President
Ngozi C. Okorafor

Ngozi C. Okorafor was recently appointed Procurement Counsel for the Illinois Department of Central Management Services, where her practice includes advising upon all phases of procurement and government contracts matters. She previously held other legal counsel roles with the State of Illinois and has been associated with large law firms and corporate nonprofits.

Ms. Okorafor was installed as President of the Black Women Lawyers Association on July 11, 2012. Ms. Okorafor has served as Black Women Lawyer Association of Greater Chicago, Inc. ("BWLA") Parliamentarian since 2000, where she has ensured that the BWLA By-Laws and governing documents have been complied with; drafted the BWLA Voting Procedures; overseen BWLA annual elections; and addressed parliamentarian procedural matters as needed. Having served on the BWLA Board of Directors for twelve consecutive years, Ms. Okorafor has undertaken several leadership endeavors, which include founding the Advocacy & Legislative Committee as well as the International Law Committees; serving as Mentoring Committee Chair (coordinating the inaugural Lawyer-To-Lawyer Mentoring Program); serving as Membership Committee Chair (issuing the inaugural membership questionnaire); and supporting BWLA programming where needed.

She was awarded the BWLA Distinguished Service Award (2009 and 2007) and President's Award (2006 and 2004) for exceptional service to the bar association. Among several other Board positions, Ms. Okorafor concurrently serves as a Board Member for the Cook County Bar Association and Juvenile Justice Initiative.

Education:
University of Illinois Urban-Champaign Institute of Labor and Industrial Relations, Champaign, Illinois
M.A. in Labor Relations, 1998
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign College of Law, Champaign, Illinois
J.D., 1998
Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut
B.A., 1995

Vice President
Jamila S. Covington

Jamila is currently Senior Counsel at Navistar Financial Corporation - specializing in secured lending, creditor’s rights and commercial transactions and handling a variety of other corporate and transactional matters. Prior to joining Navistar, she was an associate in Quarles & Brady, LLP’s Corporate Services Group in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Jamila attended Northwestern University and obtained her Juris Doctorate from the University of Wisconsin Law School. Jamila has previously served as a BWLA Board Member-at-Large, has co-chaired the Mentoring Committee and the Law Student Outreach Committee -- designing programming to meet the needs of all of our members and coordinated the “Spotlights” section of the BWLA EBlast.

Treasurer
Abosede Odunsi

Abosede Odunsi is the founder and principal of Infinity Strategic Group, a full service estate planning firm. Abosede counsels individuals and businesses on estate, tax and disability planning, asset protection, charitable planning and estate administration matters. She regularly lectures before non-profit companies and civic groups on estate and financial planning issues. Abosede has held several leadership positions within BWLA, including most recently, as Treasurer, Acting Vice President and Co-chair of the Spring Luncheon Fundraising Committee. Abosede received her B.A. from University of Illinois and her J.D. from the University of Wisconsin.

Recording Secretary
Stacey Austin

Stacey is a partner at the employee benefits and executive compensation boutique law firm of Wang Kobayashi Austin, LLC, where she counsels employers on the legal compliance of retirement, welfare, and equity plans and programs. Prior to joining WKA, she was an attorney at Winston & Strawn LLP in their employee benefits and executive compensation group. Stacey received her B.S. from Northwestern University in 2001 and her J.D. from Harvard Law School in 2004.

Corresponding Secretary
Tiffany R. Harper

Tiffany (Redding) Harper is an Associate at Polsinelli Shughart PC, where she specializes in corporate bankruptcy and restructuring, loan enforcement and commercial litigation. Prior to joining Polsinelli, Ms. Harper was an attorney at Navistar Financial Corporation and a judicial law clerk at the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Eastern Division.

Ms. Harper currently serves on the Board of Directors of the Black Women Lawyers’ Association (“BWLA”) as a Board Member-at-Large. During this bar year, she was one of the co-chairs of the National Summit Fundraising Committee and helped raise over $190,000 for BWLA’s 25th Anniversary Celebration. Ms. Harper has also co-chaired several BWLA committees, including Judicial Evaluations and Young Lawyers. She has been instrumental in creating and developing new, innovative programming for young lawyers and law students, including the “How to Stay Afloat in a Down Economy” Panel Discussion and Resume Review in 2011, and the Young Lawyers’ Speed Networking Event in 2012.

In 2011, Ms. Harper received the BWLA President’s Dedicated Service Award and in 2012 she received the BWLA Rising Star Award.

