Gov. Pritzker Announces Nine Appointments to Boards and Commissions

Blue-Ribbon Commission on Transportation Infrastructure Funding and Policy

Acting Secretary Gia Biagi will serve as the Chair of Blue-Ribbon Commission on Transportation Infrastructure Funding and Policy.* As the Acting Secretary of the Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT), Biagi brings a wealth of executive experience from both the public and private sectors. Prior to her time at IDOT, she served for four years as Commissioner of the Chicago Department of Transportation. Before her tenure in city government, Biagi served as Principal of Urbanism and Civic Impact at Studio Gang Architects, a Chicago-based architecture and urban design practice, where she advised private- and public- sector clients on urban design, community engagement, and land use planning. She also spent more than a decade at the Chicago Park District, eventually serving as Chief of Staff after years of various leadership and urban development strategy roles. She is a board member of the Shared Use Mobility Center, a board trustee of the Chicago Architecture Center, an advisory board member of the Women's Transportation Seminar, and a former board member of the National Association of City Transportation Officials. Biagi earned a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Michigan and a Master of Urban Planning and Policy with a specialization in economic development from the University of Illinois at Chicago.

Court of Claims

Sonia Antolec will continue to serve as a Member of the Court of Claims. Antolec is an accomplished attorney with more than a decade of experience in public service and legal leadership. She has held key roles across government, corporate, and nonprofit sectors, including serving as Chief Legal Officer at The 1937 Group, Director of Policy and Legal with The Mom Project, Director of Legal Hiring at the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office, and Chief of Rules and Compliance at the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services. Antolec earned a Bachelor of Arts from DePaul University and Juris Doctor from Loyola University School of Law.

Employment Security Advisory Board

Joanna Webb-Gauvin will continue to serve as a Member of the Employment Security Advisory Board.* Webb-Gauvin is the Director of Political and Legislative Affairs for AFSCME Council 31, the statewide public service union representing active and retired Illinois state, university, and local government workers. Since December 2021, she has led the Council’s legislative and political operations, overseeing the activities of its 285 local unions and managing its retirees’ program. Prior to her current role, she spent 14 years as the Legislative Director for the Council and seven years as the Director of Retiree Programs for AFSCME Retirees Chapter 31. Over the last 25 years, Webb-Gauvin has played a leading role in shaping public policy at both the state and local levels through legislative and grassroots advocacy. Webb-Gauvin earned a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Western Illinois University and has pursued graduate coursework at the University of Illinois at Springfield. ​ ​

Heart of Illinois Regional Port District Board

Songo Dede will serve as a Member of the Heart of Illinois Regional Port District Board.* Dr. Songo Dede is Chair of the Greater Peoria Economic Development Council Board of Directors and the CEO of DSM-H Consulting, a multinational engineering and software/IT services company he founded in 2009. He has worked with companies across Africa, Europe, and North America to implement operational excellence initiatives, execute IT projects, and deliver training programs that drive growth, enhance value, and reduce costs. He is an active member of his community, serving as a board member of the Community Foundation for Central Illinois and WBNH, a radio station in central Illinois. Dr. Songo Dede earned a Bachelor of Engineering from Rivers State University, a Master of Business Administration and Master of Science in Industrial and Systems Engineering from Colorado State University Pueblo, and a Doctor of Philosophy in Industrial and Systems Engineering from Mississippi State University.

Illinois Board of Higher Education

Nora Heist will serve as a member of the Illinois Board of Higher Education.* Dr. Heist is an Assistant Professor and the Basic Course Director in the School of Communication and Journalism at Eastern Illinois University (EIU). A recipient of the 2024 EIU Collaborative Redesign Initiative Grant, she is leading revisions to the university’s general education public speaking course to enhance student success and retention. At EIU, Dr. Heist has served as a Co-Chair for the Higher Learning Commission’s Criterion on Resources, Planning, and Institutional Effectiveness, and currently chairs the university’s General Education Committee. She also represented the institution on the Illinois Articulation Initiative’s General Education Communication Panel. Dr. Heist earned a Bachelor of Arts from DePauw University and both her Master of Arts and Doctor of Philosophy from the University of Maryland.

