The Village of Oak Park | 123 Madison St.  Oak Park, IL 60302 | village@oak-park.us

Main menu

STAY CONNECTED

Village fills key leadership positions

New Chief DEI Officer…The Village’s commitment to racial equity took a significant step forward when Danielle Walker, Ph.D., assumed the newly created position of Chief Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Officer in August. Dr. Walker will be responsible for collaboratively developing and driving the Village’s organization-wide equity and inclusion strategies, including the development of a racial equity action plan, and the implementation of the Village’s racial equity toolkit. She comes to Oak Park after serving in a similar capacity for the City and County of Denver–City Attorney’s Office. Dr. Walker earned her doctoral degree in philosophy with a concentration on critical social issues in education from the University of Colorado–Denver. Her education background includes a master’s degree in public affairs from the University of Missouri, where she also earned her bachelor of arts degree in interdisciplinary studies. Some of Dr. Walker’s accomplishments include being the founder of the Racism Lives Here initiative for higher education and receiving the 47th NAACP Image Chairman’s Award for activism.

New Public Works Director…Rob Sproule was promoted to Director of the Village’s Public Works Department in July. Sproule has worked as a public servant for more than a decade, including the past eight years with the Village in varying Public Works leadership positions. Sproule came aboard at the Village in 2014 when he was hired as Forestry Superintendent and tasked with administering Oak Park’s urban forestry management program. In 2020, Sproule was promoted to the position of Assistant Public Works Director and began sharing in management responsibility for all Public Works services and activities. A Board Certified Master Arborist, Sproule is one of only 77 public works professionals in the United States and Canada to earn certification as a Public Works Professional in Management through the American Public Works Association. He has a Bachelor of Arts Degree from Fordham University and a Master of Forestry Degree from the University of Maine.