The Goals of Choose DuPage
- Grow, retain and attract businesses
- Support county-wide economic development initiatives
- Address policy issues critical to the needs of the regional economy
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Allison Wyler, MS
President
WWW.ADVOCATEHEALTH.COM
John Miller
Chief Financial Officer, Sr. Vice President, Finance
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Donald Palmisano, Jr., J.D., CAE
Chief Executive Officer
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Sarah Higgins
Deputy Director, Government Relations
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John Quinn
Area Manager, External Affairs
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Tom Cross
Executive Director, Institute for Collaboration
Meg Howes
Vice President for Development
Lisa Vivoda
Sr. Director of Development
AURORA.EDU
Anna Ball
CEO
Todd Billings
Business Development Director
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H. Dennis Hill
Senior Vice President
Anthony Izzi
Vice President, Construction
WWW.BEARCC.COM
Kemi Solade
Senior Vice President, Corporate Banking – Middle Market
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John Calamos
Founder, Chairman and Global CIO
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Ken Witkowski
Senior Vice President
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Starr McCaffery
Director, Communication Strategy
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John Cook
President – CBIZ Employee Benefits Division
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Tyke Spencer
Benefits Consultant
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John Hamilton
First Vice President
Dan Persa
First Vice President
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Dr. Michael Adkeeson
President and CEO
Leah Rippe
Vice President, Marketing & Communications
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Christopher B. Burke
President
John Doria
Director of Government Affairs
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Dr. Brian Caputo
President
Joe Cassidy
Assistant VP Economic Development, Dean Continuing Education and Public Services
Wendy McCambridge
Director, Legislative Affairs/Special Assistant to the President
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Anthony M. Signorella
Director, Government Affairs
Sean McCarthy
Vice President, Business Development & Special Initiatives
Edward M. Sitar, III
Manager, Economic & Business Development
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Dan Allen
Executive Director
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Ryan Zerante
Vice President of Sales & Operations
Julie Hokin Watts
Director of Client Development
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Mike Kelch
Chairman and Founder
Ted Lindholm
President
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Bert Nuehring
Partner
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Michael Connelly
External Affairs Manager, Central Area
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Hugh Elliott
Principal
Nick Pollastrini
Manager
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Beth Marchetti
Executive Director
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Joan Olson
Chief Communications Officer
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The Honorable Deborah Conroy
Chair
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The Honorable Lynn LaPlante
DuPage County Board Liaison
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Amber Quirk
Regional Superintendent of Schools
Lisa Schvach
Executive Director
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Michael R. Sitrick, CFRE, JD
President & CEO
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The Honorable Richard Veenstra
Mayor, Village of Addison
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Joseph C. Dant
President, Edward Hospital and South Institutes
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Leo Wright
Senior Vice President
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Ron Lunt
Partner
Paul O’Connor
Partner
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Sandra Arredondo
Senior Vice President
Noreen Ligino-Kubinski
Project Coordinator
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Jason Gedraitis
SVP, Middle Market Relationship Manager
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Michael Roth
Partner
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Dan Wagner
Senior Vice President, Government Relations
Anna Maria Kowalik
Senior Vice President, Director of Business Development, Inland Green Capital LLC
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Kevin Kalus
Market Executive, Middle Market Banking
Jordan Hennessey
Vice President, Commercial Banking
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Bill Murphy
President
Marc Hausmann
Partner
Courtney Healy
Vice President, Strategy & Accounts
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Nick Ryan
CEO
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Keith Nippes
Chief Business Development Officer
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Richard Price
Chairman & CEO
Vincent A. Allegra
Senior Managing Director, Investment Management
Christopher Pohlman
Senior Managing Director, Investment Management
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Anna Duan
Senior Director, Supply Chain Stewardship & Risk Management
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James Adler
Executive Vice President
Mark Moran
Executive Vice President, Industrial Services
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Rick Trujillo
Manager, Community Affairs
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Ann Hall
Vice President, Administration, Community Affairs
Katharine Bertani
Director, Strategy
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Glenn Mazade
Senior Vice President
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Christine Rose
Community Relations Representative
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Karyn M. Charvat
Executive Director
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Emily Shupe
Litigation and Employment Attorney
Heather Kramer
Litigation Attorney
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Ramsey Elshafei
President
Jeremy Szybowicz
Leasing Manager
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Kim Godden
Vice President of Legal, Government Relations
Valerie A. Bruggeman
Director, External Affairs
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Jill Koski
President & CEO
Alicia LaVire
Vice President, Marketing and Guest Experience
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Marsha Cruzan
Regional Market President
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Robert Hutchinson
President
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Bradley A. Paulsen
Senior Vice President, Chief Development Officer, PK-12 Education Practice Leader
Jim Mark
Managing Director, Private Markets & Chief Strategy Officer
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David R. Andalcio
CEO
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Greg Bedalov
President & CEO
(331) 401-5819 | gbedalov@choosedupage.com
As President and CEO of Choose DuPage and Chair of the Greater Chicagoland Economic Partnership, Greg Bedalov leads economic development efforts within DuPage County and across Northeastern Illinois.
