Learn about people, companies making difference at work and in their communities
Banking
Cristal Brisco, magistrate judge for St. Joseph Circuit Court, recently was appointed to the board of directors of Merrillville-based Centier Bank.
Clark Kellogg, a college basketball analyst for CBS Sports, was elected to the First Merchants Corp. board of directors.
Business
Malika Butler was named assistant vice president of governmental affairs for the Indiana Manufacturers Association.
Clarence Hulse, executive director for Economic Development Corp. Michigan City, Ind., was inducted into the Lambda Alpha International at its 2019 Initiation Banquet on June 19.
Leighton Johnson was named director of education and workforce for the South Bend-Elkhart Regional Partnership.
Rohit Patel, owner of the Comfort Inn and Best Western Hotels in Hammond, and Jahnae Erpenbach, general manager of the Majestic Star Casinos, recently were appointed to the South Shore Convention and Visitors Authority Board of Directors.
Community
Merlin Foresman of Hebron and Lorrie Woycik of Valparaiso were among 23 Indiana residents presented with a 2019 Golden Hoosier Award. The awards, presented annually since 2008, are given to Hoosier senior citizens for their years of volunteer service in their communities.
Education
Mark Heckler, who has served as president of Valparaiso University since 2008, will step down from the post. Heckler will continue to serve as president until a replacement is named and can take over the office.
Meghan Sullivan, professor of philosophy and the Rev. John A. O’Brien collegiate chair, was named director of the University of Notre Dame’s Institute of Advanced Study.
Autumn McNichols, a professor at Ivy Tech Community College’s Muncie campus, was presented the Glenn W. Sample Founder’s Award for Excellence in Instruction, the school’s highest honor. The Founder’s Award recognizes an individual who exemplifies the mission of Ivy Tech. The school began awarding it in 1983.
Thomas Burish, provost at the University of Notre Dame, will step down from his post at the end of his five-year term July 1, 2020. Burish has served as Notre Dame’s provost since 2005.
Thomas Riebe was appointed chief technology officer at Ivy Tech Community College.
Godwin-Charles Ogbeide is the new director of the White Lodging School of Hospitality and Tourism Management in the College of Business at Purdue University Northwest.
The University of Notre Dame recently hired Mahan Mirza, an Islamic studies scholar and expert on religious literacy, as executive director for the college’s Rafat and Zoreen Ansari Institute for Global Engagement with Religion at the Keough School of Global Affairs; named Christy Pratt director of admissions; appointed the Rev. Daniel G. Groody, associate professor of theology and global affairs to vice president and associate provost; and announced Jim Morrison, assistant provost for strategic initiatives, will take an expanded role as associate provost for strategic initiatives.
Caroline Dowd-Higgins was named vice president of career coaching and employer connections for Ivy Tech Community College.
Rick Gillman, associate provost for faculty affairs and professor of mathematics and statistics at Valparaiso University, recently received a 2019 Certificate of Meritorious Service from the Mathematical Association of America.
Ivy Tech Community College’s Lake County campus has named Gina Willis director of admissions.
Julie DeGraw has been named vice president for student affairs at Valparaiso University.
University of Notre Dame executive David Balkin is the new chancellor for Ivy Tech Community College’s South Bend/Elkhart campus.
Engineering
Chelsea Bullen is a registered professional engineer in Illinois. She is a municipal/water and wastewater engineer in McMahon Engineers/Architects’ Machesney Park, Ill., office. The Wisconsin-based firm also operates an office in Valparaiso.
Government
Indiana Grown promoted Heather Tallman to program director. Dana Kosco, who has been with Indiana Grown since 2017, recently transitioned into a new role as marketing and communications manager. Along with managing the communications efforts for the program, she will run the Indiana Grown Marketplace at the Indiana State Fair.
Katie Jenner recently was appointed senior education adviser by Gov. Eric Holcomb.
Health care
Porter Health System in Valparaiso recently added cardiologist Dr. Andrew Putnam and neurosurgeon Dr. Jonathan Hobbs.
Franciscan Physician Network recently welcomed Dr. Kayla Nebelsick to the Legacy Hills Health Center in La Porte and Dr. David Maldonado to the Coolspring Health Center in Michigan City.
La Porte Hospital in La Porte recently added ophthalmologist Dr. Enoch Kassa to its medical staff and general surgeon Dr. Blake Hood.
The VNA Hospice of Northwest Indiana named Dr. Joseph Venditti medical director and hired Dr. Sunil Patel as a physician.
Dr. Sam El-Dalati joined Beacon Health System of South Bend as chief clinical officer.
Insurance
South Bend-based insurance brokerage firm Gibson recently made several staffing appointments at all levels of the organization. New appointments include: Stephanie Rufus, benefits administration assistant; Sheri Butler, HR manager for the HR service team of select business solutions; Angel Davidson, shared service specialist in the employee benefits practice; Kaitlyn Miner, human resource generalist; Debra Wiegman, commercial risk management account manager; Kristen Bules, marketing strategist for the private client group; Stephanie Senour and Laurie Barr, client managers; Chelsey Fitzcharles, claims specialist in risk management services; Danielle Hunt, account manager in commercial risk management; Nicole Grounds, personal insurance and private client group account manager; Jim Hall, commercial risk management account manager.
