Nancy Rodkin Rotering: Breaking The Female Barrier In Chicago Politics
Mayor, City of Highland Park, IL; Attorney
http://www.MayorNancyRotering.com
Linked In: http://www.linkedin.com/in/nancyrotering
Twitter: @NancyRotering
Bio:
Elected Mayor of the City of Highland Park in April 2011, Nancy is a community leader with experience in municipal government management, regulatory law, major organization fund-raising, and educational and environmental program development.
Innovating in Field of Work:
• Her political disruption began when she unseated a 20-year incumbent to become a Councilman and did it again two years later when she became the first woman elected Mayor in Highland Park, IL shattering the glass ceiling.
• She manages a $85MM budget that serves nearly 30,000 residents. She leads the City Council and a staff of 273.
• She founded a Human Services Task Force to create a comprehensive approach to meeting local human service needs with more than 250 volunteers; the Highland Park Legal Aid Clinic, and the Lake County Leadership Alliance for economic development. She also created student commissioner appointments to City commissions to encourage high school students to participate in local government.
Impact:
• Her State of the City Address in February highlighted a year of transparency, collaboration, responsible teamwork, fiscal stability and proactive governance.
• Helped to pass the Assault Weapons Ban for Highland Park
• Brought the City’s financial house to order. Moody recently reissued Highland Park a AAA bond rating, held by only a handful of cities in Illinois.
• Prior to running for the Mayor’s office she was involved in city-wide environmental education programming, historic preservation and land use regulation, working to protect accessibility to public land, promote transit and preserve the history of her community.
Role Model:
• Works on a broad range of civic and charitable commissions and boards. A mother of 4, she actively volunteers in the community school system.
• Her many volunteer boards include the Ann and Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago, Leadership Council – Northwestern University, and the Illinois Women’s Institute for Leadership
Reinvention / Risk / Momentum:
She is constantly looking for opportunities to make a difference and help her community. She left General Motors Corporation to become an attorney and joined McDermott, Will & Emery to work on health care matters. In 2005, Nancy shifted her focus to government work. By 2009, she was elected Councilman and 2 years later she was the first female Mayor of Highland Park in Chicago.
“Nancy works tirelessly to remind women that they do not need to be asked to be an advocate, get involved or run for office – they simply need to find their own voices and she is there to help them do so.”