A longtime advocate for regionwide collaboration, Bedalov previously served as President & CEO of Choose DuPage from 2010-2015. He later served as Executive Director of the Illinois Tollway and President of the Illinois Sports Facilities Authority (ISFA). In 2019, he returned to his leadership role at Choose DuPage.
Under his leadership, Choose DuPage has implemented numerous programs that support local municipal development, including initiatives focused on improving sustainability, equity, quality of life, supply chain management, and opportunities for small businesses.
As Chair of the Greater Chicagoland Economic Partnership, Bedalov partners with private- and public-sector leaders from across Northeastern Illinois to drive economic growth, advance equity and support regionwide prosperity.
Rita Haake
Senior Vice President, Economic Development
(331) 401-5817 | rhaake@choosedupage.com
As Senior Vice President of Economic Development, Rita leads efforts to support the organization’s economic development strategy with a specific focus on business attraction, retention, and expansion. Prior to her role at Choose DuPage, Rita spent 25 years serving the business community as the leader of the College of DuPage Business Development Center. Her primary expertise has been assisting businesses in expanding their government contracting efforts. Rita graduated from Northwood University with a degree in Business Administration.
Lisa Miceli
Vice President, Economic Development
(331) 401-5817 | lmiceli@choosedupage.com
Before joining Choose DuPage, Lisa served as a policy analyst for the Civic Committee of The Commercial Club of Chicago where her focus was on regional economic development for Northeastern Illinois. Prior to that, she worked for the Northeastern Illinois Planning Commission as an urban planner and for Cushman and Wakefield as a research analyst. Lisa graduated from Ohio University with a degree in Public Administration and the University of Illinois at Chicago with a Master’s of Urban Planning and Policy.
Arica Finney
Director, Investor Relations
(630) 664-9535 | afinney@choosedupage.com
As Director of Investor Relations, Arica is responsible for assessing the changing needs of the DuPage County business community, helping to create and communicate the Choose DuPage vision and developing a strategy to foster and grow board membership.
Arica joined Choose DuPage in 2022 and has a bachelor’s degree in Communications from the University of Illinois at Chicago. Prior to working at Choose DuPage, she worked in architecture, engineering and construction.
Teresa O’Brien
Manager
(331) 401-5820 | tobrien@choosedupage.com
Teresa joined Choose DuPage in 2019 and has led several of the organization’s strategic programs and initiatives including the Reinvest DuPage Small Business Relief Grant Program. Teresa’s other responsibilities include meeting and event planning, as well as providing overall support towards the mission and goals of Choose DuPage. Prior to joining Choose DuPage, Teresa worked as an HR generalist in the commercial real estate development and manufacturing industries.
Courtney Healy
Marketing & Advertising
(630) 353-4434 | courtney@maclyngroup.com
Choose DuPage partners with MACLYN, a boutique advertising agency located in Naperville, for marketing services including creative branding, advertising, strategic planning, and communications. Courtney has been working with MACLYN and Choose DuPage since 2011, and has a bachelor of science in marketing from DePaul University.