Kathie Mancini has been named regional president for health insurance provider Humana’s east central Medicare operations. She will oversee operations in Indiana, Michigan and Ohio, and a staff of more than 400 people.
Law
Gov. Eric Holcomb recently appointed Stephen Scheele to the Lake County Superior Court to succeed Judge William Davis who retired in April.
South Bend attorney Damon Leichty was confirmed by the Senate to serve as a federal judge on the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Indiana.
Michael Bergerson, a civil and criminal litigator, has joined Barnes & Thornburg’s South Bend office as a partner in the firm’s litigation department.
Manufacturing
Andy Graves was named chairman of the board of Elkhart-based RV maker Thor Industries Inc. Graves is the company's first independent chairman. Graves’ appointment follows the July 15 announcement that Peter Orthwein, Thor Industries' co-founder and executive chairman would step down as executive chairman July 31. Orthwein will become chairman emeritus and remain on the company’s board. Orthwein and Wade Thompson created Thor Industries in 1980. The company also announced Jan Suwinski, who served on the company’s board since 1999, will step down as lead director but remain on the board. The company also named Renee Jones as senior director of marketing.
Marketing
DOJO Creative of South Bend hired Ryan Bronkema, programmer, and Brenton Abram-Copenhaver, project manager and content writer.
Media
Sinclair Broadcast Group Inc. promoted Brian Dodge to general manager for WSBT (CBS, FOX) in South Bend.
Nonprofit
Karen Freeman-Wilson was named president and CEO of the Chicago Urban League, an established organization that has worked for economic, educational and social progress for African Americans. She begins in January after her term as mayor of Gary ends Dec. 31.
News
Wisconsin-based manufacturing giant Regal Beloit announced in late August that it will discontinue operations in Valparaiso. The company said it is discontinuing some products and moving the remaining Valparaiso work to its Monticello, Ind., plant. Robert Cherry, a representative for Regal Beloit, which employs about 24,000 throughout its global operations, said in late August that the company was still in the collective bargaining process with the International Association of Machinists Local 2018, which represents about 130 workers at the plant, and could not comment when asked about when the Valparaiso plant would close or how many employees would be affected.
A total of 570 volunteers took care of 68 projects around Northwest Indiana during the United Way’s annual Day of Caring in early August. The annual event brings together residents and businesses to support their community by helping area nonprofits with a variety of tasks. More than 34 nonprofits across the Region were assisted this year. Projects included landscaping, painting, building, hosting client picnics, collection drives and more.
Expanding passenger rail service in Northern Indiana appears to be coming closer to reality. The Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District (NICTD), operator of the South Shore Line, in a project update released in mid-August, said the latest step in the process, completion of an environmental analysis, had been accomplished in compliance with federal rules. NICTD said the Federal Transportation Administration (FTA) determined the project would create no significant impact to the surrounding environment. The double-tracking proposal calls for improvements to the South Shore Line traveling about 25 miles through Lake, Porter and La Porte counties, and the communities of Gary, Portage, Ogden Dunes, Dune Acres, Beverly Shores, Pines and Michigan City. The project’s main component is to add a second track to the single-track route and move the street-running tracks along 10th and 11th streets in Michigan City. NICTD remains optimistic construction will begin in 2021 and end in 2023.
Insurance provider Meyers Glaros Group planned to move its headquarters from Schererville to Merrillville in September. The move follows the company’s recent merger with Regnier Insurance Services of Highland. Jeff Meyers, president of Meyers Glaros Group, said the new office at 8605 Broadway in Merrillville will be large enough to accommodate the staff of both organizations.
A six-building retail, office development at Calumet Avenue and 45th Street is planned in Munster. The development will feature 120,000 square feet of office and retail space, developer Jay Lieser with 1st Metropolitan Builders said. The development is planned in phases, with the first phase of office and retail space available in fall 2020.
Cousins Subs, a Wisconsin-based sub shop established in 1972, planned to mark its return to Indiana with the opening of a location at 10533 Broadway St. in Crown Point in early September. The sub shop last operated in Indiana in 2008. The company had three Indiana shops in 2007.
Gloria Jean’s Coffees opened a new location, which features a drive-thru at Broadway and East 109th Avenue in Crown Point. The location is owned and operated by Raed Naser.
Pulse Technology, a diversified business services and products provider with operations in Northwest Indiana, relocated its headquarters from Carol Stream to 201 E. Commerce Drive in Schaumburg, northwest of Chicago. The company acquired Kramer & Leonard and McShane’s, which had locations in Northern Indiana.
Click here to read more from the Oct-Nov 2019 issue of Northwest Indiana Business Magazine.
