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Tamms gets the Super Max prison

Gov. Jim Edgar announced on October 18 that Tamms, a village of 750 in Alexander County, was selected as the site for a 500-bed super-maximum-security prison.

Howard Peters, director of the Department of Corrections, said the Tamms site was chosen for several reasons, but primarily because the prison will be less costly to operate in southern Illinois and the area was in severe need of jobs. The unemployment rate in Alexander County for August 1993 was 19 percent, nearly double that of any other county seeking the prison.

In addition, the Tamms area's flat topography should help hold down construction costs, said Peters. The Super Max will cost $60 million to build. The project will create between 200 and 250 construction jobs and will employ 300 people upon completion, which could come as early as the spring of 1996.

The prison will house inmates who attack prison staff and other inmates. Those inmates who order such attacks to be carried out will also go to the Tamms prison. The Super Max was part of a prison reform package recommended by an Edgar-appointed task force of experts on corrections and crime (see Illinois Issues, August/September 1993, page 38).


Mitchell named to head Emergency Management Agency

John G. Mitchell, 45, of Orland Park is the new director of the state's Emergency Management Agency. An administrator for the Oak Brook police department and a former Chicago patrol officer, Mitchell has a bachelor's and a master's degree from Lewis University, Romeoville, and will be paid $49,997 in his new position in the Edgar administration. John Plunk, acting director of the agency who received praise for his handling of last summer's flood crisis, returns to his duties as deputy director.


Thomas Ortciger promoted to
director of Nuclear Safety

Thomas Ortciger, 52, of Flossmoor was named director of the Department of Nuclear Safety in an announcement by Gov. Edgar on November 8. Ortciger was director of the Emergency Management Agency and the Department of

Thomas Ortciger

26/December 1993/Illinois Issues


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Nuclear Safety under Gov. James R. Thompson. Gov. Edgar kept him on as acting director because of the controversy over the nuclear waste dump site at Martinsville. As director of the agency, Ortciger will receive $63,071 annually.


Two members of Edgar's cabinet resign

Loleta Didrickson, 52, an original member of Gov. Edgar's cabinet, resigned as director of the Department of Employment Security on November 1 to pursue the Republican nomination for the office of comptroller in the 1994 election. Lynn Doherty, 41, of Chicago was named acting director. She had been serving as deputy director of finance and administration for the agency.

Ronald Morse, 48, also an original member of the cabinet, resigned as director of the Department of Mines and Minerals effective November 5. Morse will continue to serve the administration as senior public service administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency's mine pollution control program based in Marion, which is near his home in Harrisburg. Morse, who commuted weekly to Springfield from southeastern Illinois, changed positions to spend more time with his family. Fred K. Bowman, 46, of Springfield was named acting director of the department. He was deputy director of Mines and Minerals in the Thompson administration and has been manager of the agency's land reclamation division.


Richard Austin returns to Illinois to
take position at Department of Transportation

Richard Austin, 45, of Alexandria, Va., has accepted an Edgar appointment to be assistant secretary of the Illinois Department of Transportation. A former Sangamon County Board chairman and employee of Central Management Services, Austin went to Washington, D.C., in 1986 as administrator of the General Services Administration under former President George Bush. As head of the federal agency, Austin managed more than 20,000 employees. A graduate of Sangamon State University, Springfield, he will earn $66,710 a year in his state position.


Illinois pharmacists get new lobbyist

Vivion Maisenbacher of Springfield was named director of governmental affairs of the Chicago-based Illinois Pharmacists Association effective October 18. Her main responsibility will be to interact with state government regarding pharmacists' roles in health care reform in Illinois.

Maisenbacher has worked in state government since 1986 at both the Department of Professional Regulation and the Department of Public Aid as an assistant legislative liaison. She also served as an assistant to the director of intergovernment affairs at the Department of Transportation.

Prior to joining state government, Maisenbacher was an English teacher at Springfield Southeast High School. She earned a bachelor's degree in English from Illinois State University, Normal, and a master's degree in communications from Sangamon State University, Springfield.


Beer distributors name new lobbyist:
Robert Myers

Robert L. Myers of Chatham was named director of government relations for the Associated Beer Distributors of Illinois by William D. Olson, executive vice president for

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December 1993/Illinois Issues/27


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the association, in early October. Myers will be responsible for the administration, coordination and implementation of the government relations programs and activities.

Myers has been in Illinois government for seven years. He was legislative liaison for the Illinois Commissioner of Banks and Trusts Companies and for the Department of Commerce and Community Affairs. He also worked as a managerial assistant with the Office of the Secretary of State.

