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Board of Trustees
Joan W. DiLeonardi, Chairman
George G. Alexopoulos, Vice Chairman
Ann E. Tennes, Secretary
William R. Jackson, Jr.
Sharon Rossmark
William Stafford
Jody Wadhwa
Jonathan Friedman, Student Trustee
Contact
847.635.1600
Fax: 847.635.1992
E-mail
Joan W. DiLeonardi, Chairman
Dr. Joan W. DiLeonardi of Des Plaines was appointed to the Board of Trustees to fill a vacancy after the death of Ami Mader in June 2001. In April 2003, she was elected to the board to serve a six-year term and re-elected in April 2009 to serve a four-year term.
Dr. DiLeonardi is the retired executive vice president of Lifelink Bensenville Home Society, a nonprofit charitable health and human service organization. Her experience with large nonprofit organizations includes serving as the executive vice president for Children's Home and Aid Society, a leader in initiating and providing quality services for children, youth, and families in Illinois.
Dr. DiLeonardi's professional involvement includes serving on numerous charitable organizations including: the Council on Accreditation of Service to Families and Children; Council on Health and Human Services of the United Church of Christ; City of Chicago's Mayor's Advisory Council on Infant Mortality; and Child Welfare League of American Research Advisory Council.
Dr. DiLeonardi holds a Ph.D. from the University of Illinois at Chicago in social work and a bachelor's degree in psychology from DePaul University. She also worked part time at the University of Illinois at Chicago, Loyola University Chicago, and the Institute for Clinical Social Work.
George G. Alexopoulos, Vice Chairman
Dr. George G. Alexopoulos of Glenview was first elected to the board in April 2005 to serve a two-year term. In April 2007, he was re-elected to serve another six years.
A native of Greece, Dr. Alexopoulos was an adjunct math professor at Oakton for many years and a retired software consultant. He also is the founder of Hellenic Life Midwest, a nonprofit scientific, cultural, and charitable organization in Chicago.
Dr. Alexopoulos studied chemical engineering at the Royal Technical College in Scotland and received his bachelor's in physics and mathematics from Roosevelt University. He did graduate work at the Illinois Institute of Technology and worked as an applied mathematician at the IIT Research Institute's Computer Science Department. He holds a master's degree in physics and mathematics from IIT and a doctorate degree in teaching physics and mathematics from Western Colorado University.
Dr. Alexopoulos' academic career includes teaching physics and electronics at Roosevelt University and the University of Illinois at Chicago. He also taught physics for 14 years at Wright College in Chicago.
Ann E. Tennes, Secretary
Elected to the Board of Trustees in April 2007, Park Ridge resident Ann Tennes is serving a six-year term.
Ms. Tennes is the Director of Marketing and Communications for the Village of Skokie and previously was the Assistant Executive Director of the Solid Waste Agency of Northern Cook County.
Professionally, she serves on the boards of Chicago's North Shore Convention & Visitors Bureau, the Centre East Metropolitan Exposition Authority, and the Skokie Festival of Cultures. A former chairman of the Northwest Municipal Conference Local Government Communicators Committee, Ms. Tennes also was a board member of the Glenview Chamber of Commerce, and the City-County Communications and Marketing Association.
A member of the Park Ridge Zoning Board of Appeals since 1997, Ms. Tennes was appointed chairman in 2002. She is active in the Lincoln Middle School PTO, Park Ridge, and is a former PTO president at Washington School. She also has been involved with the Washington PTO Playmakers fundraising group since 1989.
Originally from Des Plaines, Ms. Tennes graduated from Maine West High School. She also attended Oakton, where she met her husband Howard, who served as an Oakton Trustee from 2001 to 2003. She holds a bachelor's degree in communications from Columbia College and a master's degree in public administration from Roosevelt University.
William R. Jackson, Jr.
Elected in April 2009, the Honorable William R. Jackson, Jr. is serving a six-year term.
