General Trustees of the Lincoln Academy of Illinois
The General Trustees, whose duties are to nominate and elect the Laureates, are also responsible for electing from their own ranks the working board of directors of the Academy known as the Board of Regents.
Joy Boruff
Office HolderGeneral Trustee
TitlePresident / CEO
Home City and StateMoline, IL
Brief BiographyBoruff was among the first group of women to be employed in WOC-TV’s newsroom in 1976. The next year, she became the first female host of a call-in radio public affairs show on WOC-AM. Now she is executive director of the Moline Foundation.
Arthur 'Hy' Bunn
Office HolderGeneral Trustee
Ronald Chez
Office HolderGeneral Trustee
Brief BiographyPresident and owner, Ronald L. Chez, Inc., a consulting, financial company. Chairman of various boards and foundations including, Epiworks, Chez Family Foundation, and the Center for Wounded Veterans and Higher Education, at the University of Illinois.
Frank Clark
OfficerChancellor
Office HolderGeneral Trustee
TitleChairman and CEO ComEd, Retired
Home City and StateChicago, IL
Brief BiographyRetired chairman and CEO of ComEd. Serves on many non-for-profit and corporate boards, co-founder of the Rowe-Clark Math and Science Academy in Chicago’s West Side.
Maria del Socorro Pesqueira
Office HolderGeneral Trustee
Brief BiographyPresident of Healthy Communities Foundation, a grantmaking foundation that serves communities in the western Cook County suburbs and the City of Chicago. Her career has centered on working with and lifting voices in marginalized communities. She serves on numerous boards and commissions including the Forest Preserves of Cook County Board and the Census 2020 Advisory Panel.
Mara Sovey Downing
Office HolderGeneral Trustee
TitleVice President, Brand Management & Corporate Communications and President, John Deere Foundation
Robert A. Easter, PhD
Office HolderGeneral Trustee
TitlePresident Emeritus, Dean Emeritus College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences, Professor Emeritus, Department of Animal Sciences University of Illinois
James G. Gidwitz
Office HolderGeneral Trustee
TitleChairman and CEO, Continental Materials Corp.
Home City and StateChicago, IL
Brief BiographyChairman of the Board, Chief Executive Officer of Continental Materials Corporation and serves as a trustee of the Hotchkiss School
Zale Glauberman
Office HolderGeneral Trustee
TitlePresident, The Glauberman Circle
Home City and StateSpringfield, IL
Brief BiographyPresident, The Glauberman Circle, legislative office specializing in legislative and public affairs representation.
J'Tia Hart
Office HolderGeneral Trustee
Home City and StateChicago, IL
Brief BiographyDr. Hart is a nuclear engineer currently serving as the Program Lead in the Security Sciences Division at Argonne National Laboratory where she directs analysis covering international affairs, nuclear energy and safety, energy security and cybersecurity to inform executive cabinet decisions.
The Reverend Dr. Marshall Hatch, Sr.
Office HolderGeneral Trustee
TitleSenior Pastor, New Mount Pilgrim Church
Home City and StateChicago, IL
Brief BiographyPastor New Mount Pilgrim Missionary Baptist Church, Chicago; member of the National Baptist Conventions (USA and America), Illinois National Baptist State Convention, American Baptist Churches of Metro Chicago, United Power for Action and Justice, and co-convener of L.E.A.D.E.R.S. Network.
Sondra A. Healy
Office HolderGeneral Trustee
TitleCo-Chairman, Turtle Wax Inc.
Home City and StateChicago, IL
Brief BiographyChairman of Turtle Wax, Inc. since 1972. Serves as a Director of After School Matters, Inc.
Dr. Roger D. Herrin
Office HolderGeneral Trustee
TitleSIU Board of Trustees Member
Home City and StateHarrisburg, IL
Brief BiographyCommunity leader, business person, and doctor. Attended University of Illinois College of Medicine and Illinois College of Podiatric Medicine with a Doctor of Podiatric Medicine Degree and received the highest and last Dr. L. R. McCain Award for outstanding proficiency in surgical anatomy and surgery; past president of the American College of Foot Surgeons.
