Leadership Greater Chicago Announces LGC Class of 2024

 

Leadership Greater Chicago Announces LGC Class of 2024 

45 cross-sector leaders selected to region’s premier civic leadership program 

CHICAGO, Ill. – Leadership Greater Chicago (LGC) announced the 2024 Class of its Signature Fellows Program, the greater Chicago area’s premier civic leadership development program. These 45 accomplished and diverse individuals represent a cross-section of professionals from the corporate, nonprofit, government and education sectors. During the 10-month program, with the city as a classroom, they will be immersed in major socioeconomic issues facing the region through full-day seminars, neighborhood site visits, conversations with subject matter experts and cultural events. 

“As we celebrate our civic leadership organization’s 40th anniversary of its founding by The Chicago Community Trust, I am honored to welcome such a distinguished group of leaders to the LGC Class of 2024,” said LGC Chief Executive Officer Myetie Hamilton (LGC Fellow since 2016). “I look forward to working closely with the new Class to better understand and address the issues that our city is faced with today, and to elevate our impact across every sector and in every corner of the Greater Chicago Region.” 

Selection into the LGC Signature Fellows Program is based on a record of professional accomplishment, evidence of leadership skills, the potential to influence positive change and a commitment to the region. This year’s Class advanced through a highly competitive process that included a written application, an online assessment and, in some cases, an interview with graduates of the LGC Signature Fellows Program. Those selected for the 2024 Signature Fellows Program share the organization’s commitment to lead bold, transformative change in the community. 

Presenting the LGC Class of 2024: 

Kristopher J. Anderson – Director, State and Local Government Affairs, United Airlines  

James Baldwin – Chief Financial Officer, Metropolitan Family Services  

Laura M. Beres – VP, Enterprise Transformation, Ulta Beauty  

Keith Borchers – VP Chief of Staff to the CEO, Adtalem Global Education  

Tyrone Branch – Senior Lean Improvement Coach, Discover Financial Services  

Edward T. Brice – Director, Talent Analytics, Allstate Insurance Company  

Edgar Delgado – Executive Director, Chicago Federal Executive Board  

Jamie Jones Ezefili – Senior Vice President & Chief Sustainability Officer, Northern Trust  

Rachel Flores – Vice President of Business Development, Advocate Health  

Lisa Forbes – General Counsel, Builders Vision  

Nora A. Garcia – Director of Programs, Healthy Communities Foundation  

Sarah Glavin – Head of Community Affairs, Chicago, Amazon  

Kelly Greening – Associate General Counsel, Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago  

Kimberlee Guenther, Ph.D. – Chief Impact Officer, United Way of Metro Chicago  

Amiel B. Harper, Esq. – Founder & Principal, The Morpheus Consultancy, LLC  

Kevin Harrington – Managing Director, CIBC Bank USA  

Kelwin Harris – Chief Civic Engagement Officer & Deputy Assessor, Cook County Assessor's Office  

Rachel L. Harris – Divisional Vice President, North Central Division, Beam Suntory  

Kelsey Malnati Howell – Executive Director, Marc & Jeanne Malnati Family Foundation  

Jennie Hull – Chief Program Officer, Nourishing Hope  

Craig D. Jeffrey – Partner, Nixon Peabody LLP  

Marlena Jentz – Vice President of Operations & Strategic Partnerships, Institute for Nonviolence Chicago  

Garrett Johnson – Managing Director, BMO  

J. Simone Jones – Partner, Sidley Austin LLP  

Annie Kastanek – Partner, Jenner & Block LLP  

Jennifer Keeling – Chief of Partnerships and Operations, Chicago CRED  

Mia Khimm – Culture Program Director, The Joyce Foundation  

Priya Linson – Executive Director, OneGoal Chicago  

Eva Liu – Chief Strategy & Operations Officer, Chicago Beyond  

Sonia Mathew – Director of Partnerships, Robert R. McCormick Foundation  

Matthew F. McCabe – Executive Director, Strategic Initiatives, Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Chicago  

Ashli Nelson – North American Impact Director, Government Relations, Community Engagement and Public Affairs, McDonald's Corporation  

Natalie C. Neris, Ed.D. – Chief of Community Engagement, Kids First Chicago  

Nikki Newsome – Chief Culture Officer, Meta  

Merih Ocbazghi – Managing Director & Partner, Boston Consulting Group  

Miriam Owens – President and Chief Executive Officer, The People's Music School  

Grace K. Pai – Executive Director, Asian Americans Advancing Justice | Chicago  

Abbie Peluso – Partner, Riley Safer Holmes & Cancila, LLP  

Matt Richards – Deputy Commissioner of Behavioral Health, Chicago Department of Public Health  

Carla Rubalcava – Managing Director of Illinois Programs, Mikva Challenge  

Joe Salgado – Director, Labor Relations, Nicor Gas  

Daniel Serota – Vice President of Government and Public Affairs, Aon  

Diana C. Sharpe – Vice President, Large Customer Operations, ComEd  

Joanna Trotter – Executive Director/Senior Program Officer, JPMorgan Chase & Co.  

David L. Williams – Partner, Faegre Drinker  

More than 1,300 leaders have successfully completed this world-class civic leadership development program, and 83% of those individuals still reside in Illinois. A new class of leaders is selected each year, with the approval of the LGC Board of Directors. The application for the 2025 LGC Signature Fellows Program will open on October 1, 2023. 

  

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