Board of Directors

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Tamara Askew
Tamara is the Director of the ABA Section of State and Local Government Law.  Previously, she was the Programs and Projects Manager for the ABA Commission on Women. Prior to joining the ABA, she worked on employment, business and real estate issues at the Chicago Transit Authority.  At the University of Illinois at Chicago, she was a project coordinator at the Center for Research on Women and Gender. Tamara was a Nuclear Health Physicist, in Emergency Preparedness and State Programs for Commonwealth Edison.  She received a Bachelor of Science from Purdue University in Industrial Hygiene and Health Physics, a Master of Public Health (Environmental Health Policy concentration) from University of Illinois of Chicago, School of Public Health and a Juris Doctor from Chicago-Kent College of Law, Illinois Institute of Technology.

Francis Beidler III
*Bio coming soon.

Eric Berlin
Eric is a partner at Jones Day’s Chicago law office.  A trial lawyer focusing mainly on competition issues, Eric was named a "key partner" in Global Competition Review’s survey of the world’s leading competition law practices and economists.  Eric has also spoken in front of the Chicago Bar Association and at a conference on the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.  In addition to his work with the BGA, Eric sits on the Associates  Board for the Gastro-Intestinal Research Foundation.

Robert Carson
Robert serves as a partner at Gould & Ratner LLP, focusing mainly on commercial litigation.  For his work in that area he was recognized as an Illinois Super Lawyer in Intellectual Property Litigation.  Robert works with numerous different community and professional associations, including the Chicago Council on Global Affairs and serving as the Director of the Night Ministry.  Robert did his undergraduate work at the University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana, and received his law degree from the Duke University School of Law.

Phil Clement (Vice Chair)
Phil is the Global Chief Marketing and Communications Officer at the Chicago-based Aon Corporation.  He is responsible for all of Aon’s marketing and much of its sales programming.  Before joining Aon, he worked as the managing director of the management consulting firm The Clement Group.  Phil has taught at the University of Chicago Graduate School of Business and Irving B. Harris Graduate School of Public Policy and serves as an adjunct professor at the Kelstadt Graduate School of Business at DePaul University.  Phil has also worked with several organizations in his community, including Chicago’s Business Marketing Association, the St. Chrysostom Day School of Chicago, and the Goodman Theatre.  He holds Master’s Degrees from the University of Chicago and Irving B. Harris and attended the University of Southern California as an undergraduate.

Patrick Collins
Patrick is a partner at the Perkins Coie law firm, and also serves on Perkins’ Firmwide Executive Committee.  He works primarily in the firm’s investigations and white collar crime practice.  In 2010, Patrick was named one of Chicago’s top attorneys of the past decade by the Chicago Law Bulletin.  He has received numerous other awards and honors throughout his career, including an appointment by Gov. Pat Quinn to chair the Illinois Reform Commission in 2009.  Prior to joining Perkins Coie, Patrick served as an Assistant U.S. Attorney in Chicago, where he spent four years supervising the office’s corruption unit and led the prosecution in the trial of former Illinois Gov. George Ryan.  Patrick works with numerous other community organizations, including Horizons for Youth, which he founded.

Margaret A. Daley (Vice President of Investigations)
Margaret serves as the managing director at the law firm Duff & Phelps’ Chicago offices and also works in the firm’s Dispute and Legal Management Consulting practice.  In addition, she is the co-chair of Duff & Phelps’ Global Electronic Discovery and Investigations Group.  Margaret handles high profile international money laundering, financial fraud, asset search and due diligence investigations for multinational corporations in a variety of industries and frequently lectures on investigative and compliance issues.  Margaret attended the University of Michigan and received her law degree from the Boston University School of Law

Pedro DeJesus
*Bio coming soon.

Samuel Fifer
Samuel is a partner at the law firm SNR Denton US LLP.  He works primarily in intellectual property, entertainment and media law and is a former chair of the firm’s Intellectual Property & Technology practice.  Samuel has been recognized by The Best Lawyers in America for his work in First Amendment law and by Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business as a lead lawyer in both Media and Entertainment and Intellectual Property law.  Samuel is a member of numerous community and professional organizations and is also an adjunct professor at the Northwestern University School of Law.  He did his undergraduate work at Northwestern University and graduated from the DePaul University College of Law.