Mannie Jackson
Office HolderGeneral Trustee
Home City and StateLas Vegas, NV
Brief BiographyBecause of Mannie Jackson’s commitment to the betterment of others, the Mannie Jackson – Basketball’s Human Spirit Award – carries his name. Jackson has served as a positive example and sports role model to his peers, in addition to having tremendous business success. In 2012, the former Chairman of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame penned his bestselling autobiography, “Boxcar to Boardrooms.” He continues to donate generously to numerous causes including cancer research; the University of Illinois, South African youth funds; the Basketball Hall of Fame; the Lincoln School Alumni Foundation; and the Mannie Jackson Center for the Humanities Foundation in his hometown of Edwardsville, Illinois. Mannie Jackson was inducted as a member of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in September 2017. He received the Order of Lincoln and became a Lincoln Laureate in 2010.
Melvin L. Katten
Office HolderGeneral Trustee
TitleCo-Founder / Senior Counsel at Katten Muchin Rosenman LLP
Home City and StateWinnetka, IL
Brief BiographyRetired founding partner of Katten Muchin Roseman, LLP and serves as senior counsel; former chairman of the Anti-Defamation League’s Chicago Regional Board; past president of the Better Government Association.
Sheila Berner Kennedy
Office HolderGeneral Trustee
Home City and StateKenilworth, IL
Brief BiographyExecutive Director of Top Box Foods; volunteer attorney for Legal Assistance Foundation; appointed in 2011 by the Illinois Supreme Court to serve on the Illinois Board of Admissions to the Bar.
Howard A. Learner
Office HolderGeneral Trustee
TitlePresident and Executive Director, Environmental Law & Policy Center
Brief BiographyAdjunct Professor at the University of Michigan Law School and Northwestern University School of Law, teaching advanced seminars on energy law and climate change policy, environmental constitutionalism, and sustainable development law.
Dr. Osvaldo Lopez
Office HolderGeneral Trustee
Home City and StateChicago, IL
Brief BiographyFaculty of the University of Illinois Medical School; Diplomat of the American Board of Ophthalmology; served as member of President Clinton’s Health Care Advisory Committee and served as an advisor of health policy to the Hispanic Caucus of the Congress of the United States; senior founding partner of the Chicago Eye Institute.
Shirley R. Madigan
Office HolderGeneral Trustee
TitleChairman, Illinois Arts Council
Home City and StateChicago, IL
Brief BiographyTrustee at Loyola University of Chicago; Director at After School Matters, Inc; Chairman of Illinois Arts Council.
Lucyna Migala
Office HolderGeneral Trustee
TitleArtistic Director & General Manager, The Lira Ensemble
Home City and StateChicago, IL
Brief BiographyArtistic director, general manager, and narrator of Lira Ensemble; national board member of the Polish Women’s Alliance of America; officer of the Polish Arts Club of Chicago; Co-founder and vice president of the Chicago Chapter of the Kosciusko Foundation; founding member of the Ethnic and Folk Arts Panel of the Illinois Arts Council.
Delmer R. Mitchell
Office HolderGeneral Trustee
TitlePartner
Home City and StateQuincy, IL
Brief BiographyA highly respected attorney and community leader in the Quincy area.
Daniel J. Montgomery
Office HolderGeneral Trustee
TitlePresident
Home City and StateEvanston, IL
Brief BiographyElected as an American Federation of Teachers, AFT Vice President at the union’s executive council meeting; president of the Illinois Federation of Teachers; serves on the executive board of the Illinois AFL-CIO
Harold Oakley
Office HolderGeneral Trustee
TitleChairman
Brief BiographyChairman of Schmiedeskamp Robertson Neu & Mitchell LLP. He focuses his practice on corporate and other business law (including transactional health care law), mergers and acquisitions. Hal also assists the firm’s education law practice group. Hal is extensively involved in the community, particularly in organizations committed to the social, educational, and cultural betterment of society.
Douglas Oberhelman
Office HolderGeneral Trustee
Joseph A. Power, Jr.
