Corporate Board
ILS Corporate Board is a small, working board of leaders passionate about youth leadership supported by a large and mighty alumni network.
The ILS Corporate Board acts as the financial and legal governing body for the organization. The Corporate Board meets once a month to discuss our budget, legal standing, strategic planning, and to support all branches of the organization.
2024-25 Corporate Board Members
Kelly Paton
President
Kelly attended the Flagship Seminar for Illinois Leadership Seminars in 2006 and that kicked off her passion for volunteering and working with nonprofits. She was the Director of Operations from 2011 - 2015 and then took a break to get her Master's Degree in Nonprofit Management from Hamline University and volunteer at the Rio Summer Olympics in 2016. She is currently the System Administrator for Homeless Services in Washington, DC.
Tony Catinella
Seminar Chairperson
Tony has been involved with ILS since attending as a participant in 2013. Since then, he has been on the Junior Alumni Board, served as a junior coach, spirit leader, senior coach, Director of Programming, and Director of Staff while also continuing to be involved with fundraising efforts and serving as the Corporate Board Secretary.
Since graduating from Iowa State University in 2019 with a double major in Marketing and Public Relations, Tony had the opportunity to work in the non-profit/fundraising field for several years.
Nowadays, Tony travels the country as a Corporate Leasing and Marketing Specialist for American Campus Communities.
In his free time, Tony loves to go on adventures, experience the unknown, volunteer, learn, and continue to advocate for leaders of all ages!
Becca Gorman
Treasurer
Becca went through seminar in 2016 as a representative of Washington Community High School. She graduated from Millikin University in 2022 with a bachelor's degree in finance. Becca has come back to volunteer at seminar several times on the AdWIn team and as a facilitator. Becca started her career working for a non-profit in Decatur, IL. She mostly worked on grants and budgets. Becca has recently made the switch to Peoria, IL to work at OSF hospital as a member of the finance team. Becca has a passion for both numbers and helping people! She is excited to be able to use her skills to help unleash the potential of Illinois' youth!
Sabrina Edwards
Secretary
Sabrina attended Illinois Leadership Seminars in 2017 for representing Willowbrook High School. Since then, she has volunteered with ILS as a junior coach and most recently Assistant Director of AdwOps. Sabrina graduated from Marquette University in 2023 with her Bachelors of Science in Nursing and currently works in Milwaukee WI as an ICU nurse. She has a passion for helping people and animals. In her free time she volunteers with animals rescues.
Maddie Kuhl
Director of Marketing
Josh Fredrickson
Director of Fundraising
Josh attended our seminar in 2012 representing East Leyden High School in Franklin Park. He attended Western Illinois University before returning to Chicago. He has a background in political and community organizing and currently works in customs brokerage. Josh has continued his involvement with ILS, having held positions on our alumni board, our seminar staff, and as a previous member of the Seminar Planning Committee as Assistant Director of Operations and Director of Staff.
Maddie attended Illinois Leadership Seminars in 2016 as a representative from Durand High School. She has remained involved in many capacities since, including the alumni board, media team, Seminar Planning Committee, and Assistant Director of Media. She graduated from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 2021 with a BS in Journalism and minor in Public Relations. Maddie currently works in healthcare Public Relations in Chicago.
Madison Gillis
Co-Alumni Advisor
Madison (she/her) attended Illinois Leadership Seminars in 2014 representing Naperville North High School. After she went through seminar, she became passionate about leadership and stayed involved with the organization ever since. She has served a variety of roles from Junior Staff to Spirit Leader and now as an adult, serving as a Senior Coach and Co-Alumni Advisor. Madison graduated from Illinois State University in 2020, holding degrees in Theatre Education and Acting. She now teaches high school theatre and speech in the suburbs of Chicago. She is passionate about uplifting youth’s voices to make positive change in the world.
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Kaitlyn Buckner
Co-Alumni Advisor
Kaitlyn attended ILS in 2015, representing Durand High School, and has been involved ever since. She has held positions on seminar staff as a Spirit Leader, Junior Coach, Senior Coach, and Facilitator, on the alumni board as Vice President and President, and on Seminar Planning Committee as Assistant Director of Recruitment. She is eager to return to the Corporate Board as Co-Alumni Advisor. Kaitlyn graduated in 2019 from Illinois State University, where she earned a double major in Finance and Management and is now a Private Wealth Consultant at COUNTRY Financial.
An innovative, people-centric leader who defines, designs, and implements strategic programs and initiatives, Frances Wallace excels in building diverse workforces and creating inclusive work environments. Her career has been marked by excellence in translating metrics, research, and trends into effective operational strategies.
A voracious lifelong learner, Ms. Wallace obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree in English and Religions from the University of Ghana. She continued her education at Southern Illinois University, where she obtained a Master of Arts degree in Communications.
