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 Name: James Joseph
Position: Director – Illinois Emergency Management Agency
Governor Bruce Rauner has selected James Joseph, 33, as the Director
of the Illinois Emergency Management Agency. Joseph will also serve
as the Illinois Homeland Security Adviser. He brings nearly 15 years
of experience in both the private and public sector to the position.
Since 2010, Joseph has worked for DuPage County in various roles
within the Emergency Management Department. Currently, he is the
Director and oversees three county departments, and is responsible
for the Emergency Operations Center. For nearly two years, he served
as Chief of the Security Division. He also was an Emergency
Management Coordinator, where he managed county-wide emergencies and
disasters.
Joseph also founded his own private security company called Center
for Security Intelligence. He provided services in security
operations, workplace violence prevention and emergency management.
Clients included the Lake County Government, the 19th Judicial
Circuit Court of Illinois and numerous businesses in the private
sector.
Prior to owning his own business, Joseph worked at HSBC – North
America as its Vice President of Security and Fraud Risk. He created
and implemented security protocols for corporate offices, data
centers and field offices. He also created security awareness
strategies for the 70,000 employees of HSBC based in North America.
 Joseph also holds a number of volunteer positions as a resident of
Carol Stream. He is currently the Chairman of the Board of Police
and Fire Commissioners. He also is the Chairman Pro-Tem of the
Planning Commission and Zoning Board of Appeals.
Joseph earned his bachelor’s degree in law enforcement from Oakton
College. He also holds various certifications from the Department of
Homeland Security and the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
Experience:
- DuPage County – Office of Homeland Security and Emergency
Management
- Director (2013-Present)
- Chief of Security Division (2011-2013)
- Emergency Management Coordinator (2010-2011)
- The Center for Security Intelligence, Owner/Consultant
(2009-2010)
- HSBC – North America, Vice President – Security & Fraud
Risk (2003-2008)
- Glenbrook Security Services, Account Manager, HSBC –
North America (1999-2003)
Volunteer Service:
- Carol Stream Board of Police and Fire Commissioners,
Chairman
- Carol Stream Planning Commission/Zoning Board of
Appeals, Chairman Pro-Tem
Personal Information:
Age: 33
Hometown: Carol Stream
Board of Investment
Name: Mark Cozzi
Position: Member – State Board of Investment
Governor Bruce Rauner has selected Mark Cozzi to the
Illinois State Board of Investment. Cozzi brings more
than 25 years of private investment experience to the
position.
Currently, Cozzi is the managing partner and founder of
Lincoln Park Capital Group, and he provides consulting
and advisory services to a wide-range of companies. He
founded the company in 2008 and worked there until 2011.
He rejoined the firm in 2014.
From 2011 to 2014, he was the senior managing director
of the Electrum group, which is a private investment
firm focused on the mining sector. He managed the
company’s portfolio of investments.
Before Lincoln Park Capital Group, Cozzi was the
executive vice president and chief financial officer of
Leor Exploration and Production. In that role, he took a
$22 million investment and transformed it into a $2.2
billion dollar equity stake in just three years for a
100 percent return on investment. He grew the company
from two employees and $15 million in assets to 30
employees and $300 million in assets.
Cozzi holds an MBA from Northwestern University. He
earned his bachelor’s degree from the University of
Wisconsin in business administration.
Name: Marc Levine
Position: Member – State Board of Investment
Governor Bruce Rauner has appointed Marc Levine, 51, to
the State Board of Investment. Levine brings more than
25 years of investment and business experience to the
position.
Most recently, Levine was the co-founder and managing
partner of Chicago Asset Funding, LLC. He worked at this
boutique investment banking and asset management firm
for eight years until 2012. Levine was able to use the
company’s unique structure to successfully invest during
the 2008-2009 financial crisis.
Levine has a wide range of experience from companies and
banks in Illinois, California and Florida, where he
oversaw financial transactions at a number of levels. He
also served on the Board of Directors of General Motors,
Navistar, and other technology startups and
communication companies.
