Gov. Pritzker Announces Four Appointments to Boards and Commissions

Anthony Byrd will serve as a Trustee of the Illinois State University Board of Trustees.* Byrd serves as a Special Offender Specialist in the U.S. Pretrial Service Office and is an Adjunct Criminal Justice Instructor for Lindenwood University. Previously, he served as an Assistant Supervisor and Watch Supervisor at the St. Louis City Family Court - Juvenile Detention. Anthony is a member of the American Probation and Parole Association Annual Conference, the International Law Enforcement Educators and Trainers Association, and assists in coaching basketball and wrestling in his community. Byrd earned a Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice from Illinois State University and a Master of Science in Criminal Justice Administration from Lindenwood University.

Sylvia Puente will serve as a Trustee of the University of Illinois Board of Trustees.* Puente is the President and CEO of the Latino Policy Forum, a position she has held since 2009. She previously served as the Director of the Metropolitan Chicago Initiative at the University of Notre Dame's Institute for Latino Studies and held senior positions at The Resurrection Project and the Latino Institute. Sylvia's civic engagement includes being a member of Advance Illinois, the Economic Club, The Chicago Network, Center on Budget and Tax Priorities, the Civic Federation, Governor Edgar Fellowship Advisory Committee, Leadership Greater Chicago, and Lideramos. Puente earned a Bachelor of Science in Economics from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and a Master of Arts in Public Policy from the University of Chicago's Harris School of Public Policy.

Ava George Stewart will serve as a Member of the Guardianship and Advocacy Commission.* Stewart serves as the Chief of the Misdemeanor and Traffic Division in the Lake County State's Attorney's Office. She has operated the Law Office of Ava George Stewart, P.C. and was an Adjunct Professor of Legal Skills and Appellate Advocacy at the University Illinois at Chicago Law School. She's a member of the Illinois State Bar Association's Board of Governors and the Illinois Institute of Continuing Legal Education Board of Directors. Stewart earned a Bachelor of Arts in History and Sociology and a Masters in Managerial Communication from Northwestern University and a Juris Doctorate from the University of Illinois.

Beth Doria will continue to serve as a Member of the Illinois Racing Board.* Doria is the President and CEO of Alliance Associate, Inc. and served as the Executive Director for the Federation of Women Contractors from 2003-2021. Previously, she served the State in a variety of roles including as the Women's Business Advocate and Manager in the Illinois Department of Commerce and Community Affairs as well as positions in the Bureau of Tourism, Illinois State Lottery, the Illinois House of Representatives and the Illinois Secretary of State. Her experiences in both business and government have led her to leadership roles on the boards of the Chicago Women in Government Relations, the National Association of Women Business Owners, the U.S. Women's Chamber of Commerce, and the Illinois Business Enterprise Council. Doria received her Bachelor of Arts from DePaul University.