules and regulations, and maintaining high ethical standards. She is highly competent in analyzing financial information and recognizes the financial implications of all management decisions. Coming from a life-long legacy of educators, she knows the importance of education and her work is rooted in the belief that a great education is the foundation to life success. One of her favorite aspects of her role as Chief School Business Official is being involved in collaboration between schools, teachers and administrators to further learn how to better instruct our students.
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Valencia Hawkins, Interim Chief Human Resource Officer
Dr. Valencia Martin-Hawkins is an experienced instructional leader with over 25 years of service. She has held various roles, including English Teacher, Instructional Coach, Assistant Principal, Principal, and several roles as a director. Dr. Hawkins led the Teacher and School Leader Initiative federal grant and successfully implemented an Urban Teacher Residency program that received the Illinois State Board of Education's Those Who Excel Excellence Award in the team category. She has been instrumental in recruiting, retaining, and developing high-quality teachers.
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Sydney Stigge-Kaufman, Executive Director of Communications and Strategic Partnerships
Sydney Stigge-Kaufman is a strategic communications, grant writing and program development professional with more than 17 years’ experience advancing efforts in community non-profits, university and K-12 public education environments. Since joining the East St. Louis School District in 2012, Sydney has helped secure over $50 million in competitive grants. She holds a bachelor’s degree in both English and Bible & Religion from Bethel College (Kansas) and a Master of Social Work from Florida State University.
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