Illinois Workforce Innovation Board

Victor Dickson will continue to serve as a Member of the Illinois Workforce Innovation Board.* Dickson is the President and CEO of the Safer Foundation, a nationally recognized organization focused on community corrections, reentry and workforce development. He also brings more than two decades of leadership experience in the corporate sector, including roles at AT&T and Sprint, where he served as the National Vice President of Sales Support and Infrastructure Services. In that role, he oversaw a $11B revenue stream and led a team of over 3,000 professionals. Deeply committed to public service, Dickson has served on several state and local advisory bodies, including the Illinois Reentry Council, the Illinois Reentry Housing Task Force, the Illinois Human Services Commission. He also co-chaired the City of Chicago’s Equity Advisory Council and served on the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago Advisory Council and Chicago Police Accountability Task Force. Dickson earned a Bachelor of Arts from Roosevelt University and a Bachelor of Theology from Life Christian University/Dan El Christian College.

Labor Advisory Board

Mark Biel will serve as a Member of the Labor Advisory Board.* For more than 25 years, Biel has served as the CEO of the Chemical Industry Council of Illinois (CICI), where he closely monitors legislative and regulatory activity, with a focus on environmental policy, energy, tax, and tort reform. Before becoming CEO in 1999, Biel spent six years as CICI’s Director of Government Affairs. Before joining CICI, he served as Director of Government Affairs for the Illinois Manufacturers' Association. In addition to his leadership at CICI, Biel also served as Chairman of UnLock Our Jobs, a coalition of businesses and industries committed to keeping the Chicago Area Waterway System open for commercial navigation. Biel earned a Bachelor of Science from Illinois State University and graduated from the Institute of Organization Management at the University of Notre Dame.

Southern Illinois University Board of Trustees

Edgar Curtis will continue to serve as a Member of the Southern Illinois University Board of Trustees.* Curtis most recently served as President and CEO of Memorial Health, leading the Springfield-based health system for 17 years. He is a Lifetime Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives, chairs the Springfield Sangamon Growth Alliance, and serves as a member of the IHHA Nominating Committee. Curtis is a past chair of the Illinois Health and Hospital Association Board and served on the Illinois Board of Higher Education’s Commission on the Future of the Workforce and the advisory board of the University of Illinois Chicago College of Nursing. A dedicated civic leader, he received the Order of Lincoln from the Lincoln Academy of Illinois in 2019. Curtis earned a Bachelor of Science from Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville (SIUE), Master of Business Administration from the University of Illinois, and received an Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters from the University of Illinois Springfield. Curtis was also inducted into SIUE’s School of Nursing Alumni Hall of Fame.

Western Illinois University Board of Trustees

Mary (Polly) Radosh will continue to serve as a Member of the Western Illinois University Board of Trustees.* Dr. Radosh retired from Western Illinois University (WIU) in 2008 after 24 years on the faculty, where she served as a professor of sociology and was the founding chair of the Department of Women’s Studies. During her tenure at WIU, she received numerous honors, including four faculty excellence awards, three College of Arts and Sciences Awards for Excellence, the Provost’s Award for Excellence in Multicultural Teaching, and she was named the 2007 Distinguished Faculty Lecturer. After retiring from WIU, Dr. Radosh served as Dean of the College at the State University of New York at Geneseo from 2008 to 2011. In that role, she led efforts to address fiscal and enrollment challenges and established review procedures for program cuts and staff reductions. Dr. Radosh earned her Bachelor of Arts from the State University of New York at Geneseo and her Master of Arts and Doctor of Philosophy in Sociology from Southern Illinois University at Carbondale.

* Appointments pending confirmation by the Illinois Senate.

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