Graham Grady
Graham Grady is an equity partner at the international law firm of K&L Gates, formerly known in Chicago as Bell, Boyd & Lloyd.  Graham concentrates his practice on zoning, land use, licensing, regulatory and government relations.  Graham was selected again in 2011 for designation by Best Lawyers of America in the area of Land Use and Zoning Law.  Civically active, he is a director and treasurer of the Lloyd A. Fry Foundation and also volunteers as chairman of the African American Legacy of the Chicago Community Trust.  Graham is a trustee of the Chicago Zoological Society/Brookfield Zoo, Old St. Pat's Church, St. Ignatius College Prep, the Near South Planning Board and the Better Government Association.  Graham’s prior government service with the City of Chicago includes director of the Private Industry Council, Acting Commissioner of Economic Development, Zoning Administrator, Buildings Commissioner and ex-officio member of the Chicago Plan Commission.  He also served as chief executive of the Chicago Housing Authority.  Graham is a fellow of Leadership Greater Chicago and has been recognized by Ebony Magazine's "30 Under 30" and Crain's Chicago Business "40 Under 40."  Graham is a graduate of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and Northwestern University School of Law where he graduated with honors.  He is the father of 18-year-old twin daughters who are freshmen in college.

Jan Grayson
Jan Grayson is the retired Managing Partner of JMG Associates who provided strategic, financial and information technology consulting services for a diverse group of clients. Prior to that he was the Chief Information Officer at Holiday Inn Worldwide, CEO of LaSalle Photo Services and Director, Department of Commerce and Community Affairs for the State of Illinois. From 1970-1986, he held various positions with Deloitte and Touche consulting in Chicago. During his final three years with Deloitte, he was the partner in charge for the Chicago office's small business consulting arm. Jan has served on boards of corporations, non-profit organizations including Victory Gardens Theatre, and business and trade associations. He received his BS and MBA from the University of Chicago.

Fran Grossman
*Bio coming soon.

Hill Hammock
After retiring as COO of LaSalle Bank, Hill served as Chief Administrative Officer for the Chicago Public Schools under Arne Duncan. Currently, he is Chairman of Chicago Deferred Exchange Corporation, a 1031 tax exchange boutique, and as an Advisor to Verit Capital Advisors which specializes in ESOP structuring advice. Hill has served as Chair of a number of not-for-profit civic and charitable boards and is a member of The Commercial Club.

Joseph Hasson
Joseph is a partner at Ungaretti & Harris in Chicago.  He works in mergers and acquisitions, corporate finance and intellectual property law, frequently handling transactions in excess of $100 million.  In addition to his service with the BGA, Joseph sits on the Board of Trustees of the Norwegian American Hospital Foundation.  Joseph attended Duke University and received his law degree from the University of Illinois College of Law.

Ted Hawkins (Treasurer)
Ted works in Chicago as a partner in PriceWaterhouseCooper’s Advisory Services practice.  He works on mergers and acquisitions, anti-corruption, and bribery due diligence cases across the globe.  Ted has presented to both the SEC and the United States Department of Justice and has also provided expert testimony in numerous cases in both state and federal court.  He graduated from the University of Notre Dame.

H. Roderic Heard (Chair)
Roderic is a partner in the Chicago office of Barnes & Thornburg LLP. He practices in the firm’s Litigation Department and concentrates his practice on commercial, intellectual property, and environmental litigation. His practice experience includes more than 30 complex business cases which he tried to judgments in courts throughout the United States and Guam. He is a Distinguished Neutral for the International Institute for Conflict Preservation and Resolution (CPR) and National Panelist for AAA. Rod earned both his B.S. and M.S. from the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University. He earned his J.D. from the College of William and Mary. He continues to serve his alma mater as an adjunct professor teaching Dispute Resolution and trial Advocacy, and sits on the Kellogg School of Management, Dispute Resolution Advisory Board. Rod was an adjunct professor at DePaul University Law School for 17 years. He also currently teaches International Business Transactions at Loyola University’s School of Law as an adjunct professor.  Rod belongs to the International Dispute Resolution Association, and has been a faculty member for the National Institute for Trial Advocacy (NITA) every year since 1987. He was one of 500 Illinois attorneys listed in Who’s Who Legal, 2008-2010, and received the distinction as one of the 100 All Stars in Client Service in a BTI Survey of Corporate Counsel.

Scott Hodes
Scott serves as Senior Counsel at Bryan Cave LLP’s Chicago offices.  He is a corporate lawyer and serves as counsel for a variety of large Chicago banks.  Scott is also very interested in art law and has written and spoken extensively on the subject.  Scott has worked in various civic involvements throughout his career, including founding The Lawyers for the Arts and currently serving as director of the Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce.  Scott attended the University of Chicago as an undergraduate and received his law degree from the University of Michigan.

