Our People

STAFF

Erin Bell, Interim Operations Director
Michael Rashid, Development Coordinator
Jen Dentel, Program and Social Media Coordinator

Additionally, a 30+ core of volunteer staff serve as librarians, catalogers, archivists, exhibit curators, and in operations support roles.

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Officers:

Kevin Nunley, Co-chair, serves as a Senior Consultant for Slalom, Inc with a focus on Business Advisory Services. Prior work includes positions at several colleges and universities in higher education, student affairs, wellness, and teaching with roles in residential life, counseling, wellness, diversity and inclusion. For over 20 years, Kevin has supported numerous non-profits in a variety of leadership positions, including serving as the President of the Board of Directors for Metro DC PFLAG for 10 years. Kevin’s academic background includes a MS in Biomedical Science from the Quillen College of Medicine.

James Conley, Co-chair, is the Media Services Librarian for Loyola University Chicago. Including prior work for the University of Illinois at Chicago’s library system James’ tenure in public, private, and academic libraries has spanned over 20 years. James also serves on the editorial board of Chicago’s own Video Game Art Reader (a peer-reviewed journal) and is a practicing visual artist. James has been a volunteer exhibit curator for the Gerber/Hart for the past 6 years. James is currently writing his first book on queer readings of popular cinema.

Becky Chmielewski, Secretary, is an administrator at the University of Chicago Laboratory Schools and a visual artist. She recently received her MFA from Ohio University, where she researched and highlighted the LGBTQ history of Southeastern Ohio. She is passionate about our community’s history, and driven by a desire to share that history and build community resilience and visibility through the storytelling made possible by Gerber/Hart

Members:

Jen Kelly currently works as a Senior Project Manager with Walgreens. Before her tenure with Walgreens, she held roles at DePaul University and Bridgeview Bank Group. Jen graduated from DePaul University with a Master’s in Communication and Media and is passionate about the preservation of LGBTQIA+ history and ephemera.

Craig A. Nadborne is a Senior Managing Director, at Bradford Allen specializing in Tenant Representation. Craig joined Bradford Allen in 2007 as a Senior Managing Director and in 2014 was elected to the Midwest Commercial Real Estate Hall of Fame. In a Tenant Rep capacity, Craig expertly assists a client base with renewals, relocations, expansions, and renegotiations of their office space leases. Criag specializes in helping the small to mid-size clients who traditionally do not benefit from the quality service that major corporations receive. Another focus is on not-for-profit clients, including Lambda Legal Defense & Education Fund, Life Span, Heartland health Organization, Thresholds, and TPAN (Test Positive Aware Network).

Johanna Russ is the Unit Head of Special Collections at Chicago Public Library’s Harold Washington Library Center where she helps to preserve Chicago’s history. She previously worked at Wayne State University’s Walter P. Reuther Library, Archives of Labor and Urban Affairs, in Detroit. She is excited to bring her 15 years of library and archives experience to Gerber/Hart. She is especially inspired to preserve the LGBTQIA+ historical record by her children so they can see the broader context for their family.

Tiffany Waddell is an Associate Attorney at NextLevel Law, P.C. specializing in family law including, parentage, divorce, prenuptial agreements, adoption, and name changes. Tiffany’s passion lies in domestic and international human rights advocacy. With LGBTQIA+ marital laws still in their infancy, Tiffany rigorously advocates to ensure that these laws are being interpreted and applied as intended so that those underrepresented individuals and communities are treated justly. It is her desire to see LGBTQIA+ history preserved and utilized in the development and creation of said laws. She is inspired by Gerber/Hart’s mission and is excited to be a part of an organization that can help better her community and change the legal world.

Elisabeth Bayley

Jacqui Shine