The role of the St. Joan of Arc School Board is to provide consultation to the principal and pastor.
The School Board promotes the school within the parish and larger community. When appropriate, the Board recommends policies to govern the operation of the school, in accordance with Archdiocesan policies and directives. It consists of nine voting members, named by the Pastor. School Board meetings are usually the second Monday of the month at 7:00 p.m. in the second floor conference room, and are open to parishioners and parents of children attending St. Joan of Arc School.
Members
Dan Byrnes – President
Dan Byrnes and his family have been a part of the St. Joan of Arc Community since 2010. Dan and his wife Lisa have four children. Starting with the 2017-2018 school year, all of the children will be enrolled at SJA school. Dan earned a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Illinois and an MBA from the Booth School of Business at the University of Chicago. He is a Portfolio Manager at AAM in Chicago and is serving on the School Board through the 2017-2018 academic year.
George Schultz
George has been a member of the Saint Joan of Arc family for five years since moving to Evanston. He is the proud parent of Macy (3rd Grade) and Stella (1st Grade). He and his wife, Kristine, are continually impressed with the Parish and School community that is so welcoming and committed to the fundamental growth of their children. George is the V.P. of Development Sales and Brokerage Services and Managing Broker at @properties where he has worked for over 14 years. He is a proud alumnus of Centre College where he received his degree in Dramatic Arts and History. He went on to get his M.F.A in Acting at Purdue University. He is grateful for this opportunity to serve on the School Board.
Holly Pickering
A native Texan, Holly Pickering and her family joined the SJA community in 2008. Holly has three children enrolled in the school and enjoys being an active member of the parish. Holly’s passion is community service and volunteerism. When not in mom mode, she works as a professional fundraising consultant, working primarily for Habitat for Humanity. Holly serves on the School Board’s Development, Strategic Planning, and Faith Formation committees.
Amy Coath
Amy has been a member of St. Joan of Arc Parish for two years. She and her husband, Jeff, have 2 children attending St. Joan of Arc School, Andrew (7th) and Sean (4th) as well as a son in high school, Matt (Notre Dame College Prep). She earned her Bachelor’s degree in psychology at the University of Notre Dame. After 20 years working in social services at Misericordia Home in Chicago, Amy returned to school and earned a Master’s degree from Midwestern University. She has recently embarked upon a new career as a Speech Language Pathologist in early intervention and school based settings.
Linda Hickey
Linda Hickey has been a member of St. Joan of Arc Parish for thirteen years. She and her husband Matt have two children at St. Joan of Arc School, Caden (5th) and Garrett (4th). Originally from Texas, Linda earned a Bachelor’s degree from Texas Tech University. Since joining the parish in 2004, she has been actively involved in the Women’s Club, PSO, and liturgical ministries and has served on various school and parish committees through the years. She currently works as an administrative assistant at Coldwell Banker Evanston.
Heather Ingraham
Heather Ingraham is a native of Los Angeles, California who came to the Midwest for college and chose to stay. A graduate of the University of Notre Dame (B.A. in Program of Liberal Studies, B.A. in English) and the University of Chicago (M.A.T. in English), Miss Ingraham enjoys her work with the diverse student population at Niles North High School, where she is an English teacher, an equity trainer, and a retired swimming/chess/academic bowl coach. She has been a member of St. Joan of Arc Parish since 2003
Maria Matias
Maria Bello Matias is a Saint Joan of Arc graduate. She has been married to Al for 27 years. They have two children, a son in college and a daughter at Niles West High School. Maria is a volunteer Religious Ed teacher since 2012. She is a Customer Service Manager for a children’s furniture company. She was appointed to the Board in 2016 and serves on the Development and Faith Formation Committees.
Mark Anderson
Mark Anderson is a native of Louisville, Kentucky and has been a part of the St. Joan of Arc community since 2014; his wife, Carrie, has been a teacher in the Archdiocese of Chicago since 2010. Mark is a graduate of Northwestern University, obtaining a Bachelor of Music in Clarinet Performance, a Bachelor of Arts in Biological Sciences, and a Master of Science in Biotechnology. He has worked as a Scientist at Abbott Laboratories in the Diagnostics Division since 2014.
Chris Walsh
Chris Walsh and his family have been a member of the St. Joan of Arc community for sixteen years. Chris and his wife, Tricia, have a daughter Abby (6 th grade) enrolled in SJA as well as a daughter Ellie (senior) at St. Ignatius College Prep and a son Liam (sophomore) enrolled at Loyola Academy. Chris earned a Bachelor’s degree from Marquette University and a MBA from Loyola University in Chicago. He is the Director of Sales and Marketing for AMETEK and currently serves as St. Joan of Arc’s Men’s Club President.
Father Dan Costello (ex-officio)
Fr. Costello was born in Baltimore but grew up in Cincinnati. He attended Catholic School growing up. Although he had thought of becoming a priest since grade school, after high school he chose to study business administration and finance at San Jose State University in California. He started his business career as a marketing professional for IBM and worked for the company for 13 years in San Francisco, Los Angeles, New Jersey, and eventually Chicago in 1988. During all these years, however, he always thought about becoming a priest. He was ordained a priest of the Archdiocese of Chicago in 1998 and has served in a variety of parishes.
