Governor announces new appointments

CHICAGO - Governor Bruce Rauner today announced he has made appointments to the State Board of Investment, Illinois State Police Merit Board, Illinois Criminal Justice Authority, Illinois Housing Development Authority, Illinois Criminal Justice Authority, the Employment Security Board of Review and the State Universities Retirement System Board of Trustees.Name: Stacey Woehrle

Position: Member – State Board of Investment

Governor Bruce Rauner announced today he has appointed Stacey Woehrle to the State Board of Investment. Woehrle will bring over a decade of financial analytics and consulting experience to the board.

Woehrle is a finance consultant with a resume that includes HJK Enterprises, the Oracle Corporation and Ernst & Young. In those roles, she was a key financial point person and developed forecast and pipeline and sales models. She is an active volunteer in the Wilmette community and the current chair of Fitting Futures at the Junior League of Evanston-North Shore.

Woehrle earned her bachelor’s degree from the University of Michigan. She lives in Wilmette.

Name: Kate Hennessy

Position: Member – State Board of Investment

Governor Bruce Rauner announced today he has appointed Kate Hennessy to the State Board of Investment. Hennessy will bring over two decades of investment and consulting experience to the position.

Hennessy is an investment advisor for AssetGrade. In her role, she focuses on individuals and provides wealth management services. For 15 years, Hennessy served as the vice president and investment consulting manager of Fidelity Investments. She managed a team that serviced over 300 corporate clients and tax exempt clients with over 200 billion dollars in assets.

Hennessy earned her bachelor’s degree from St. Mary’s College of Notre Dame. She lives in La Grange.

Name: Andrew Berlin

Position: Member – Illinois State Police Merit Board

Governor Bruce Rauner announced today he has appointed Andrew Berlin to the Illinois State Police Merit Board. Berlin’s executive experience will bring an important perspective to the board.

Berlin is the chairman and CEO of Berlin Packaging in Chicago. He directly oversees the day-to-day and long-term planning of the business. He was an associate at Katten, Muchin and Zavis.

Berlin earned his bachelor’s degree from Syracuse University and his J.D. from Loyola University of Chicago School of Law. He lives in Glencoe.

Name: Carla Barnes

Position: Member – Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority

Governor Bruce Rauner announced today he has appointed Carla Barnes to the Illinois Criminal Justice Authority. Barnes’ work as a public defender will greatly inform her new role.

Barnes is McLean County’s Chief Public Defender. In that role, she represents all indigent clients in McLean County and oversees both in-house and contract attorneys. She has also worked in the McLean County State’s Attorney’s Office as an assistant state’s attorney in the traffic and DUI division.

Barnes earned her bachelor’s degree from Illinois State University and her J.D. from The John Marshall Law School. She lives in Normal.

Name: Lorraine Hocker

Position: Member – Illinois Housing Development Authority

Governor Bruce Rauner announced today he has appointed Lorraine Hocker to the Illinois Housing Development Authority. Hocker is uniquely qualified for this position because of her experience in real estate.

Hocker currently is an associate broker for RE/MAX All Pro. Past roles include substitute teaching in West Chicago’s Benjamin District 25 schools.

Hocker earned her bachelor’s degree in business management from National Louis University. She lives in West Chicago.

Name: Betty Coffrin

Position: Member – Employment Security Board of Review

Governor Bruce Rauner announced today he has appointed Betty Coffrin to the Employment Security Board of Review. Coffrin’s previous board experience will be instrumental in her new role.

Coffrin was elected and served as the Coles County Clerk and Recorder for over a decade. She conducted elections, prepared real estate tax rates, recorded deeds and registered vital records. Coffrin is a departing member of the Illinois State Board of Elections.

Hocker earned her bachelor’s degree from Lake Land College. She lives in Charleston.

Name: Mark Cozzi

Position: Member – State Universities Retirement System Board of Trustees

Governor Bruce Rauner has selected Mark Cozzi to the State Universities Retirement System Board of Trustees. Cozzi brings more than 25 years of private investment experience to the position.

Currently, Cozzi is the managing partner and founder of Lincoln Park Capital Group, and he provides consulting and advisory services to a wide-range of companies. He founded the company in 2008 and worked there until 2011. He rejoined the firm in 2014. From 2011 to 2014, he was the senior managing director of the Electrum group, which is a private investment firm focused on the mining sector. He managed the company’s portfolio of investments.

Before Lincoln Park Capital Group, Cozzi was the executive vice president and chief financial officer of Leor Exploration and Production. In that role, he took a $22 million investment and transformed it into a $2.2 billion dollar equity stake in just three years for a 100 percent return on investment. He grew the company from two employees and $15 million in assets to 30 employees and $300 million in assets.

Cozzi holds an MBA from Northwestern University. He earned his bachelor’s degree from the University of Wisconsin in business administration. He lives in Chicago.

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