Levine is a certified public accountant, and earned his
degree in accounting from the University of Illinois
Urbana-Champaign. He also has an MBA from Northwestern
University.
Name: Shari Reiches
Position: Member – State Board of Investment
Governor Bruce Rauner has selected Shari Reiches, 52, to
the Illinois State Board of Investment. Reiches has more
than 30 years of experience in finance and capital
management.
Reiches is currently a member, manager and principal of
Rappaport Reiches Capital Management, which assists
families and non-profit corporations with investment and
financial planning. She co-manages the firm with other
partners, and is the co-chair of the firm’s investment
committee.
From 1999 to 2005, Reiches was the vice president of
Sanford C. Bernstein & Co., Inc., where she worked as a
financial adviser. Prior to that, she worked for U.S.
Bank and its predecessor institutions, eventually
working her way up to the president of private banking.
In that role, she managed the private banking division.
Reiches earned her bachelor’s degree in accounting from
the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. She earned
a master’s degree in banking from the University of
Wisconsin.
 Board of Education
Name: Lula Ford
Position: Member – Illinois State Board of Education
Governor Rauner has named Lula Ford, 71, to the Illinois
State Board of Education. Ford brings 34 years of
experience as a teacher, principal and assistant
superintendent to the position. She also served the
State of Illinois as an Illinois State Commerce
Commissioner and as the Assistant Director of Central
Management Services.
Ford began her career as an elementary school teacher in
Chicago Public Schools. Throughout her three decade
career at CPS, she was also a counselor and principal.
Ford earned the Principal of Excellence Award from
1992-1994. She also served as an Assistant
Superintendent and the Chief Instruction Officer.
Most recently, Ford was an Illinois State Commerce
Commissioner. She served on that board for 10 years
until 2013. Before that, she was the Assistant Director
of the Illinois Central Management Services.
Ford earned her bachelor’s degree in biology from the
University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff. She also holds two
master’s degrees in inner city studies from Northeastern
Illinois University, and vocational counseling from the
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.
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Name: Craig Lindvahl
Position: Member – Illinois State Board of Education
Governor Bruce Rauner has appointed Craig Lindvahl, 57, to the
Illinois State Board of Education. Lindvahl brings more than 35
years of experience in education and business to the board.
Lindvahl is an award-winning educator earning the prestigious
Milken National Educator Award, and has twice been a finalist
for Illinois Teacher of the Year.
Lindvahl is currently the Executive Director of the Midland
Institute for Entrepreneurship, which is a company that educates
future business leaders. He oversees the CEO (Creating
Entrepreneurial Opportunities) program. He speaks across the
country about CEO, millennials and economic development.
Lindvahl spent 34 years in the classrooms of the Teutopolis
District 50 Schools. He taught music, band, television
production and entrepreneurship programs. Some of the
accomplishments during his tenure include tripling the size of
the district band program and the creation of a television
production program. He also led a group of students to the
Marshall Islands to produce a student-led documentary about the
country and culture. The product was distributed to 5,000
schools through the Peace Corps.
Lindvahl is also an award-winning filmmaker, having earned 12
Mid-America Emmy Awards and 11 Telly Awards for his writing,
producing, camera work and editing. Projects have taken him all
over the world, and given him the ability to work with students
from more than 25 countries. He currently owns Callan Films
Corporation, which produces documentaries and corporate
projects.
Name: Roberta Parks
Position: Member – Illinois State Board of Education
Governor Bruce Rauner has selected Roberta Parks, 64, to the
Illinois State Board of Education. Parks brings more than 35
years of experience to the position.
As the Vice President for UnityPoint Health Methodist|Proctor
Foundation, she oversees the $27 million foundation, which
benefits two hospitals and doctors in the system, along with
Methodist College. This also includes fund development; donor
relations; and the communications of major gifts, planned giving
and special events.