Office HolderGeneral Trustee
TitlePartner, Power Rogers & Smith, PC
Home City and StateChicago, IL
Brief BiographyFounding partner of law firm Power, Rogers & Smith, P.C.; past president of the Illinois Trial Lawyers Association and Public Justice; fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers and the International Academy of Trial Lawyers; member of the Inner Circle of Advocates.
Sylvia Puente
Office HolderGeneral Trustee
TitleExecutive Director
Home City and StateChicago, IL
Brief BiographyExecutive director of the Latino Policy Forum, the only public policy and advocacy organization in the Chicago metropolitan area working to improve educational outcomes for children, make housing accessible and affordable, promote just immigration reform, and build the influence and leadership of the Latino community. She has been recognized as one of the “100 Most Influential Hispanics in the US” by Hispanic Business magazine. Puente holds an economics degree from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
Jon Pyatt
Office HolderGeneral Trustee
TitleRep. Cheri Bustos (IL-17), Chief of Staff
Home City and StateWashington, DC
Brief BiographyChief of Staff to Rep. Cheri Bustos (D-IL) in U.S. Congress; former Director of Federal Relations for the University of Illinois system
Darryl Rodgers
Office HolderGeneral Trustee
TitleVice President
Home City and StateChicago, IL
Brief BiographyDarryl Rodgers is a Vice President and Financial Advisor in the Chicago office of Bernstein. He works with high-net-worth families and individuals, charitable groups and small businesses and, together with their other professional advisors and Bernstein’s portfolio and wealth management specialists, helps clients make investment decisions optimized to meet their goals.
Shirley W. Ryan
Office HolderGeneral Trustee
TitleCivic Leader
Home City and StateWinnetka, IL
Brief BiographyPresident and Treasurer of Shirley Ryan, Patrick G. and Shirley W. Ryan Foundation, concentrating in Education, Arts, Roman Catholic concerns and youth services. Served on boards, founded programs, or sponsored developments for numerous organizations and institutions including the Lyric Opera, the Art Institute, Northwestern University, WTTW Public Media, among others.
Linda Schielke
Office HolderGeneral Trustee
Home City and StateBatavia, IL
Brief BiographyA recognized educator and educational leader in Illinois for over three decades. Linda gives presentations and provides leadership to several not-for-profit organizations focused on the preservation of historic figures and their achievements. Linda currently serves as Batavia’s First Lady. (Her husband, Jeff Schielke, has held the role of Batavia Mayor for almost 40 years.)
Marc S. Schulman
Office HolderGeneral Trustee
TitlePresident
Home City and StateChicago, IL
Brief BiographyPresident of Eli’s Cheesecake; partners with schools and organizations such as Wilbur Wright College, the Chicago High School for Agricultural Sciences, Vaughn Occupational High School, among others.
Todd Shapiro
Office HolderGeneral Trustee
TitlePresident and CEO
Home City and StateLa Grange Park, IL
Brief BiographyPresident and CEO of the Illinois CPA Society, Illinois CPA Foundation, and CPAs for the Public Interest, and an ex-officio board member of the CPA Endowment Fund of Illinois. In 2015, Todd was named one of the Top 100 Most Influential People in the accounting profession by Accounting Today.
Mark Slaby
Office HolderGeneral Trustee
Home City and StateClarendon Hills, IL
Brief BiographyMARK SLABY is an Executive and Business Owner. He is affiliated with Juno Payments – Global Ecommerce and Mobile Software Enterprise Payment Solutions. Global software payment solutions for: ecommerce, mobile, and merchant services.
Doug Stewart
Office HolderGeneral Trustee
Home City and StateEast Peoria, IL
Brief BiographyDoug and Vicky Stewart have been great supporters of nonprofits throughout central Illinois for more than 35 years.
Dr. Howard Sulkin
Office HolderGeneral Trustee
TitlePresident
Home City and StateChicago, IL
Brief BiographyA Laureate of the Academy. Legacy of developing interfaith relations the Spertus Institute of Jewish Studies in Chicago.
Dana Withers
Office HolderGeneral Trustee
Brief BiographyPresident of Withers Broadcasting. Founder and President of Dana Communications. Trustee for the National Association of Broadcasters Political Action Committee.