Chicago Council Young Professionals

2015-2016 YP Ambassadors

Emmanuel Atsegbua

Capital Markets Bank Examiner, Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago

Emmanuel is a capital markets analyst at The Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago within the Community Bank Portfolio. Prior to joining the Federal Reserve, he worked in Atlanta as a strategy consultant with Microsoft’s subsidiary firm, I.B.I.S. Inc. He was born and raised in Nigeria, where he lived until he moved to Atlanta, Georgia in 1999. Atsegbua received a BA in Business Administration in Economics with a concentration in Banking and Finance from the University of Georgia.

Briana Belligio

Associate Attorney, Advitam IP LLC

Briana is an attorney specializing in intellectual property matters and privacy issues as they relate to technology. She studied and received her BA in International Relations at Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana and received a dual JD and MS degree from Valparaiso University, with a focus on International Commerce and Policy. She has lived and studied abroad in Italy, Ghana, Chile and Argentina.

Chris Boyce

Annual Giving Officer, The Rotary Foundation of Rotary International

Chris Boyce joined The Rotary Foundation in 2013 as a specialist in online and direct mail marketing for its annual fund campaign. Promoted in 2014 to annual giving officer, Chris now organizes Rotary’s resource development activity in the Northeast US, Canada, and east Russia. He arrived at Rotary after managing development at the Institute for Latino Progress. Chris holds an MA in Nonprofit Management from the Spertus Institute for Jewish Learning and Leadership and a BA in Journalism from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Stephen Brown

Market Research Analyst, Epitome Group

Stephen Brown is a market research analyst at brand marketing agency, Epitome Group, and enjoys teaching German in his free time. His career in global affairs began while completing a Fulbright teaching assistantship in Austria, and his interests at the Chicago Council on Global Affairs include membership engagement and programming. Stephen received his BA from the College of Wooster and an MA from the Berlin School of Economics & Law.

Mark Calaguas

Staff Attorney, McDermott Will & Emery, LLP

Mark Calaguas is a staff attorney at McDermott Will & Emery LLP, where he is part of the firm’s Discovery practice group. Mark also advises local tech entrepreneurs on privacy law and data protection matters and sits on the Board of Directors of the Filipino American Lawyers Association of Chicago, the Board of Governors of the National Filipino American Lawyers Association, the Alliance of Filipinos for Immigrant Rights and Empowerment and is an associate board member of HealthConnect One. Mark received a BA with Highest Honors from the University of Michigan and a JD with Certificate of International Law and Practice from the Loyola University Chicago School of Law.

Bonner Campbell

Analyst, GCM Grosvenor

Bonner Campbell is an investments analyst at GCM Grosvenor in Chicago. Prior to joining GCM, Bonner was a Fulbright Binational Business Fellow in Mexico City. There, she worked on the Entrepreneur Search and Selection Team, assisting in the selection of high-impact entrepreneurs across a variety of sectors. Bonner graduated with a BA in Economics and a minor in Chinese Language from Wellesley College in 2013. While at Wellesley, Bonner was a Fellow at the Madeleine Korbel Albright Institute for Global Affairs. Bonner also serves on the UNICEF Next Generation Chicago Steering Committee and is the co-chair of the Programming Committee.

Alison Cline

Specialty Chemicals Administration, AkzoNobel

Alison Cline joined AkzoNobel in April of 2015 after four years with the British Consulate-General, Chicago. Originally from Colorado, she has also lived in Scotland and Greece and speaks modern Greek, German and Spanish. Alison earned an MA in Language and Communication from Georgetown University. She continues to attend the annual Linguistics Society of America conference to keep up on trends in Sociolinguistics. Alison has been a member of the Chicago Council on Global Affairs since her arrival in the Windy City in 2009.

Jessyca Dudley

Gun Violence Prevention Program Officer, The Joyce Foundation

Jessyca Dudley, MPH, is a public health practitioner, researcher, and non-profit leader. She is the Founder of The Building Fund, a non-profit organization dedicated to providing children with access to education in West Africa. Jessyca has held positions with the Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago, the University of Illinois at Chicago, and the University of Chicago Medicine, where she has developed community-based prevention and outreach programs, and conducted clinical and social science research to improve the health of communities in Chicago. Jessyca currently serves as a program officer for The Joyce Foundation's Gun Violence Prevention Program.

