Pritzker makes more appointments, none are Arab American

Gov. Pritzker Announces Ten Appointments to Boards and Commissions and Senior Executive Positions. Building on a strong team of diverse experts in their fields, Governor JB Pritzker announced the following appointments in his administration

The following are appoints to the State’s Boards and Commissions made this week (July 11, 2022) by Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker. None are Arab.

Read the column on Pritzker’s failure to include Arab Americans in his administration by clicking here.

ILLINOIS ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

Megha Lakhchaura will serve as the Electric Vehicle Coordinator at the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency.* Lakhchaura, prior to joining the Agency, worked for EVBox, Inc. as the Director and Head of Policy, North America from 2018 to 2022. She previously served as Policy Director for Sunrun, Inc., a rooftop solar and battery storage provider, and as a Public Utilities Regulatory Analyst for the California Public Utilities Commission assisting in reliability and renewable generation programs. Megha received a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics from Isabella Thoburn College, a Master in Business Administration from the Symbiosis Center for Management and Human Resources Development, and Master in Public Policy from UCLA.

ILLINOIS DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS

Alyssa Williams-Schafer will serve as the Assistant Director of the Illinois Department of Corrections.* Williams-Schafer has served as the Chief of Programs and Support Services at the Illinois Department of Corrections since 2019. She started with the Illinois Department of Corrections in 2001 and has also served as Assistant to the Chief of Programs, Coordinator for Sex Offender Services, and as a Warden managing a maximum-security adult female correctional facility. Alyssa is a member of the Association for Women Executives in Corrections and the American Correctional Association. She received her Bachelor of Science in Psychology from Bradley University and a Master of Psychology from Chapman University.

Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker. Photo courtesy of Wikipedia — Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker

ILLINOIS STATE POLICE MERIT BOARD

Tim Touhy will serve as a Member of the Illinois State Police Merit Board.* Touhy currently serves as the Communications Director for Friends of the Chicago River overseeing all public relations activities. He worked as an independent public relations consultant for over a decade and has senior communications positions at Hawthorne Strategy Group, Navistar International Corporation, Hill & Knowlton Strategies, and the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office. He serves as a member the Torture Inquiry and Relief Commission and is a volunteer at Kolbe House. Touhy received a Bachelor of Science in Communication from Loyola University Chicago.

ILLINOIS TORTURE AND RELIEF COMMISSION

Erica Zunkel will serve as a Member of the Illinois Torture Inquiry and Relief Commission.* Zunkel has served as a Clinical Professor of Law at the University of Chicago teaching federal criminal law, cases litigation, and supervising students since 2012. Previously she worked as a Trial Attorney for the Federal Defenders of San Diego, Inc. and as a Judicial Law Clerk in the Chambers of US District Judge Martha Vazquez. Erica is a member of both the Illinois and National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers. Zunkel received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Cornell University and a Juris Doctorate from University California-Berkley School of Law.

ILLINOIS DEPARTMENT OF INNOVATION AND TECHNOLOGY

Brandon Ragle will serve as the Assistant Secretary of the Illinois Department of Innovation and Technology.* Ragle has served as Chief of Enterprise Applications at Illinois Department of Innovation and Technology since 2019. Prior to that he was Deputy Chief of Enterprise Applications and has also worked for the Illinois Department of Insurance for 14 years an Application Manager and Software Developer. Ragle received a bachelor’s degree in Organizational Leadership from Greenville College and Master of Business Administration from Benedictine University.

GUARDIANSHIP AND ADVOCACY COMMISSION

Donald Dew will continue to serve as a Member of the Guardianship and Advocacy Commission.* Dew has served as Executive Director of Habilitative Systems, Inc., since 1990 and has worked there since 1984. He is also currently Adjunct Faculty – Strategic Planning at Lewis University. Dew has served on the Commission since 2020. He also serves as Chair of the Chicago HIV Prevention Adolescent Mental Health Project and has been a member of the Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities Board of Directors, Lewis University Board of Trustees, UIC Department of Health and Disability Advisory Board, Behavioral Health Consortium of Illinois, the African American Family Commission, and numerous other organizations. Dew received a Bachelor of Social Work from Lewis University and a Master of Social Work from the Jane Addams College of Social Work at the University of Illinois at Chicago.