Associated Beer Distributors of Illinois, established in 1938 and located in Springfield, is a business trade association representing 139 beer wholesalers located throughout the state.


Unsinn wins Haddad award

Patricia Unsinn of Hyde Park was presented the James B. Haddad Award on October 22 by Michael H. King, chairman of the board of commissioners of the Illinois Office of the State Appellate Defender.

Unsinn, an attorney in the 1st Appellate District office in Chicago, is a graduate of DePaul Law School in Chicago, where she worked for the DePaul Law Clinic. She has practiced law for 16 years as an assistant appellate defender with the 1st District Office of the State Appellate Defender.

The Haddad award was established in memory of the late James B. Haddad, a Northwestern University Law School professor who earned a reputation for his skillful, compassionate advocacy of equal justice for indigent defendants. In his nominating letter, Deputy Defender Michael J. Pelletier said, "Through Pat's effective advocacy, she has obtained relief for a significant number of clients in the reviewing courts of Illinois. The relief has benefited the clients and contributed to improving our system of criminal justice."


Seven named to board of
trustees of Summer School for the Arts

Gov. Edgar appointed seven new members to the three-year-old Illinois Summer School for the Arts board of trustees, effective October 13. The 11-member board is responsible for adopting rules and policies for operation of the school, a sequence of two-week periods over the summer of creative education for high school fine art students. The Summer School for the Arts is held at Illinois State University in Normal and is open to students of visual arts, music, dance and theater. Students can get applications from their high school principals, their local art council or by contacting the director of the summer school at ISU, John Langfeld, at (309) 438-7762.

Among the board's duties are directing financial assistance toward scholarships, preparing and approving programs of study and controling the budget. Its members are paid expenses only and appointments do not require Senate confirmation.

New members with terms ending March 18, 1998, are: James Armsey, 75, of Urbana, a member of the Illinois Arts Council and former higher education program director for the Ford Foundation in New York, replacing Anthony Jones; Gerald Brookhart, 56, of Peoria, the Peoria County regional superintendent of schools, replacing Susan McDonald; and Robert Dwyer II, 49, of Quincy, executive director of the Quincy Society of Fine Arts, replacing Robert Lee Crowe.

New members with terms ending March 18, 1999, are: G. William Madden, 56, of Decatur, former member of the Decatur School District 61 Board of Education and a member of the Federation of Musicians, replacing George Ayers; Judith Weisman, 57, of Chicago, an event planner and museum consultant, replacing Hope Abelson; and Carl Schweinfurth, 62, of Mount Vernon, chairman of the board of Mercantile Bank of Mount Vemon and a published writer, filling a vacancy on the board.

Named to complete the term of Ronne Hartfield ending March 18, 1994, is Lucy Miele, 58, of Stockton, a columnist for the Rockford Register Star, the Moline Daily Dispatch and the Rock Island Argus.


Lawson and Silverman named to
Planning Council on Developmental Disabilities

Gov. Edgar appointed two new members to the Illinois Planning Council on Developmental Disabilities effective October 18. The 11-member council promotes programs and activities that further the independence, productivity and community integration of people with developmental disabilities.

New members are: Sharon Lawson, 48, of Chicago, manager of the commercial production program for the Department of Commerce and Community Affairs' Illinois Film Office, replacing Joanne Chezum; and Brian Silverman, 50, of Champaign, a self-employed attorney, replacing Sylvia Irving. Their terms end January 1, 1995, Members are paid expenses only and appointments do not require Senate confirmation.


Veterans Advisory Council members reappointed

Gov. Edgar reappointed five incumbents to the seven-member Illinois Veterans Advisory Council effective October 13. The council advises the department director on the department's statutory duties, identifies and studies issues of significant interest to Illinois veterans and reports to the governor annually.

Reappointed to the council were: Clyde Choate, 73, of Anna, director of external affairs at Southern Illinois University at Carbondale and a former state representative; Al Keller, 68, of Kankakee, former superintendent of the Illinois Veterans Home in Manteno; Ray Wilkowski, 73, of Oak Lawn, a title processing liaison with the Illinois secretary of state in Chicago and national director of protocol of the National Marine Corps League; Leonard Patton, 69, of Springfield, president of the board of directors of Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 755 and past member of the Illinois Veterans Home at Quincy Advisory Council; James Washburn, 72, mayor of Morris and former state representative and former director of the Illinois Department of Veterans Affairs.

Members of the council are paid expenses only and appointments do not require Senate confirmation. All terms end October 1, 1995.