David Hoffman
David Hoffman is a partner at the law firm Sidley Austin and is the former Inspector General for the City of Chicago. During his term, from 2005–2009, David led the transformation of the Inspector General’s office into a strong and fiercely independent agency that investigated fraud, corruption, waste and inefficiencies related to city government, ranging from widespread bribery schemes to the parking meter privatization deal. From 1998 to 2005, David was an Assistant U.S Attorney in Chicago, where he prosecuted fraud and corruption, supervised the office’s Gang Unit, and played a leading role in the office’s anti-gun-violence efforts. David clerked for U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice William Rehnquist after graduating from the University of Chicago Law School in 1995, where he currently teaches a course on public corruption. He received his B.A. from Yale University in 1988. David has served as a commissioner on the Illinois Reform Commission, currently serves on the U.S. Legal Services Corporation’s Fiscal Oversight Task Force, and received the Champion of the Public Interest award from BPI. In 2010, he was a candidate for the U.S. Senate, placing second in the Democratic primary.

Jenny Johnson
*Bio coming soon.

Gary Kleinrichert
Gary works as the senior managing director in FTI Consulting’s Forensic and Litigation Consulting practice.  He handles forensic and accounting investigations and also assesses damages and business valuations in commercial disputes.  Gary’s expertise on commercial law issues have also led to numerous articles and speaking engagements on the subject.  He attended St. Joseph’s College.

Ludwig Kolman
Ludwig is a member of Vedder Price’s Litigation practice and is a former chair of the firm’s Litigation Department.  He has trial experience in numerous areas including commercial, white collar, and intellectual property law.  Before joining Vedder Price, Ludwig served as an Assistant U.S. Attorney in Chicago, specializing in financial crimes and in public interest law.  He has been recognized as an Illinois Leading Lawyer and was selected for inclusion in Illinois Super Lawyers 2006-2009.  Ludwig attended the University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana, holds a Master’s Degree in Physics from the University of Rochester, and graduated from the Northwestern University School of Law.

Mary Lee Leahy
Mary Lee Leahy has been practicing law since 1966 when she received her J.D. from the University of Chicago.  Prior to that she earned her B.S. from Loyola University (Chicago) and her M.A. from the University of Manchester (Fulbright Scholar).  She served in Governor Walker's administration as Director of the Department of Children and Family Services.  She has represented hundreds of Plaintiffs in Employment discrimination cases and in First Amendment Cases.  Due to those cases she is familiar with the operations of state government.

Christina Martini
*Bio coming soon.

Craig McCrohon (Secretary)
Craig is a partner at Burke Warren MacKay & Serritella, working in corporate, securities and mergers and acquisitions areas.  He provides various financial services to companies in Europe, China and Hong Kong.  Craig was named one of the 40 Under 40 Outstanding Illinois Attorneys by Chicago Lawyer and is listed as a Leading Lawyer in Illinois for corporate and technology transactions.  Craig attended Harvard University, the University of Pennsylvania Law School, the Wharton School of Business and the London School of Economics.

Steve Miller
Steve is the principal and co-founder of Origin Ventures, a venture-capital firm that invests in early-state companies.  He has extensive online development experience, including writing the business plan for quill.com and serving on the boards of organizations like GrubHub and Shoutlet.  Steve has also worked with various other nonprofits, serving on the boards of both i.c.stars and US Empowered.  He attended the University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana and has stayed involved there through funding scholarships and professorships and serving on the Dean’s Business Council and on the board of the Hillel Foundation.

Jack Modzelewski
Jack is a 35-year veteran of the communications industry.  A Chicago newspaper journalist and public affairs radio show host in his early career, he has been an international public relations counselor and executive since 1984.  He currently is Global President-Client Relations at Fleishman-Hillard Inc., where he has served for more than two decades as a senior executive in the U.S. and Europe.  He is on the Board of Advisors of Medill school of journalism and is also on the Journal of Integrated Marketing Communications board, both at Northwestern University.  He is a member of the Economic Club of Chicago and The Chicago Club, and is a board member of the Institute of Public Relations.  He is on the partners advisory group of the World Economic Forum.   He has attended WEF conferences and appeared on panels in Davos, China, and India.

James Newcomb
Jim is the Director of Brand Management and Advertising for The Boeing Company. He received a B.A. from the University of Wisconsin-Parkside in English (1991), an M.Ed from Loyola University Chicago in Curriculum and Instruction (1993), and an M.B.A. from Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management (2002). Previous to his work in brand management, Newcomb served as a community relations specialist for Boeing and as the director of development for a number of organizations, including the BGA.

