“The pride, the tradition that is here, it is known beyond the walls of Naperville,” said first-year Naperville North Athletic Director, Jon Pereiro.
Naperville North High School has a lineage of legendary and impactful athletic directors, but this summer, for the first time since 2014, Huskie athletics needed a new leader. Jim Konrad, a three-time state-winning boys’ soccer coach and former athletic director (AD), participated in the interview process and highlighted what made Jon Pereiro shine from the rest. This story is sponsored by Fair Oaks Ford and Fair Oaks Lincoln.
“I think what made Jon stand out was that you could see his vision when he talked,” said Konrad. “That’s kind of a cliche thing to say, but all of his answers aligned with what he led with, which is that he truly cares about athletics, he cares about the kids, and he wants to give them the best possible experience.”
Jon Pereiro’s vision within Naperville North athletics
Pereiro was hired as the Naperville North AD over the summer, and right away recognized the prominent athletic foundation that was left for him
“There’s great things that are happening here, there’s no doubt about it,” said Pereiro. “So, I hope that I can help accentuate that and work with our coaches, our student-athletes, and the community at large.”
With this respect for tradition, Pereiro aims to further unite Naperville North athletics.
“One of the things that I knew I wanted to do coming in, is work with coaches on program alignment, bringing our athletic department together,” said Pereiro.
“We have 32 programs with 32 sports, and there are 107 teams within all of our programs between (all the levels),” Pereiro added. “What we want to do is find a way to create that alignment. So we have our 107 teams (and) 32 sports, but really one athletic department, one program.”
Pereiros’s past includes a wide range of experiences as a player, coach, and AD
Jon Pereiro arrives at Naperville North with a wide range of experiences. After graduating from Sandburg High School in 2004, he went on to play collegiate football at Loras College, where he first crossed paths with Bob Quinn, Naperville North’s most recent AD. Quinn took over as Loras AD when Pereiro graduated from college.
Following Loras, Pereiro taught, coached, and was the activities director at Plainfield Central. After a stint as Assistant AD, Pereiro was hired as the AD at Joliet Central in 2021, until taking the Naperville North job this summer.
Naperville North girls golf coach, Greta Williams, praises his experience, and willingness to make an impact on every Huskie athlete.
“Golf is a small sport, you know, we don’t have as many athletes as some of the bigger programs in the athletic department, but he treats every single sport as being as important as the next,” Williams said.
“(That) has been very impactful for me as a coach. I think for the girls, too, his visibility coming in and watching the girls play, giving them fist bumps, and showing his support of every athlete, and every single coach,” added Williams.
Learning from Bob Quinn and continuing the Naperville North traditions
Following Bob Quinn’s retirement in the spring, Pereiro was able to learn the ropes of all things Naperville North.
“It was fantastic being able to spend a lot of time, in May and June, just kind of seeing the coaches working with Bob Quinn, learning from him and the great things that he has put in place here,” said Pereiro. Bob is, a fantastic individual. And there’s no bigger champion of student-athletes and coaches than Bob Quinn, and I felt that as a student-athlete myself at Loras.”
Naperville North, a powerhouse in state athletics, owes some of its legacy to leaders like Bob Quinn and Neil McAuley, who forged the department’s foundations.
They both oversaw dozens of state championships from multiple sports and everyone remembers them as leaders, mentors, and first-class people.
“I’m excited, I’ve been so fortunate to work with Neil McCauley as an AD years ago, and then Bobby Quinn,” said Jim Konrad. “And now, with Jon, I feel like we’ve been really blessed at North to have a succession of incredible ADs over the years.”
Pereiro’s vision promises to unite every team, athlete, and coach under one proud banner. Together, they stand ready to embrace the future, united as one Huskie family, who are as the motto says ‘Driven To Compete.’
For more prep sports highlights and stories, visit the Naperville Sports Weekly page!
