Gov. Pritzker Announces Five Appointments to Boards and Commissions

Health Facilities and Services Review Board

David Fox will continue to serve as a Member of the Health Facilities and Services Review Board.* Fox served as President of the Advocate Good Samaritan Hospital for fifteen years before retiring in 2018. Under his leadership, Good Samaritan received a Malcolm Baldridge National Quality Award in 2010. Additionally, Good Samaritan was recognized seven times as a 100 Top Hospital by Truven Health Analytics and seven times as one of America’s 50 Best Hospitals by Healthgrades. In 2009, Fox was named CEO of the Year by Becker’s Hospital Review Magazine. He is a frequent national speaker on achieving performance excellence. Fox received a Bachelor of Arts from Haverford College and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Chicago.

Guardianship and Advocacy Commission

Kathryn Eisenhart will continue to serve as a Member of the Guardianship and Advocacy Commission.* Eisenhart currently serves as a lawyer at Eisenhart Law Office, a position she has held for ten years. She began her legal career as an associate attorney at Leahy Law Office. Eisenhart’s first position as an attorney was with the Guardianship and Advocacy Commission, where she served as the downstate lawyer for the Office of the State Guardian. She advocated for people with disabilities with both the Guardianship and Advocacy Commission and the nonprofit organization Equip for Equality. Prior to her legal career, Eisenhart was a faculty member at the University of Illinois Springfield, where she served as the chair of the Legal Studies Department before retiring in 2014 as an Associate Professor Emerita. Eisenhart remains active in the Illinois State Bar Association, where she has served as chair of the Human Rights Section Council, chair of the Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Committee, and editor of the Human Rights Newsletter. Eisenhart received a Bachelor’s degree from Northeastern Illinois University and a Juris Doctor from DePaul University.

Mariel Hamer-Sinclair will serve as a Member of the Guardianship and Advocacy Commission.* Hamer-Sinclair has nearly fifteen years of experience in human services. She currently serves as the Associate Director of Program and Policy with the Illinois Council on Developmental Disabilities. In this role, she plays a pivotal role in evaluating and addressing policy and funding issues affecting the disabled community in Illinois. With a proven track record of leadership in public service, she previously held positions with the Department of Human Services’ Division of Rehabilitation Services, the Social Security Administration, and Chicago Public Schools. Hamer-Sinclair received a Bachelor of Science from Kentucky Wesleyan College and a Master of Arts in Human Service Administration from the University of Illinois Springfield.

State Board of Health

James David Cross will serve as a Member of the State Board of Health.* Cross has dedicated his career to oral health. He currently has a private periodontal and dental implant microsurgery practice. Cross has been published as an author and co-author in Carranza’s Clinical Periodontology and Implantology and Microsurgery in Periodontology and Implant Dentistry as well as several other peer-reviewed publications. He has also been awarded the 2023 American Academy of Periodontology Award for Excellence in Teaching and Mentoring. Cross received a Bachelor of Arts from DePauw University and a Doctor of Dental Surgery and Certificate of Specialty Periodontology from Loyola University School of Dentistry.

Teachers’ Retirement System Board of Trustees

Kevin Blackburn will continue to serve as a Trustee on the Teachers’ Retirement System Board of Trustees.* Blackburn serves as the Will County Auditor. Throughout the course of his leadership, Blackburn has received an A+ rating from open government organizations for his direction and development of a government financial dashboard and website. He also teaches and lectures at Joliet Junior College, Benedictine University, and the University of St. Francis. Blackburn is a Certified Public Accountant, Certified Information Systems Auditor, and Certified Fraud Examiner. He received a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Iowa and a Master of Accounting and Finance Management and a Master of Business Administration from Keller Graduate School.

* Appointments pending confirmation by the Illinois Senate.

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