Rachel Niewoehner
Rachel is a litigation partner in the Chicago office of the law firm Sidley Austin LLP. She works primarily on shareholder, securities, ERISA and consumer class action cases and maintains a commitment to pro bono work. Rachel is a member of the Board of Governors of the Chicago Council of Lawyers, a public interest bar association committed to improving administration of justice issues, and a Commissioner on the Cook County Commission on Human Rights, which enforces Cook County’s human rights ordinance. She was a 2009 Leadership Greater Chicago Fellow. Rachel received her undergraduate degree from the University of Michigan and her law degree from Harvard Law School.

José Padilla
José is Vice President and General Counsel at DePaul University.  He directs an office of seven attorneys and together they provide legal counsel to the nation’s largest Catholic university.  Mr. Padilla is a member of the National Board of the Fund for Improvement of Postsecondary Education, which advises the United States Education Secretary on ways to improve higher education. In the 1990s, he was a legislative assistant to the late Senator Lloyd Bentsen (D-TX) and a senior political appointee in the Clinton Administration, serving as Assistant Commissioner for Congressional and Public Affairs at the United States Customs Service, then a bureau of the United States Treasury Department. He is a director of the National Association of College and University Attorneys and the Alumni Association of the University of Michigan.  In October, 2010, Hispanic Business magazine listed Mr. Padilla as one of a 100 influential Hispanics in the nation. 

Heidi Rudolph
Heidi is the Vice President of Government and Legal Affairs at the Sara Lee Corporation.  She focuses on legislative and regulatory issues that impact the company and its holdings as well as other external agencies.  She previously worked at the Sears Holdings Corporation and as a partner at Arthur Andersen.  Heidi is the executive sponsor of the Sara Lee Womens Network.  She serves on the boards of the Brookfield Zoo and of the Firehouse Community Arts Center.  She was a 2009 Leadership Greater Chicago Fellow and is a co-founder of the professional women’s networking group Big Jobs Little Kids.

Juliet S. Sorensen
Juliet S. Sorensen is a clinical assistant professor of law at Northwestern University School of Law, where she is associated with the Center for International Human Rights. Juliet’s teaching and research interests include international criminal law and corruption. From 2003-2010, she was an Assistant U.S. Attorney in the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Chicago. In that capacity, she conducted investigations and prosecutions into a wide range of federal crimes, including the prosecution of City of Chicago inspectors as part of Operation Crooked Code, a corruption investigation into Chicago’s Building and Zoning departments. Juliet was a term member of the Council on Foreign Relations (2000-2005), and was a Chicago Council on Global Affairs "Emerging Leader" (2008-2010). In addition to her work with the BGA, she is a member of the boards of the United Nations Association of Greater Chicago and the South Chicago Art Center.

Robin Steans
Robin is the Executive Director of Advance Illinois, an independent statewide education policy and advocacy organization.  Ms. Steans has spent the last fifteen years working on public school reform from several vantage points including the Small Schools Coalition, Leadership for Quality Education, as a teacher in public high schools in Boston, San Francisco and Chicago, as a local school council member, and as a board member of several non-profit and advocacy organizations including the Steans Family Foundation, Annenberg Institute for School Reform, National-Louis University, Chapin Hall Center for Children, North Lawndale College Preparatory Charter High School, and Legacy Charter School.  Ms. Steans graduated from Brown University, received her Masters degree in Education from Stanford University, and her law degree from the University of Chicago.  She is married and has three children, all of whom attend Chicago Public Schools.

Kristofer Swanson
Kristofer is the managing director in the Disputes and Investigations practice at Navigant Consulting.  He is also a member of the firm’s Senior Leadership Team.  Kristofer leads many of the firm’s highest-profile cases involving financial issues ranging from Ponzi schemes to money laundering and has also provided expert testimony in numerous court cases.  He also serves on the boards of the Legal Aid Bureau of Metropolitan Family Services and of Lawyers for the Creative Arts.  Kristofer attended Lawrence University and obtained an MBA from the University of Chicago and a Master’s degree in Accounting from DePaul University.

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LIFE TRUSTEE BOARD

Howard Alper
Howard is the Chairman and CEO of Alper Services LLC, which provides insurance services to businesses.  He has also worked as a writer and editor for several national business and insurance publications.  Howard directs seminars for the Chicago Association of Commerce and Industry, the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, the Illinois CPA Foundation, and numerous law firms, banks and accounting firms.  He is also a past chairman of the New Century Bank Advisory Board and is Vice Chairman of the La Rabida Children’s Hospital Board of Trustees.

