Board

Officers

Alice Peacock, President. Singer/songwriter, recording artist

Hugh Haller, President and co-founder of Rock For Reading, is the President of the Camping and Education Foundation, which owns and operates two outdoor wilderness camps in Northern Minnesota www.koochiching.org, www.ogichi.org. In his spare time, Hugh manages the multi-talented artist, Alice Peacock, and splits his time between Chicago and Nashville with Alice and their menagerie of pets.

Paul Natkin, Vice President and Executive Director, is a nationally recognized music photographer. In his 35 years in the music business, he has photographed about 3500 musicians, over 100 album covers and over 100 magazine covers. His work can be seen at www.natkin.net.

Tony Bowker, Treasurer. COO of Goose Island Beer Company

Board of Directors

Jim Buske has worked in financial aid for almost 20 years leading up to his current position as the Scholarship Administrator in the financial aid office at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.  Besides his activities for RFR, Jim enjoys reading, watching his son play lacrosse and going to see Alice Peacock concerts.  He lives in Sun Prairie, WI with his wife, Stephanie, and son, David

Stephanie Buske teaches fifth grade in Sun Prairie, Wisconsin and is constantly amazed by the insight and humor of her students.  Stephanie is a passionate reader (mysteries and histories) and she wants her students to leave fifth grade as passionate readers, too.  Stephanie is especially proud of Rock for Reading’s commitment to putting books in the hands of young readers.  She lives in Sun Prairie, Wisconsin with her husband, Jim and son, David.

Amy Eshleman (Assistant Commissioner, Strategic Planning and Partnerships, Chicago Public Library)

Will Fletcher is a lawyer in the Illinois Attorney General’s Office – Special Litigation Bureau.  Will has previously worked as a lawyer for the City of Chicago’s Law Department, the Chicago Police Department, and in private practice.  A lifelong Chicagoan, Will lives in Lakeview with his wife and dog just a few blocks from Wrigley Field and his beloved Cubs.

Rich Gentile (President, Tempo Communications, Inc.)

Scott Jessee (Application Development Manager, CNA Insurance)

Amy Kaplan is a long time music business professional, working in promotion for several major record labels.

Jeff Leshay serves as SVP, Public Relations & Corporate Communications, for Career Education Corporation (CEC).  Prior to joining CEC in 2008, Jeff spent 13 years in leadership roles for three of the largest PR companies and 12 years before that as an award-winning news reporter and anchor for CNBC, Fox News (WFLD-TV Chicago), ABC and NBC affiliates, and The Associated Press.  A published author and music enthusiast, Jeff is passionate about leveraging the power of music to combat illiteracy.

Brad Moore (General Manager, RedEye/Chicago Tribune)

Ted Moore (Director – Staffing, ADP)

Barry O’Connell, as the Director of Licensing and Entertainment Relations at VerveLife,  manages all licensing and custom production activities and oversees the company’s relationships with artists, management, labels and across the media and entertainment industry at large. Under Barry’s guidance, VerveLife has executed more than two
dozen innovative programs featuring artists such as Taylor Swift, Rihanna, Brad Paisley, Enrique Iglesias, Smashing Pumpkins, Carlos Santana and many more. Barry has previously held positions at Capitol-EMI Music Group, Platinum Entertainment, House of Blues Music Co. and WTTW11.

Jeff Peterson has been in sales for the graphic arts industry in Chicago for over twenty years.  After briefly living in California where he established the sales channel for The Cantera Stone Source, Jeff returned to Chicago in 2009.  He has volunteered in a various neighborhood activities including The Chicago Antique Market, the San Clemente Ocean Festival and the Make-A-Wish Foundation.

Jen Peterson recently returned to Chicago after briefly living in California where she was the Director of Marketing & Sponsorship for the Bowers Museum.  Jen became involved with Rock for Reading when it was established and she was at WXRT as the Director of Sponsorship Marketing.  Jen has volunteered with a number of organizations including Cabrini Connections, the San Clemente Junior Women’s Club and the Magnificent Mile Lights Parade.

Melissa Robbins has worked in the Public Diplomacy field for the Australian Consulate-General in Chicago since 2005. On a daily basis she aides the consulate leadership to help promote Australia’s interests in the Midwest and in turn garner American interest in Australia. Her current position exposes her to all areas of both American and Australian government life; political, media, trade and cultural as well as asking her to work with the expatriate community in the Midwest. As a long time resident of Chicago, Melissa holds a dual perspective from her homeland and her adopted one. Previous to this position Melissa was the Principal of a private school in Chicago; her university degrees from the University of New England are primarily in education, sociology and literature.

Ralph Senst (Vice President, Global Alliances, IBM)

Emily Simon is an industry professional in arts administration with experience at leading arts and entertainment companies including Lookingglass Theatre Company, Jam Productions/Theatricals and Time Out Chicago. Most recently, Emily was the Executive Director of the Chicago Dance and Music Alliance following her role programming Looptopia, the dusk until dawn arts and cultural celebration

Michelle Soble worked in Marketing Research for 8 years before staying home to raise her two young sons.  She is very involved in the Glencoe PTO.  In her free time, Michelle enjoys yoga, playing sports with her family, and going to rock concerts.

Cyndi Solitro (Marketing expert)

Debbie S. Wang is a senior stock analyst at the investment research firm Morningstar, where she specializes in the health care sector and biomedical devices. Before joining Morningstar in 2002, she was a Vice President and Senior Brand Planner at Leo Burnett, where she led brand strategy on such accounts as Allstate, McDonald’s, and Pfizer. Over the years, Debbie has volunteered many hours to dog rescue and adoption programs. When she’s not spending time with her son Isaac, she likes to knit and go salsa dancing with her husband David.

Associate Board (former Board of Directors members)

Susan Balaban
Joe Bogdan (Vice President, Business/Legal Affairs, World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc.)
Jennifer Bowker (Manager of Communications, Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center)
Jeff Chardell (Consultant, Interactive and Digital Media)
Kevin Malover (Chief Technology Officer, Obama for America)
Neela Malover (former Account Executive for WTMX)
Bill Michlin
Melinda Schramm
Dave Turner