Jennifer Gamber

Business Development Manager, Kirkland & Ellis LLP

Jennifer Gamber is a business development manager at Kirkland & Ellis LLP, working with the firm’s marketing systems and website. Prior to joining Kirkland, she worked in various marketing communications roles in the professional services and e-commerce sectors. Gamber holds master’s degrees in both journalism and economic development from Michigan State University and a Bachelor of Business Administration from Baylor University. She reported extensively on domestic and international urban planning issues as a journalist during her graduate studies.

David Gloria

Prelim Specialist, J.P. Morgan

David Gloria joined J.P. Morgan in 2014 and currently serves as a prelim specialist within the Private Bank Mortgage Center and also serves on JPMC’s NextGen Chicago Leadership board. David gives back to his alma mater community by mentoring students as a DePaul ASK mentor and serves as a member of the DePaul Young Alumni Committee. He is also a member of the Chicago Latino Network and HispanicPro. David received a BS in Business Management with concentrations in HR and Leadership & Change from DePaul University.

Hakki Gurkan Security Specialist, Chicago Police Department

Hakki Gurkan is a security specialist for the Chicago Police Department. He also volunteers with Leave No Veteran Behind, a non-profit run by veterans that provides opportunities for veterans facing economic hardship. Hakki served in the US Navy Reserves as an Intelligence Specialist and honorably served in Operation Iraqi Freedom as well as Operation Enduring Freedom. Hakki is currently an Executive MBA candidate at the University of Illinois and received an MA in Liberal Studies from DePaul University, as well as an MS in Law Enforcement Administration from Calumet College of St. Joseph.

Robert Haidari

Founder & Software Developer, Hot Emu

Robert Haidari is an entrepreneur with extensive software development and technology experience. Robert founded Hot Emu a part of Ingens Ventures LLC. And previously worked as a data analyst and forecaster at Loop Capital Markets. Robert is a member of the Arts Club of Chicago, a mentor to the entrepreneurship initiative at Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy, and is a member of Membership Council at 1871. He earned his BS in Mathematics and Economics at the University of Illinois at Chicago and completed his graduate studies in Statistics at Texas A&M University.

Jon Horek

Senior Project Engineer, Sargent & Lundy

Jon Horek is a senior project engineer with Sargent & Lundy, where he assists clients to develop and build energy, water, and transportation infrastructure projects. Jon volunteers as issues director for the Democratic Party of Evanston, where he runs public education programming. He earned a BS in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Illinois and a PhD in Mechanical Engineering from Northwestern University, which he attended on a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship.

Ishaan Kapoor

Business Development Manager, Constellation Energy

Ishaan Kapoor is a manager of business development at Constellation Energy, a subsidiary of Exelon Corporation. Since joining Exelon in 2005, Ishaan has held multiple positions within the organization, covering corporate strategy, investor relations and portfolio management. Ishaan holds an MBA from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, an MS in Applied Mathematics from the University of Houston and BA in Mathematics from St. Stephen’s College, Delhi University. Ishaan is a CFA charterholder.

Katie Kirts

Senior Account Manager, The Travelers Companies

Katie Kirts joined Travelers in 2011 as an account manager in Excess and was promoted to senior account manager in 2014. Prior to joining Travelers, she worked as a translator and cross-cultural consultant with Accuworld Cross-Cultural Solutions. Katie has lived in Spain, Australia and Argentina and is fluent in Spanish. She received a BA in Foreign Language International Trade and a BA in Spanish from Southern Illinois University.

Julia Lane

Associate Director of Research Strategy, University of Chicago

Julia Lane is a member of the Arete research accelerator team at the University of Chicago, where she works to identify and launch large-scale research initiatives and centers. This includes supporting leading faculty in the development of a University-wide computation strategy for the next decade, developing large-scale international research opportunities, and catalyzing data-driven urban health initiatives. Julia has lived and worked extensively in Europe and Asia, and speaks French and Mandarin Chinese. Julia received an MA from the Committee on International Relations at the University of Chicago and a BA in comparative politics and history at the American University of Paris.

