December 2012 | North Central College

John Daniels '69

John Daniels served as a panelist at the opening plenary session of Chicago United’s ninth annual Changing Color Leadership Conference. The conference is the preeminent forum for business leaders, diversity professionals and minority business owners throughout the Chicago region. Daniels and other C-suite leaders offered their insights on the topic “Paths to Professional Empowerment and Leadership,” one of several discussions of strategies promoting racial equality and organizational change. He has been chairman of Quarles & Brady since 2007.

Daniel Newman M ’09

Daniel Newman M’09 recently published a book titled “Millennial CEO,” (Marie Street Press) which chronicles his rise to a CEO position as a former college athlete and part-time DJ, facing an uncertain future. Newman’s stories and perceptions provide insight into the true potential of Generation Y. He is co-founder and CEO of EOS and EC3, two quickly growing hosted IT service providers. He is also executive vice president of TMD, EOS’ parent organization and a national distributor for Cisco Systems and is responsible for the company’s strategy and business development activities.

Kai Ruggeri '06

Kai Ruggeri holds several research and teaching positions within the University of Cambridge (Darwin College, Engineering Design Centre and Department of Psychology). He also holds a senior analyst position at RAND Europe, an independent not-for-profit research institute whose mission is to help improve policy and decision-making through research and analysis. He is also director of the Junior Researcher Programme in psychology and continues with AMCS, a health finance company, as an economic and international development consultant.

Carol Miller ‘62 Weston

Carol Miller ‘62 Weston continues to develop a music career that has spanned three decades. During the past year, she became part of a three-member cabaret performance group called The Song Sisters, which draws sellout crowds to the Chicago club Davenport’s Piano Bar and Cabaret. “There seems to be a real thirst for that type of music and people support it,” she says.

Phillip Burke III ’85

While no one in the early 1980s could’ve predicted advanced technologies like Ethernet systems in engineering projects, Phillip Burke III ’85 has adapted to the pace of change in aerospace engineering. A physics major and 3-2 engineering graduate from Washington University, Burke over the past 26 years has helped design testing systems used by military aircraft and other planes for McDonnell Douglas and The Boeing Company (which bought McDonnell Douglas in 2000). Today he is an engineer in F-15 support systems focusing on automatic test systems for avionics.

Kyle Andrews '11

Kyle Andrews is an analyst in the chemistry lab at CSL Behring, a company that develops, manufactures and markets biotherapies used to treat serious and rare conditions. He has been accepted to the College of Pharmacy at Roosevelt University.

Dennis K. Wentz '57

Dennis K. Wentz, M.D., was elected president of the Montana Chamber Music Society and also joined the board of directors for Intermountain Opera Bozeman. He and his wife Anne recently celebrated their 44th wedding anniversary. Wentz may be reached at dkwentz95@gmail.com.

Eric Knox '09

Eric Knox is a program director through AmeriCorps Volunteer In Service To America (VISTA) for Fairbanks Economic Development Corporation in Alaska where he assists with Fairbanks First Think Local. The buy local program is designed to advocate for a 10 percent shift in consumer expenditure from outside the Fairbanks North Star Borough to within the borough. He has worked to increase community knowledge of the importance of buying local by creating member booklets, community directories, newsletters, website development, special events and social media campaigns.

Tracie Morris '02

Tracie Morris, vice president of human resources for ComEd, was named a 2012 Company and Executive Woman Worth Watching by Diversity Journal. Morris was nominated by colleagues, peers and mentors for her initiative and achievements as a woman of diversity within her sphere of influence.

Kimberly Anderle-Abma '87

Kimberly Anderle-Abma is a sole practitioner of law, certified mediator and Guardian Ad Litem (GAL). After receiving her juris doctorate from the John Marshall Law School in 1991, she began her practice, which focuses on domestic relations. She has practiced law for 21 years and recently relocated to new offices in Joliet, IL.