Lyell Clarke is President and CEO of The Clarke Group, Inc., a family-owned business of 200+ employees with a global presence in the mosquito and vector control industry. His responsibilities include expanding service areas and product offerings, and development for the company, and providing vision and follow-through for the corporate sustainability program.
Lyell helped initiate the Clarke Cares Foundation, largely inspired by his own background in disease research and his desire to impact the world for the better using resources at hand. His company’s leadership has provided not only the nets that halt the spread of mosquito-borne diseases, but also the logistical capabilities necessary to deliver the nets to those who need them most.
Lyell has spent more than 25 years in the field of Entomology. He earned his Bachelor’s of Science in Entomology from the University of Kentucky, and went on to receive his PhD in Entomology from Iowa State University. Lyell and his wife Kathy have five children.
Ken Jandes is a lifelong leader in education in the Midwest. He is the Associate Dean and Director, Office of Academic Excellence, at American College of Education headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana where he also serves as a professor in the Doctoral Program. Prior to this Ken spent twelve years as a Superintendent of Schools in suburban Cook County serving the communities of Calumet City and Oak Lawn, Illinois. Before then he spent twenty-one years as a school principal in South Holland and Dolton and eight years teaching Science and Mathematics in LaGrange Park.
For years, Ken has led and sat on a number of educational boards in Cook County, around the state and in Washington D.C., including the Illinois Association of School Administrators, the Educational League of Illinois, the South Cook County Elementary Superintendent’s Association, Thornton Township Regional Action Planning Project, the Governor’s Educational Restructuring Committee, Exceptional Children Have Opportunities, and the Federal Legislation Insurance Committee. He continues to regularly speak and publish on topics such as educational leadership, efficiency and finance.
Ken earned his Bachelor’s in Education from Illinois State University, Master’s in Education from Loyola University (Chicago) and Doctorate in Education from Northern Illinois University. He resides in Downers Grove, Illinois, with RoseMary, his spouse of 50+ years. They have two married sons and eight grandchildren.
Vijay Singh
Vijay Singh brings over 30 years of healthcare, technology and management-related experience with major U.S. corporations. He is owner and founder of Medsupport, Inc., a healthcare consulting and service company dedicated to improving patient care through practice management for physicians and healthcare facilities.
Vijay is active on a number of non-profit boards and councils around Illinois such as Advocate Christ Hospital and Medical Center (Oak Lawn), Advocate South Suburban Hospital (Hazel Crest) and Chicago Southland Chamber of Commerce (East Hazel Crest). He serves as a Trustee for Naropoa University (Boulder, CO), a non-profit liberal arts institution dedicated to advancing contemplative education.
Vijay earned a Bachelor’s in Biochemistry/Biophysics and a Master’s in Industrial Engineering from Iowa State University, and has completed extensive graduate coursework in Financial Markets and Trading from Illinois Institute of Technology.
Tony Stephens is President and principal of Heritage Companies and the Heritage Property Group, Inc. a commercial real estate development and investment company. Heritage is a community-oriented developer and investor in select retail, professional service and commercial properties. Its mission is to bring desirable retail and commercial uses that are needed and wanted in communities.
Currently, Tony is Board Chairman of Lutheran Child and Family Services of Illinois, an agency providing a wide array of family services statewide, including foster care and adoption. Tony is also Board Chairman of the non-profit Hope for Grieving Children Africa, which trains pastors and community leaders in Zambia and other locations on how to provide grief counseling to African orphans and their caregivers.
Tony holds a Master’s in Business Administration and a Bachelor’s in Chemistry from Northern Illinois University. He is married to his lovely wife Paula and has two daughters.