Children and Family Services Council
gets five new members

Gov. Edgar appointed five new members to the Children and Family Services Advisory

30/December 1993/Illinois Issues


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Council on October 21. The 17-member council advises the Department of Children and Family Services director on services and programs affecting children and adults under the department's care.

New members with terms ending January 20, 1997 are: Terry Cumberworth, 43, of Pekin, executive vice president of Tazwood Center for Human Services Inc; Kenneth Gill, 49, of Chicago, a teacher/librarian at Portage Park School; Marlin Herbert Otte, 43, of Morton, pastor of Our Redeemer Lutheran Church. Cumberworth replaces John Madden, Gill replaces Patricia Scudder and Otte replaces Betty Williams.

New members with terms expiring January 16, 1995, are: Clara Kirk, 52, of Chicago, president and founder of Clara's House of Shelter for homeless and abused women, and Neil Matlins, 47, of Springfield, president of Matlins Financial Consulting Inc. Kirk replaces Andrew Rosenson and Matlins replaces June Foster.

These appointments require Senate confirmation and members receive no salary.


Behrends, Droste and Herberer
named to ag advisory board

Gov. Edgar appointed three new members to the 17-member Board of Agricultural Advisors effective November 2. The board advises the Illinois Department of Agriculture on policy matters and practices, and it may recommend legislation affecting the agricultural community. It also helps muster public support for changes that could improve services for the department's constituents. New members are: Amy Herberer, 32, of Belleville, farm office manager of Herberer Farms, replacing Jim Monier; Marla Behrends, 40, of Kankakee, farm director at WKAN Radio, replacing Wayne Gomes; and Karen Droste, 34, of Nashville, managing partner of Dave Droste Farms, replacing Lowell Swalve.

The terms, all ending January 16, 1995, require Senate confirmation. Members receive no salary.


Stratton reappointed to Civil Service Commission

Former Gov. William G. Stratton, 79, of Chicago was reappointed to the Civil Service Commission by Gov. Edgar on October 21. The three-member commission reviews and approves Illinois Personnel Code rule changes, position classification and pay plans proposed by the Department of Central Management Services.

Stratton is vice president of Associated Bank of Chicago and was governor of Illinois from 1953 to 1961. His new term on the commission ends March 1, 1999.

Commission members are paid a salary of $10,917; appointments require Senate confirmation.


Boer and Ward named to State
Chamber of Commerce board

Michael P. Boer, president of the Greater Springfield Chamber of Commerce, was named to the Illinois State Chamber of Commerce board of directors for a one-year term. As a board member, he represents the Illinois Association of Chamber of Commerce Executives.

Also named to the board of directors was William D. Ward, senior vice president and chief investment officer for The Franklin Life Insurance Co., Springfield. Ward will serve a three-year term.


Seven new members named to
Illinois Issues board

Naomi B. Lynn and Stanley O. Ikenberry, presidents respectively of Sangamon State University, Springfield, and the University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana, cosponsors of Illinois Issues, appointed seven new members to the magazine's volunteer advisory board. The board also elected former Senate president Philip J. Rock as its new chairman. Listed below are the new members.

Robert J. Christie, 39, of Wheaton is director of public affairs for FMC Corporation in Chicago. He oversees state and local government relations, plant and community relations and philanthropic activities for the company, a leading producer of chemicals and machinery for industry, government and agriculture. Before joining FMC, Christie was director of government relations for ARCO Chemical Company in Rolling Meadows and in Philadelphia, Pa. Christie earned his bachelor's degree from Western Illinois University in Macomb in 1976 and was a consultant to the state Senate Republican staff for four years.

Nancy Ford, 46, of Springfield is the executive director of the Institute for Public Affairs, Sangamon State University. She directs the major research, media and training units of the university in an effort to form partnerships with the community and provide services to government and not-for-profit organizations. A lawyer and professor of legal studies, Ford also has served the university as director of the Center for Legal Studies and as acting vice president of academic affairs. She is also legal counsel to Family Service Center of Sangamon County. Ford received a bachelor's degree in English and education from Indiana University and a law degree from Temple University, Philadelphia, Pa.

Sharon Gist Gilliam, 50, of Chicago is an executive vice president and chief operating officer of Unison Consulting Group Inc. in Chicago. In the administration of Mayor Harold Washington, she was chief operating officer for the city of Chicago. Gilliam serves on the boards at the Northeast Midwest Institute, the Illinois Commission on the Future of Public Service and the Government Assistance Project of the Chicago Community Trust. She is a member of the Visiting Committee to the Graduate School of Public Policy Studies at the University of Chicago and is adjunct faculty in the master's program at Spertus College of Judaica, Chicago. She also acts as financial adviser to the National Forum for Black Public Administrators. Gilliam holds a master's degree in public management from DePaul University in Chicago.