Ms. Harper received her JD from Washington University in St. Louis and her BA from Dartmouth College.

Parliamentarian
Chasity Lomax

Chasity Lomax is a litigation associate at the boutique litigation firm, O’Hagan Spencer.  She focuses her practice on premises and product liability, with a concentration in the retail market, as well as management-side employment litigation.  She defends liability claims against major retail organizations.  She received her B.A. from Duke University in 2006 and her J.D. from Howard University School of Law in 2009.   

Chasity has been a member of BWLA since 2009, participating in the Thanksgiving volunteer services and the video project for the 25th National Summit.  She is also the liaison for the Corporate Governance/By-Laws Committee, Judicial Evaluation Committee and the Non-Profit Law Committee.  She also serves as a judge for the Chicago Bar Association’s National Moot Court Competition and is active on the Steering Committee for the Duke Alumni Club of Chicago and a founding member of the Howard University School of Law Alumni Club.                                                                       

Board Member at Large
Nyshel Burke

Nyshel is an associate in the Chicago office of Katten Muchin Rosenman LLP. She concentrates her practice in all aspects of commercial real estate transactions, including acquisitions and dispositions, venture formation, development and leasing. She also represents institutional lenders and other investors in connection with mortgage loans, mezzanine loans and other structured financings. Nyshel sits on the board of the Women’s Board of the Urban League and Amandla Charter School. She serves on the Young Lawyers’ Committee of BWLA and is an active participant of the Constitutional Rights Foundation’s Lawyers in the Classroom program.. She earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in Public Relations from the University of Florida and her Juris Doctrine degree from Howard University School of Law.

Board Member at Large
Timnetra Burruss

Biography soon to follow.                                                                        

Board Member at Large
Mary A. Melchor

Mary Melchor currently serves as the Inspector General for the Clerk of the Circuit Court under the auspices of the Honorable Dorothy Brown, where she was appointed in 2005. Mary supervises the departments that investigate complaints from employees, customers, outside agencies and the public in general as they relate to the Clerk’s Office, as well as proper file integrity.

Mary has been an active member, board member and officer of the Black Women Lawyers’ Association of Greater Chicago since 1992, serving as board member-at-large, secretary, treasurer (5 years), vice-president, and president in 2008. Mary is also a member of the WBAI, CCBA, CBA, ISBA, AABA, Treasurer of the Women’s Bar Foundation and Treasurer of the National Bar Association/Region VII (Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Wisconsin). Mary earned a B.A. from Illinois Wesleyan University in French/Education. She also has two master degrees: M.S. from Chicago State University in Special Education and M.B.A. from Roosevelt University in Management. Mary earned her J.D. from IIT/Chicago Kent College of Law in 1992.

Board Member at Large 
Erin K. Cannon

Erin is an associate in the Chicago office of Arnstein & Lehr LLP. She is a member of the firm’s Construction Practice Group and serves on the Diversity Committee. Prior to joining Arnstein & Lehr, Ms. Cannon was an associate in the Litigation Department at Jenner & Block and a judicial law clerk at the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia. During her career, Ms. Cannon has represented owners, general contractors, and equipment purchasers in breach of construction contract actions. She also has significant experience in conducting internal investigations and representing clients in a variety of complex commercial litigation matters.

Erin earned a Bachelor of Civil Engineering degree from University of Delaware and a Master of Civil Engineering from The University of Texas at Austin. In 2008, she earned her Juris Doctorate degree from Howard University School of Law.

Erin has been a member of BWLA since 2009, participating in the Thanksgiving volunteer services and the video project for the 25th National Summit, and serving on the BWLA Scholarship Board. In 2012, Erin received the BWLA 2011-2012 Distinguished Service Award. Erin is also a member of several other bar associations, including the CBA, ABA, and CCBA. She is an associate board member of the Chicago Committee on Minorities in Large Law Firms and serves on the Cook County Bar Association Job Fair Committee.

Ex Officio
Jamie Manning

Jamie is an Assistant Attorney General in the Antitrust Bureau of the Office of the Illinois Attorney General where she litigates violations of the Illinois Antirust Act. In 2002 she earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from the Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, MD. In 2006, she received a J.D. from the Chicago-Kent College of Law.

Jamie joined BWLA as a law student member in 2004. This year, she will serve as co-chair of the Judicial Evaluations Committee. Jamie is active in several other bar associations including the American Bar Association and the Illinois State Bar Association where she serves as the Chair of the Antitrust and Unfair Competition Law Section.