Seymour A. Cohen
Before beginning a well-earned retirement, Seymour had a distinguished career in the importing industry.  He was the founder of SAC Imports and served as president of the Reliance Trading Corporation of America.  Seymour is a past president and currently serves on the board of the University of Chicago Cancer Research Foundation, the Chicago board of the American Techion Society, and is a life trustee of the Congregation Rodfei Zedek synangogue.  He served in the Merchant Marine during World War II and in the Army during the Korean War.

Granger Cook, Jr.
Granger works at the Cook Alex law firm in Chicago.  At Cook Alex, he holds primary litigation responsibility for over 150 patent, trademark, copyright, and unfair competition cases in both state and federal court.  Granger attended Northwestern University as an undergraduate and received his law degree from the University of Michigan Law School.

E. David Coolidge
David works as the Vice Chairman of William Blair & Company, a financial services firm.  He was the CEO of the company from 1995 to 2004.  Formerly, he was the director of the Securities Industry Association and also served as governor of the National Association of Securities Dealers.  David is a trustee of both Williams College and the University of Chicago in addition to serving with several other organizations, including as a trustee at Rush University Medical Center.  David attended Williams College and earned an MBA from the Harvard Graduate Business School of Administration.

William Donnell
*Bio coming soon.

Melvin Katten
Melvin is a founding partner at Katten Muchin Rosenman LLP and currently serves as the firm’s Senior Counsel.  He works in tax and financial structure counseling, corporate mergers and acquisitions, and real estate and business ventures, as well as federal tax cases and criminal investigations.  He has numerous other professional affiliations including serving as Senior Vice Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Roosevelt University, Chairman of the Auditorium Theatre of Roosevelt University, and director of the Chicago Loop Alliance.  He is also a past president of the BGA.  Melvin attended the University of Illinois and earned his law degree from the John Marshall Law School.

Jonathan Kovler
Jonathan is the President of the Kovler Family Foundation. He has been a private investor in Chicago for over 40 years.

James M. Ratcliffe
Before retiring, James worked as the Vice President at RR Donnelley & Sons, a full-service provider of print services.  Before joining the company in 1968, he also worked as the Assistant Dean at the University of Chicago Law School.  James has served with a variety of organizations throughout his life, and currently sits on the Illinois Committee for Economic Education, the Harper Court Arts Council, and the Metropolitan Planning Council, among others.  He earned both a bachelor’s and a law degree from the University of Chicago.

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SENIOR ADVISOR

Jimmie Alford
Jimmie is the founder and chair of The Alford Group, assisting clients in all aspects of nonprofit management.  He has been recognized multiple times by The NonProfit Times as one of the 50 most influential people in the nonprofit sector.  Jimmie has also served as chair of the American Association of Fundraising Counsel and on the boards of the Association of Fundraising Professionals and the Fundraising School of Indiana University’s Center on Philanthropy.  Jimmy currently serves on numerous nonprofit boards in addition to the BGA, including as chair of the board for the Alliance for Children and Families.  He also frequently writes and lectures on nonprofit issues.  Jimmie holds a Master’s degree in administration and organizational behavior.

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YOUNG PROFESSIONALS BOARD

Executive Board

Scott Solomon, Co-Executive Chair
Nathan Kipp, Co-Executive Chair
Dan Lombard, Pro Bono Committee Co-Chair
Kristin Munsch, Pro Bono Committee Co-Chair
Nicole Nocera, Community Outreach Committee Co-Chair
Gina Ori, Community Outreach Committee Co-Chair
Clark Passino, Communication Committee Chair
Jack Schwager, Communication Committee Chair
Gregory Bailey, Legal Committee Co-Chair
Christopher Gallinari, Legal Committee Co-Chair
Matt Luzadder, Membership Drive Committee Chair

Members
Darrow Abrahams
David Almeida
Greg Bailey
Karl Barnickol
John Paul Benitez
Jared Bourgeois
Ana Bugan
Jennifer Bushaw
Amber Buycks
Benjamin Cleveland
David Cole, III
Jeff Cook
Harley Culbertson
David Curkovic
Sandra Desautels
Andrew John Dixon
Shannon Elliot
Yeny Estrada
Caryl Ewing
Megan Goering
Dave Hall
Charles Harris
Benn Hulse
Geoffrey Ihnow
Kathy Josephson
Justin Kay
Greg Kiesewetter
Peter Kolch
Jade Lambert
Matt Martin
Ken Mathieu
Emily Melvin
Clark Passino
Kyle Petersen
Monica Pinciak-Madden
Mack Reed
Cuyler Robinson
Jamiko Rose
Carrie Ruzicka
Matthew Topic
Jeremy Unruh
Zachary Ziliak

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