In March 2009, the Illinois Supreme Court appointed Judge Jackson as a Cook County Circuit Court Judge. Prior to his appointment, Judge Jackson was a partner in the Evanston law firm of Bradley & Jackson. He also was an Administrative Law Judge for the city of Evanston, Illinois, and an arbitrator for the Financial Investment Regulatory Authority. A former consultant to the accounting firm Price Waterhouse Coopers, he also held posts in the legal departments of Winston & Strawn, Container Corporation of America, and Borg-Warner Corporation.
Judge Jackson currently serves on the Trustee Board of Second Baptist Church of Evanston. Other board memberships have included Chicago Minority Business Development Corporation, Meals at Home, Rotary Club of Evanston, Shorefront, Inc., and United Block Clubs. He has coached youth sports and has been involved in youth organizations and the Evanston YMCA. In addition, he has provided pro bono legal services for many non-profit organizations.
Judge Jackson, a certified public accountant, received his Juris Doctor from Northwestern University School of Law. He is a member of the Illinois Judicial Council, the Illinois Judges Association, the Cook County Bar Association, the Chicago Bar Association, and the North Suburban Bar Association.
Judge Jackson is married to Stephanie Bradley and has two sons.
Sharon Rossmark
Sharon Rossmark of Northbrook was appointed to the Board of Trustees to fill a vacancy caused by the resignation of Jeffery Rosen in July.
An independent business consultant, Ms. Rossmark previously was an assistant vice president for the Allstate Insurance Company. Her board involvement transcends industry boundaries, ranging from healthcare to education to the arts and culture. Currently she serves on the board of the Sinai Health System and the Chicago Human Rhythm Project. She also sits on advisory boards for Illinois State University's College of Business and Loyola University's Women's Advisory Board. Previous board experience includes the Oakton Community College Educational Foundation, the Allstate Foundation, the Katie School of Insurance and Risk Management, and Illinois Action for Children.
Ms. Rossmark is the executive producer and creative director of the documentary, David Brown's D-Day, the Story of a WWII Veteran. Excerpts from the documentary were included in the 2008 Emmy Award winning program, A Distant Shore, African Americans of D-Day, aired on The History Channel.
In 2009, Ms. Rossmark received the College of Business Hall of Fame Service Award from Illinois State University for her long-standing dedication to the University and its mission. She holds a bachelor's degree from Illinois State University and a master's degree from the University of Illinois at Chicago.
William Stafford
Mr. William Stafford was appointed to the Board of Trustees in November 2007 to fill a vacancy caused by the resignation of Michael Collins in September. In April 2009, he was elected to the board to serve a six-year term.
Professionally, Mr. Stafford is the chief financial officer of Evanston Township High School District 202. He also is a member of the Illinois Association of School and Business Officers Association and has served since 2003 as chairman of the National Economic Development and Capital Improvements Committee for the Government Finance Officers Association. Prior to assuming his position at Evanston Township High School District 202, he was the finance director for the City of Evanston and held several positions within the metropolitan Chicago financial market.
Mr. Stafford holds a master’s degree from the University of Michigan School for Public Policy, a bachelor’s degree in political science from Wittenberg University, and a certificate of professional accounting from the Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern University.
He is actively involved within the Evanston community, where he lives with his wife Ingrid.
Jody Wadhwa
A Board of Trustees incumbent since November 1987, Northbrook resident Jody Wadhwa was re-elected to serve a six-year term in April 2005.
A native of India, Mr. Wadhwa came to the United States in 1956 after graduating from Punjab University. The father of three, he retired after serving 15 years as chief operating officer for the Chicago-based company, EZ Foil.
Mr. Wadhwa has been active at Oakton for nearly two decades. He established the Wadhwa Endowed Scholarship, which awards scholarships to engineering students at Oakton. He also has established a $1 million endowment in Gurgaon, India, near New Delhi, to provide assistance to local area orphans and students. Mr. Wadhwa is a trustee for the Indo-American Center and a past president of the Wheeling Rotary Club.
Jonathan Friedman, Student Trustee
Jonathan Friedman holds a bachelor’s degree in communications from Northern Illinois University. After graduating from college, he landed a job in the Web development department of a large tax publisher. When the department relocated to Arkansas, he decided to broaden his computer skills and enrolled at Oakton taking courses to stay current in the IT field. An avid sports fan, Jonathan enjoys reading and mountain biking.