Daryl Lim

Associate Professor, The John Marshall Law School

Daryl Lim teaches courses in intellectual property law as well as antitrust law. He was one of 24 law professors worldwide nominated for a list of top 10 antitrust/competition law professors under 40 on the Antitrust & Competition Policy Blog in 2014. He is a peer reviewer for the Max Planck Institute's International Review of IP and Competition Law, The Yale Law Journal, Cambridge University Press, and Hong Kong University Press. Daryl was also an associate at Allen & Gledhill LLP, Singapore's leading IP practice and largest law firm. He has graduate law degrees from Stanford University and the National University of Singapore (NUS), an undergraduate degree in law from NUS, and a degree in economics and management from the University of London.

Amera McCoy

Vice President of Vendor Management, JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Amera McCoy is the vice president of Vendor Management for JPMorgan Chase & Co. Her team serves the Asset Management, Global Wealth Management Mortgage Division. Amera also serves on the board for the Green Star Movement and holds the position of Domestic Integration Co-Chair for JPMorgan’s Women’s Interactive Network (WIN). Amera attended Aurora University and received a BA in Psychology, an MS in Industrial Organizational Psychology and is currently a PhD candidate at The Chicago School of Professional Psychology, with a concentration in Industrial Organizational Psychology.

Moiz Mohammed

Senior Manager, Global Real Estate & Tax Advisory Altus Group US Inc.

Moiz Mohammed launched the Complex & Heavy Industrial Real Estate practice for Altus Group in early 2013 during the company’s expansion into the United States. Prior to joining Altus Group, Moiz was a manager in the Global Tax Advisory practice for Ernst & Young in the Atlanta, Dallas and Chicago offices. Moiz has dedicated his philanthropic and community service efforts to global organizations such as the Aga Khan Development Network and the Boy Scouts of America. Moiz received his Bachelor of Business Administration in Real Estate Finance and Accounting from the McCombs School of Business at The University of Texas at Austin.

Ieisha Montgomery

Country Risk Unit Analyst, Northern Trust

Ieisha Montgomery is a senior analyst in the Credit Risk department’s Country Risk Unit at Northern Trust. She specializes in assessing lending and investment risk in Asia-Pacific and East Africa, and writes extensively on the topic. She holds a BA in International Relations and Political Science from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, as well as a Master's degree in International Politics from the University of Manchester, UK. Ieisha currently serves as a youth mentor and is a member of the United Way Young Leaders Society and United Way Women’s Leadership Council.

Michael Rosenzweig

Community Development Manager, Chicago Ideas Week

Prior to beginning his career in the political & public affairs industry, Mike earned two masters degrees in the social sciences at the University of Chicago. While there, he established a graduate student initiative that conducted research for the US government on foreign policy issues while working fulltime at the school’s Institute of Politics. Currently, Mike is a community development manager at Chicago Ideas Week. His international relations research focuses on Conflict Resolution, Public Diplomacy, Global Oil Markets, & Asian Studies.

Diana Rudha

Automation Team Lead, Coyote Logistics

Diana Rudha develops software robots and automation processes for Coyote Logistics, a UPS subsidiary. Prior to working for Coyote, Diana worked as a data engineer for Price Stats (a continuation of the MIT global economy research project BPP MIT), and as a contractor for Pfizer R&D in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Rudha hold a BS in Computer Science with minors in Mathematics and Political Science from Franklin Pierce University in Rindge, NH. Diana speaks English, Arabic and French and has been a member of the Chicago Council since 2013.

Tracy Samantha Schmidt

Founder and CEO, Socially Authentic

Tracy Samantha Schmidt is the founder of Socially Authentic, a social media education consultancy. Previously, Tracy worked as a journalist and innovator within several top media companies, including Time Inc., Tribune Company and Crain Communications. While a reporter at Time Magazine, she covered a range of topics–including the rise of Facebook. At the Chicago Tribune, she co-founded ChicagoNow.com, a network of hundreds of local blogs. A passionate educator, Tracy is also an adjunct faculty member at the University of Chicago and a frequent TV commentator.

Alexander Silverberg

Associate, Corporate & Securities, Baker & McKenzie

Alexander Silverberg is an associate in the Corporate & Securities practice of Baker & McKenzie. Alex advises clients on mergers and acquisitions, corporate restructurings, negotiations of commercial contracts, and general corporate and securities matters. Since joining the Firm, he has assisted on various matters for US companies seeking to extend their operations in China and Chinese companies seeking to invest in the US. He has lived and worked in China, where he studied Mandarin Chinese and Chinese culture at Nanjing University.

