Emerging Leaders Class of 2015

Alongside his father and brother, Amer Abdullah launched the Cedars restaurant in 2001. Shortly thereafter, a fast-casual child of Cedars named Mezza Mediterranean Grill was born, where Abdullah heads the marketing strategy. Beyond business, he is a founding member of the Chicago Community Trust's Pillars Fund, a donor-advised fund that targets a better understanding of Muslim-American culture.

Ikbel Achour is passionate about translating cutting-edge science into patient care. She is the global head of translational medicine at AstraZeneca, and previously a senior research scientist at IO Bispecifics Franchise in genomics and molecular medicine, with a focus on innovation in precision medicine.

Roseanna Ander serves as the founding executive director of the University of Chicago Crime Lab, which was launched in partnership with the City of Chicago. In the years following, she was appointed to the International Association of Chiefs of Police Research Advisory Committee and the Illinois Juvenile Justice Commission, and was named co-chair of Rahm Emanuel's Public Safety Transition Committee.

Currently at HERE Technologies, Benjamin Bader formerly led the transaction advisory services group for Jones Lang LaSalle. In his 15-year tenure at the firm, he managed global relationships and executed transactions across five continents. He has twice been recognized with the firm’s LaSalle Club award, won the 2008 JLL Collaboration Award, and has twice earned CoStar’s “Power Broker” award.

Now at Amazon Air, Mary Barnicle previously held the position of managing director of regulatory affairs at United Airlines. She advocated for the company’s interests before multiple government regulatory agencies, particularly regarding taxation and economic liberalization. Barnicle’s responsibilities cover both policy and compliance with economic and consumer regulations.

Brian T. Edwards is currently the dean of Tulane University's School of Liberal Arts, the largest of the university's nine schools, encompassing 35 departments and programs in the social sciences, humanities, fine and performing arts. Previously, he was the director of the Middle East and North African studies program at Northwestern University.

Sarah Herda is the executive director of the Graham Foundation for Advanced Studies in the Fine Arts. Founded in 1956, Graham Foundation is the only private foundation in the United States committed to providing project-based grants to individuals and institutions working to address issues related to architecture and the built environment.

Sarah Elizabeth Ippel is the founder and executive director of the Academy for Global Citizenship, a Chicago Public Elementary School on a global mission that serves 96% minority children and families. AGC is developing the next generation of critical thinkers and mindful leaders to positively impact their communities and the world beyond.

Prior to his role at eRacing Association, Kevin Johnson was the senior manager of mergers and acquisitions and led federal market business development for Acciona Energy North America Corporation. Before joining Acciona, Johnson served as a captain in the United States Army and deployed to Iraq in 2004 with the 1st Battalion, 33rd Field Artillery Regiment in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom II.

Ashish Lal is a vice president at BDT & Company, a Chicago-based merchant bank that combines a $3 billion investment fund with advisory services to address the strategic and financing needs of companies. He was involved in establishing BDT’s strategic joint venture with one of India’s most highly regarded conglomerates and continues to establish relationships with business owners outside of the US.

Mark Palchak started his career growing proprietary trading groups in Chicago at Infinium Capital Management. In time, he assumed leadership of Infinium in a distressed situation, immediately taking the company through a successful sale process and returning the successor company, V3 Markets, to profitability.

Alison Ranney is currently managing director at Russel Reynolds Associates, and formerly led the nonprofit and education practice in the Midwest for the global executive search firm. She recruits senior leaders to nonprofit organizations and institutions of higher education in the United States and internationally.

Alexander Ross is a financial adviser at Credit Suisse, managing the global assets of his clients, after previously advising at Credit Suisse Securities USA. He is also a sponsor of Cornerstone Angels, which provides capital to start-up businesses. Before his career in finance, Ross was a strategy consultant at PricewaterhouseCoopers.

Ross Shelleman is the CEO of Aisle Rocket, after previously serving as president and CEO of Target Data, a venture-backed "Big Data" and analytics company focused on the life event of moving. Before founding Target Data, Shelleman held various senior business development positions across a multitude of industries, including technology, healthcare, and managed services.

Linhard Stepf, a 10-plus-year veteran in foreign direct investments and economic development marketing, is currently the vice president of VISTRA. Previously, he was president of FrankfurtRhineMain Corp., where his responsibilities included promoting the Frankfurt region (Germany) in North America and Brazil to recruit and attract companies for relocation or expansion.

Lisa G. Thomas has extensive experience in venture capital and private equity investing, governance, and operations in emerging markets. She is the founder and managing director of Samata Capital, a fund management company dedicated to making private sector investments in small and growing businesses in sub-Saharan Africa that advance opportunities for women and promote gender diversity.

Shalini Unnikrishnan is a core member of Boston Consulting Group's healthcare and social impact practices. In healthcare, she advises clients in the biopharma, medtech, and payer space on a broad range of strategic issues. In social impact, Unnikrishnan serves as BCG Chicago's office node and works across public education, global health, and economic development teams globally.

In his current role, Eric Weinheimer offers tailored consulting and advisory services to the boards of directors and senior leaders of nonprofit clients. His expertise spans strategic planning, board governance, revenue diversification, and social enterprise. He also has significant experience working with high-net-worth individuals to identify and achieve their philanthropic goals.

Kuliva Wilburn is the CEO of Wilburn Strategic Solutions and was previously the senior program officer for health at the Chicago Community Trust. Before working at the Trust, Wilburn worked at Access Community Health Network as their manager of planning and development and at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration as a technical writer.

Endy Zemenides is the executive director of the Hellenic American Leadership Council (HALC), a national Greek-American advocacy organization dedicated to promoting human rights and the rule of law internationally, in addition to building bridges between communities in the United States. Before joining HALC, Zemenides practiced law in Chicago, specializing in municipal law and government relations.