We’re excited to welcome five new leaders to Arts Alliance Illinois’ Board of Directors: Lisa Duarte, Brendan Fernandes, Dia Weil, Mary McNamara Bernsten, and Sam Thousand. Mary and Sam join us as the new Co-Chairs of our Arts Leadership Council, which also grants them seats on the Alliance’s Board of Directors.
We are so excited to have these leaders with us and thank them for their tireless advocacy for the creative sector in their community and across Illinois! Read their bios below.
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Lisa Duarte
Partner, Croke Fairchild Duarte & Beres LLC, & Founder, Point of Difference Strategies
Selected as one of Chicago Magazine’s Top 50 Most Powerful Chicagoans in 2024, Lisa Duarte has spent her career at the intersection of law and government. Prior to joining Croke Fairchild Duarte & Beres LLC as Partner and founding Point of Difference Strategies, Lisa served as the First Assistant Deputy Governor for Budget & Economy in the JB Pritzker Administration in Illinois. In this role, Lisa oversaw 17 agencies involving budget, economy, economic development, and regulation, and more than 170 boards and commissions.
Prior to joining the Pritzker administration, Lisa was a Partner in the Government Affairs practice group at a boutique Chicago law firm, where she served a diverse client base on a broad set of legislative and regulatory issues in Illinois, Chicago, and Cook County.
Lisa also worked with the City of Chicago Mayor’s Office, where she served as Legislative Counsel to former Mayor Rahm Emanuel representing the City of Chicago before the Illinois General Assembly, state agencies, and executive offices. She then advanced to the dual role of Chief of Staff to former Deputy Mayor Steve Koch and Chief of Staff to the Mayor’s Economic Council.
Outside of work, Lisa devotes her time to civic and philanthropic causes with a focus on helping the Latino community. She is a Founding Board Member of the Chicago City Council Latino Caucus Foundation Leadership Academy, which focuses on developing a pipeline for the next generation of Chicago’s Latino business and civic leaders. She is also a member and a former Secretary of the Illinois Legislative Latino Caucus Foundation, which awards scholarships to Latino students attending universities in Illinois. In turn, Lisa has been recognized for her leadership by several Latino-led organizations. Lisa received Negocios Now’s 2018 and 2019 National 40 under 40 award as well as the 2019 40 under 40 Award from the Hispanic National Bar Association.
Lisa’s other civic engagements include serving on the Board of Trustees at the Museum of Contemporary Art, the Board of Directors at Choose Chicago, the City of Chicago’s travel, tourism, and convention board. She is also a member of the Economic Club of Chicago. Lisa uses her business and government acumen to guide Illinois American Water, through her position on its Board of Directors. Her other awards and accomplishments include being a 2016 graduate of the Edgar Fellows Program and a 2017 graduate of the Crain’s Leadership Academy Program. Lisa has been recognized as an Emerging Lawyer for years 2018 and 2019 by Leading Lawyers Magazine.
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Brendan Fernandes
Independent Artist
Brendan Fernandes (b. 1979, Nairobi, Kenya) is a Canadian artist based in Chicago working at the intersection of dance and visual arts. His practice explores race, queer culture, protest, and collective movement through hybrid forms—part ballet, part political action, part queer celebration. A graduate of the Whitney Independent Study Program, Fernandes has received awards from Arts Alliance Illinois, Artadia, the Louis Comfort Tiffany Foundation, and the Smithsonian. His work has been presented at the Whitney Biennial, MoMA, the Guggenheim, the Getty Museum, MCA Chicago, and the National Gallery of Canada. He is an Associate Professor at Northwestern University and is represented by Monique Meloche Gallery (Chicago) and Susan Inglett Gallery (New York). Recent projects include exhibitions at the Pulitzer Arts Foundation and Prospect.6. A major solo exhibition debuts at the Driehaus Museum in 2025.
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Dia S. Weil
Civic Leader, Retired CEO
Dia has been involved in the civic and philanthropic arena for 35 years, focusing on education, health rights, justice reform, and the arts. She is a Trustee of the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago (since 2014), where she currently serves as co-chair of the Board Governance and Nominating Committee. She also serves on the Board of Trustees at DePaul University, is a member of the Human Rights Watch Chicago Council, and is a Regent of the Lincoln Academy of Illinois. She served as Chair of the Board at Notre Dame High School for Girls, which focused on lower-income students, where she was honored by the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur with their “Educating for Life Award” and by the City Council of Chicago for her work in education. Dia is an Emeritus Trustee of the Chicago National Multiple Sclerosis Society after serving as Chairperson of the Merit School of Music, the Goodman Theatre, and is a Life Director of the Chicago Public Library Foundation. She is past member of the Cook County Justice Advisory Council and has served as a Court Appointed Special Advocate.
Her 25-year corporate background included serving as CEO/COO of technology companies including as a co-founder of GTE-Verizon Airfone, Railfone and MagnaStar.
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Mary McNamara Bernsten
Executive Director, Rockford Area Arts Council
Mary is an enthusiastic Rockfordian with more than two decades of experience teaching, creating, and promoting the arts in her community and beyond. Mary’s passion and commitment to community connection, public service, and justice in all forms make her a powerful advocate for the Arts Council’s mission: to support, promote, and develop access to the arts for everyone.
Under Mary’s leadership, the Arts Council’s budget has increased by over 200% during her five-year tenure and received well over $2 million in state and federal funding. In 2024, Mary spearheaded the Rockford Region Cultural Plan — a strategic plan for arts and culture — convening a strong coalition of community partnerships with the City of Rockford, Winnebago County, Rockford Park District, Rockford School District-205, Region 1 Planning Council, Transform Rockford, Community Foundation of Northern Illinois, and our region’s state legislators. In addition to serving on the Arts Alliance Board and ALC, Mary also serves on the Local Arts Network (Illinois Arts Council).
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Sam Thousand
Independent Artist
Sam Thousand (formally known as Sam Trump) is a multi-instrumentalist, singer/writer, producer/composer, and a 3Arts and Walder Platform Award Recipient with 15+ years of experience in live performance art, curation, and self-management. Since picking up the trumpet at age 7, his artistry has allowed him the opportunity to perform in all corners of North America as well as overseas.
Sam Thousand has become a fixture in Chicago’s music scene through various stages from the Pritzker Pavilion at Millennium Park to a cozy nook in a low-lit speakeasy in Fulton Market. He has maintained years of performance residencies, and has curated special events from tributes to artist showcases. In addition to performing and curating, he has served as a booking manager to facilitate performance opportunities for other musicians. Sam Thousand is co-founder of multiple Chicago-based organizations, and is a business owner and entrepreneur. Everywhere he goes, he brings a sophistication that engages & uplifts.
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For a full list of Board and ALC members, visit our Board and ALC page.