In the beginning, Niles West’s Athletic Director (AD) Dana Krilich was a high school athlete. She primarily played basketball, but she also tried her hand at tennis and badminton. In her sophomore year of high school, during her basketball season, Krilich broke her back and ended up having her L5 disc removed. She was only 16. This led her to stop playing sports, but because her mom and aunt were all teachers, she knew she would eventually become one too. Krilich’s first teaching job was becoming a girls’ basketball coach.
“I went back to school to get my Type 75 Principal Certification. I did some of my internship hours in the athletic office and that’s when I started thinking about maybe becoming an AD someday,” Krilich said.
Being a female in a predominantly male environment comes with unique challenges, and Krilich has been the only female head AD in the CSL (Central Suburban League) in the history of Niles West Athletics.
“When I started six years ago, I definitely felt like I had to prove something just because I am a woman. I was directly asked by my first principal, at Eisenhower High School, if I could handle being a woman in the job. I often count the number of women in athletic meetings and conference spaces that I go to – I am happy to report that each year I count more and more! There are also more females in assistant roles in the CSL which is awesome,” Krilich said.
Krilich enjoys many aspects of her job, but she also tries to be intentional with getting out of her office.
“I like to interact with my students and enjoy when I have visitors who come for candy and to say hi. Wolves – stop by, my candy jar is always full,” Krilich said.
Sarah Kowalski, the Director of Operations for District 219, works in the district office and makes decisions about the day-to-day business that keeps district schools running smoothly.
“District 219 has a culture that lifts up all their employees and empowers them to continue learning and growing. The biggest setback I face is self-inflicted, and it is that I do not golf. In most business settings, golfing is a good skill to have,” Kowalski said.
If Kowalski is found in a room of all or mostly men, she is most conscious about making her voice heard. According to Kowalski, there are advantages to being a woman in a male-dominated field.
“I can offer a perspective that would have been missed. There is value in being able to see things with a different lens. [Also,] Building Operations is a new adventure every single day. I enjoy coming into work not always knowing what to expect and solving new and challenging problems. I entered this field because I saw so few women becoming CSBOs (Chief School Business Officials) and saw an opportunity to make a change. I encourage everyone to push the norms and do the unexpected,” Kowalski said.
As the Principal Architect, Athi Toufexis is another female leading in an historically male-dominated field. Students in 219 can see her work each day, if they look for it, as her firm designs and renovates classrooms, offices, and common spaces. At West specifically, she is currently working on plans for an addition on the north side of the building and planned recent the library renovation.
Internally, Toufexis’ firm consists of equal gender representation, but there are frequent instances where she is one of the very few, if not the only, female in a room.
“There have been a couple of rare instances where I had to work harder to demonstrate my expertise without it being disregarded just because of my gender. Experience and the confidence that my peers around me helped to build have allowed me to tackle those few instances authoritatively,” Toufexis said.
Toufexis’s job has been extremely supportive in developing her skills and giving her confidence to ensure her voice is heard and respected. Also, Toufexis gets to help people problem-solve and collaborate with her colleagues.
“At the end of the day, the outcomes of that collaboration hopefully creates spaces and environments that make people’s lives a little more joyful or a little bit easier,” Toufexis said.
At the end of the day, each of these women can serve as inspirational examples for students who may not envision themselves in a specific career.
“If there is something of interest to you, that you are passionate about, don’t shy away from it because you think it may be a single-gender or single-demographic dominated field. All of our professions and careers need diversity and a variety of opinions in order to be most successful,” Toufexis said.