For 15 years until 2013, Parks was the President of the Peoria
Chamber of Commerce. She was responsible for all operations of
the 1,100 member organization. Parks was directly responsible
for government affairs, education, transportation and community
development programs.
 Parks has also worked for the City of Peoria as the
Intergovernmental Coordinator. She worked in tandem with the
Mayor and City Council to serve the people of Peoria.
Parks is a graduate of Bradley University, with a bachelor’s
degree in business management.
Name: Eligio Cerda Pimentel
Position: Member - Illinois State Board of Education
Governor Bruce Rauner has selected Eligio Cerda Pimentel, 49, to
join the Illinois State Board of Education. Pimentel has a
demonstrated track record of supporting education in
underprivileged communities through his work in the community.
He brings nearly 20 years of professional experience, both as an
attorney and engineer, to the position.
Currently, Pimentel is an attorney and board member at McAndrews,
Held & Malloy, Ltd. He joined the firm as an associate in 1996,
working his way up to a member of the board. Pimentel is a
patent attorney, focusing on litigation; and he maintains a
transactional practice focusing on intellectual property rights.
Pimentel is an avid-supporter of providing educational
opportunities to economically disadvantaged children. He is
currently on the Board of Directors of Cristo Rey High School,
serving students on Chicago’s southwest side who could not
otherwise afford a private college-prep education. Pimentel also
served on the Board of Directors of the Mary Crane Center, which
promotes early-childhood education on Chicago’s west and
northwest sides.
Pimentel is the son of migrant farm workers from California’s
Central Valley. He went on to Stanford University, earning a
bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering. He worked for three
years as an engineer at the Bechtel Corporation, and then
decided to go to law school, earning his Juris Doctorate from
the University of Minnesota.
Gaming Board
Name: Don Tracy
Position: Chairman - Illinois Gaming Board
Governor Bruce Rauner has selected Don Tracy, 54, to become
Chairman of the Illinois Gaming Board. Tracy’s background as an
attorney and business owner gives him the experience necessary
to lead the board dealing with an important industry in
Illinois.
Tracy is currently a partner at Brown, Hay & Stephens LLP, which
is the state’s oldest law firm and the former firm of President
Abraham Lincoln. Tracy currently practices corporate law,
including acquisitions and business litigation. He represents a
number of closely held and family businesses. Tracy is also
general outside counsel to Dot Foods, Inc., which he owns with
his 11 siblings. Dot Foods is the nation’s largest food
re-distributor.
Prior to joining Brown, Hay & Stephens, LLP in 1995, Tracy was a
partner at Heyl, Royster, Voelker & Allen for six years. He also
owned and operated his own law firm for nine years. Tracy also
has experience as in-house counsel at the Illinois National Bank
of Springfield. He began his law career at Baker & Donelson in
Memphis, Tenn.
Tracy serves on a number of boards in the Springfield area,
including the Abraham Lincoln Association, the Dana Thomas House
Foundation and the Illinois National Guard & Militia Historical
Society. He also was appointed to the Oak Ridge Cemetery Board
in 1992 and served on it for four years.
Tracy is a graduate of Arizona State University and has a
bachelor’s degree in business administration. He earned his law
degree from the University of Memphis.
Name: Thomas Dunn
Position: Member - Illinois Gaming Board
Governor Bruce Rauner has named former Will County associate
judge and state Senator Thomas Dunn to become a member of the
Illinois Gaming Board. Dunn, 72, was instrumental in bringing
riverboat gambling to his district of Joliet, which brings a
different perspective to the board.
Dunn served the people of Joliet and Will County as a state
senator from 1972 to 1997. He was a ranking member of the
judiciary committee, and also served on the public health,
welfare, corrections and revenue committees.
Most recently, Dunn served as an associate judge for Will
County. He was appointed in 1997 and served for eight years
until 2005. He is a graduate of St. Ambrose College with degrees
in political science and history. He earned his law degree from
DePaul University.
[Lance Trover, Office of the Governor
Bruce Rauner]
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