Erin Stockall

Premium Account Specialist, The Warranty Group

Erin Stockall is currently a premium account specialist with The Warranty Group. Prior to her move, she spent a year traveling in Central America, where she attended a language school in Guatemala and worked at a hostel in Mexico. Born in Canada, she grew up in Okemos, Michigan and has also lived in Guatemala, Mexico, and Spain. Stockall received a BA from Kalamazoo College where she double majored in Spanish and political science. She is fluent in Spanish.

Arsalan Suhail

Management Consultant, IBM

Arsalan Suhail is a management consultant with IBM Global Business Services. Arsalan specializes in providing business strategy and analytics services to public and private sector clients, both domestically and internationally. Most significantly, this includes developing Afghanistan’s first business incubator in collaboration with the United States Department of Defense. A native of New York City, Arsalan spent his formative years in Lahore, Pakistan, and is fluent in Urdu, Punjabi, and Hindi. He holds a BA in Economics from Bates College, and continues serving as an alumni mentor for current and prospective students.

Helena Swanson-Nystrom

Policy Associate, Mayor’s Office, City of Chicago

Helena Swanson-Nystrom joined the office of Mayor Rahm Emanuel in 2014 and currently serves as a policy associate. Prior, she was the assistant to the Deputy Mayor. Helena received her BA in Political Science and International Studies at Macalester College in St. Paul, Minnesota. During that time, she lived in Rabat, Morocco while conducting research on the impact of the global financial crisis on remittances and economic development policy. Helena grew up in the North Park neighborhood of Chicago.

D. Vincent Thomas Jr.

Adjunct Professor of Political Philosophy, Elmhurst College

D. Vincent Thomas Jr. is an associate board member of the AIDS Foundation of Chicago, a Coast Guard reservist, an adjunct professor of political philosophy, ethics, and philosophy of religion at Elmhurst College, as well as a PhD candidate in Public Policy. He previously served as an active duty member of the U.S. Coast Guard as an Operations Specialist for Counter Narcotics and Counter Terrorism. Vincent received his BA in philosophy and theology from Elmhurst College and an MA in Theological Studies with a specialization in Religious History, Ethics, and Philosophy of Religion from Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary at Northwestern University.

Will Trumbull

Chief of Staff to the Chairman of North America, Zurich Insurance Group

Will is Chief of Staff to the Chairman of North America at Zurich Insurance Group. He is responsible for advancing the strategy and building the reputation of Zurich in North America, with particular focus on external stakeholder management, thought leadership development and positioning, corporate governance, and management of the Regional Advisory Council. Will currently serves on the board of Children’s Home + AID, a child and family service agency in Illinois with the mission to give children help, hope and opportunity. Will holds a BA in economics from Denison University and a MBA from the Kelley School of Business at Indiana University.

Bernardo Urdaneta

Senior Analyst for Corporate Planning, Exelon

Bernardo Urdaneta is a financial analyst in the Treasury Planning and Capital Markets team at Exelon. Prior to joining Exelon in 2013, Bernardo worked at IHS Energy as an energy researcher focused on natural gas markets. Bernardo grew up in Venezuela, has lived in France, and has traveled in six continents. In addition to Spanish, Bernardo speaks French and Italian. Bernardo has a BA in Economics from Lycoming College and a MBA from the Fuqua School of Business at Duke. He is a member of Exelon’s MBA recruiting team and a mentor in the Stay in School Initiative.

Eric Wessan

Vice Consul of Policy & Communications, British Consulate-General, Chicago

Eric Wessan joined the British Consulate in Chicago in 2015 and currently serves as the vice consul of Policy & Communication where he is in charge of politics, policy and press for the Midwest. Prior to joining the Consulate, Eric worked for political tech start-up, Crowdpac, and was one of the early leaders at the University of Chicago’s Institute of Politics. He received a BA in political science from the University of Chicago.

Daniel Yukilevich

Vice President of Capital Markets Compliance, BMO Capital Markets

Dan Yukilevich is currently a vice president of Capital Markets Compliance at BMO Capital Markets in Chicago where he focuses on the regulatory compliance and risk management issues, including cross-border regulatory implications for the broker-dealer. Dan is an active volunteer with Upwardly Global, which focuses on economic empowerment for new immigrants to the US. Dan received a BS in finance and economics from the University of Illinois at Chicago.