ILLINOIS DEPARTMENT OF CHILDREN AND FAMILY SERVICES

Ann McIntyre will serve as the Inspector General of the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services.* McIntyre has served in the Office of the Inspector General at DCFS for 27 years, most recently as the Chief Legal Counsel. From 2001-2019 managed investigations and analyzed policies and procedures as Public Service Administrator. Ann is a member of the Illinois State Bar Association, the Association of Inspectors General, and has served on the DCFS Conflict of Interest Committee and the St. Giles School Board. She received a Bachelor of Arts in American Studies from the University of Notre Dame and went to obtain a Juris Doctorate cum laude and Master of Arts in Social work from Loyola University Chicago.

ILLINOIS CRIMINAL JUSTICE INFORMATION AUTHORITY

Vickii Coffey, Ph.D. will serve as a Member of the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority.* Coffey has served as an Assistant Professor at Governors State University in the Social Work Department since 2013. Previously she was an Instructor and Graduate Teaching Assistant and the University of Illinois at Chicago in the Department of Criminology, Law & Justice. Coffey has worked as the Executive Director of Chicago Metropolitan Battered Women’s Network and at Goodwill Industries of Metropolitan Chicago. She has served on numerous boards at Governors State University and within the Chicago community and is a member of the Academic Consortium on Criminal Justice Health. Coffey earned a Bachelor of Liberal Arts and Science, a Master of Social Work Administration, and a Ph.D. in Criminology, Law and Justice from the University of Illinois at Chicago.

ILLINOIS STATE MUSEUM BOARD

Chris Pappan will serve as a Member of the Illinois State Museum Board.* Pappan is an Osage, Kaw, Cheyenne River Lakota Sioux artist. His art is based on the Plains Native art tradition known as Ledger Art and is a nationally recognized painter and artist. Chris’ work is included in collections at numerous institutions including the Field Museum of Natural History; The Newberry Library, the National Museum of the American Indian; The North American Native Museum (Geneva, Switzerland); and Missoula Art Museum, among others. He recently had a two-year exhibition in Drawing on Tradition at the Field Museum and was previously the Director of Operations at Atlas Galleries from 2000-2018. Pappan received a degree in Fine Arts from the Institute of American Indian Arts in Sante Fe, New Mexico.

MEMBER OF THE ILLINOIS FINANCE AUTHORTY

Ameya Pawar will serve as a Member of the Illinois Finance Authority.* Pawar is a Senior Advisor and Chicago Director for the First Midwest Group, a Senior Advisor with the Academy Group, and a Special Advisor and Lecturer and University of Chicago Inclusive Economy Lab and Crown School. He recently spent three years working on public finance issues as a Leadership in Government Fellow with Open Society Foundations and is a Senior Fellow with Economic Security Project. Ameya served two terms as an Alderman for the City of Chicago from 2011-2019. Pawar received a Bachelor of Arts in Religion and Philosophy from Missouri Valley College, a Master in Public Administration from Illinois Institute of Technology, and a Master in Threat and Response Management and a Master in Social Service Administration from the University of Chicago.

* Appointments pending confirmation by the Illinois Senate.

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Ray Hanania is an award-winning columnist, author & former Chicago City Hall reporter (1977-1992). A veteran who served during the Vietnam War and the recipient of four SPJ Peter Lisagor Awards for column writing, Hanania writes weekly opinion columns on mainstream American & Chicagoland topics for the Southwest News-Herald, Des Plaines Valley News, the Regional News, The Reporter Newspapers, and Suburban Chicagoland.

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