Donald Haider, 51, of Chicago is professor of public management and director of the public and nonprofit management program at Northwestern University, Evanston. A faculty member of Northwestern's J.L. Kellogg Graduate School of Management since 1973, Haider specializes in management of public and nonprofit organizations, public finance, economic development and business-government relations. The author of over 50 scholarly articles, Haider also has written more than

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December 1993/Illinois Issues/31


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100 newspaper columns and is often a featured speaker on politics, economics and finance. He has served the city of Chicago as budget director and chief financial officer and ran unsuccessfully for mayor in 1987 as the Republican candidate. At the federal level, Haider has served as deputy assistant secretary of the treasury and assistant to three directors of the Office of Management and Budget. Haider received his Ph.D. in political science from Columbia University, New York, in 1972.

Sally Jackson, 42, of Chicago is president and chief executive officer of the Illinois State Chamber of Commerce. Before joining the chamber, Jackson was in Gov. Jim Edgar's administration, serving as director of government operations. She organized the Governor's Human Resources Advisory Council, which is tackling reform of state personnel policies, and is the co-chair. She is also a member of the Governor's Task Force on Health Care Reform and on advisory boards for the Illinois Department of Employment Security and Workers' Compensation. In Gov. James R. Thompson's administration, Jackson was the first director of the Department of Employment Security. She taught law enforcement at Western Illinois University in Macomb; she earned her bachelor's and master's degrees from Southern Illinois University at Carbondale.

Jetta Norris Jones of Chicago is an attorney who was director of external affairs for Mayor Harold Washington. Jones also served as chairperson of the Joint Human Relations Council for the city of Chicago. She is on the boards of several volunteer organizations, including the national board of the NAACP's Legal Defense Fund. She is a member of the women's boards of both the University of Chicago and Northwestern University and is a founding member of Women's Foundation of Chicago. She is an active supporter of the DuSable Museum, the Museum of Contemproary Art and the Art Institute of Chicago. Jones is a trustee of Channel 11, Chicago's public television station, and a member of the Executive Service Corps. Jones received her bachelor's degree from Mount Holyoke College, South Hadley, Mass., and her law degree from Yale University Law School, New Haven, Conn.

Robert J. Klaus, 49, of Chicago is executive director of the American Fund for Dental Health, Chicago, a national nonprofit foundation that raises and allocates funds to advance dental research, education and public service. Klaus also writes corporate history and corporate cultural analysis for John Nuveen & Co., Chicago. Prior to his current position, Klaus was executive director of the Illinois Humanities Council. He is president of the Illinois State Historical Society and also serves on the Public History Board of his alma mater, Loyola University of Chicago, and is a past member of the advisory board to St. Xavier College, Chicago. Klaus received his bachelor's and master's degrees from Loyola and his Ph.D. from the University of Iowa, Iowa City.


State Rep. Giorgi dies


Senator Giorgi
State Rep. Edolo J. "Zeke" Giorgi (D-67, Rockford), 72, of Rockford died of a heart attack in his home on October 24.

Rep. Giorgi, an assistant Democratic leader serving his 28th year in the House, wore two titles in his long political career: "Dean of the House," as the General Assembly's longest-serving member, and "Father of the Lottery," as author of the bill creating the game.

Giorgi was a Rockford alderman when he was elected to the House in the 1964 at-large "bedsheet" ballot election. Giorgi was a strong advocate of legalized riverboat gambling, raffles and chances for nonprofit groups and Las Vegas nights for charities. Yet, he said, he never gambled.

He was born in Rockford and attended Washington and Lee University, Lexington, Va. He is survived by his wife Josephine and three daughters, Barbara Vella, Beverly Padrone and Betty. Services were held at St. Anthony Catholic Church in Rockford.

In his eulogy. House Speaker Michael J. Madigan (D-22, Chicago) said that Giorgi "possessed the courage to tackle the toughest issues, the intelligence to understand people's problems and a sense of humor that kept the work of government in the proper perspective." Gov. Edgar said, "Zeke Giorgi was a strong, effective voice for the Rockford area."

The General Assembly postponed its fall veto session for a day so members could attend the funeral, and most did. Speaker Madigan voiced the loss felt by the members, "There will never be another Zeke."

James Pollock and Beverley Scobell

December 1993/Illinois Issues/35


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