Ms. Wallace continues to seize every opportunity to further her education. In addition to her educational credentials, she also holds a Project Management Professional (PMP) certification from the PMI and Diversity, Equity & Inclusion and Inclusive & Educational Leadership certificates from USF. Recently, she obtained a Certificate in Sustainable Business Strategies from Harvard Business School, as well as a Certificate in Leadership – with an emphasis on Women in Leadership – from Cornell University.
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Natalie Garling
GFWC Representative
Natalie attended ILS as a high school sophomore back in 1999 and has been involved ever since. She was very involved in Junior Staff and has served as Senior Coach and Director of Programming. She is currently serving as GFWC IL Liaison on Corporate Board and focuses on maintaining and strengthening the incredible support received from GFWC Illinois clubs across the state.
Frances Wallace
Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
Rob Williams
Member At Large
Rob Williams attended Seminar in 2013 from Vernon Hills High School. He has since served as a Senior Coach and member of the Seminar Programming team. Rob presently works as an college admissions counselor and a track coach, with a BA in History Education from Augustana College and a MA in History from Pittsburg State University.
Haley Sadovsky
Member At Large
Ashley Land
Member At Large
Born and raised in the windy city of Chicago, Ashley grew up on the city’s south side. The first in her family to graduate from a four-year institution with a B.A. in Media Studies from Pomona College, Ashley began her career working at Community Coalition, a non-profit in Los Angeles where she amplified the voices of thousands of South LA residents through various social media campaigns and helped to pass numerous local and state ballot initiatives. As an aspiring television producer, she got her big break through Bad Robot’s internship program and she most recently worked there as the assistant to the Vice President of Television. Additionally, Ashley creates content for her YouTube channel, “Welcome To Ashley Land”, where she discusses important topics such as politics, pop culture, the economy, and social justice. Ashley contributes much of her success to her involvement with Illinois Leadership Seminars and she is grateful that the experience helped build her confidence and leadership skills at a young age.
Janette Beltran
Member At Large
Janette attended seminar in 2017 and returned in 2018 to volunteer on the Adwin team. She is a recent graduate from Illinois State University with a Finance Degree and is currently working as a Finance Analyst. In her free time, Janette enjoys creating art and working on my Muay Thai skills.
Lisa Fluga
Member At Large
Lisa attended Illinois Leadership Seminar in 2008 representing Luther East High School and has only missed one seminar since. She has been involved with seminar and the organization in multiple ways, including junior coach, senior coach, adwin and operations team, media, and currently Assistant Seminar Chair. For the past 7 years, she has been a middle school math teacher in the south suburbs of Chicago.
Ixtel Viramontes
Member At Large
Ixtel attended Illinois Leadership Seminars for Genoa-Kingston High School in 2011 and she hasn’t missed one since. She has held different positions as a junior staffer, on the Alumni Board as fundraising director, a junior coach and a media ninja. As an adult she has assisted where ever needed as Assistant Director of Operations, Assistant Seminar Chair, and now serves as the Seminar Chair. She graduated from Elmhurst College in 2017 with a BA in Sociology, earned her Masters in Conflict Resolution from Dominican University. She currently works for Columbia College Chicago as the Assistant Director of Admissions.
Keeley Tinsley
Member At Large
Keeley attended ILS in 2016 as a representative of Mt. Zion Highschool. She is passionate about leadership and using what she's learned at ILS throughout the years in her everyday life. She has been involved as a junior staff member as a Junior Coach and a member of the Alumni Board. As a senior staff member she has been a seminar facilitator and a Senior Coach. She attended Syracuse University studying chemistry and now lives in Nashville working as a Chemist.
MJ Camarato
Member At Large
MJ attended ILS in 2018 representing a small school from Southern Illinois, Herrin High School. Ever since attending, MJ has enjoyed the atmosphere and positivity that surrounds ILS as an organization. After graduating from Herrin High School in 2020, MJ went on to get her bachelor's degree in Secondary Biology Education from the University of Kentucky finishing in May 2024. This is her first year on the corporate board and she is hopeful to get even more schools involved and connected with ILS!
Haley Sadovsky attended Illinois Leadership Seminar as a representative from Mt. Olive High School in 2010. Each year since attending, Haley has continued to volunteer in a variety of roles at seminar, most recently as the Director of Media. Haley earned her BA in Mass Communication from Eastern Illinois University followed by an MS in International Relations from Northeastern University in Boston, MA. She is currently the Assistant Director of Brand Marketing at the University of Chicago’s Harris School of Public Policy.
Our Bylaws
The bylaws of an organization specify the numerous elements that affect the organization's operations. An organization's bylaws can contain provisions relating to the ways it conducts its affairs, the duties of its directors and the responsibilities of its officers and volunteers. Please click below to read our current bylaws for Illinois Leadership Seminars.