Join us for this year’s ACI Breakfast Forum! We will share strategies for successfully aligning all students’ education with workforce readiness to improve recruitment and retention. We will also discuss developing career-ready students and the benefits of a liberal arts education.
Thursday, April 10, 2025 8:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.
Saul Ewing 161 N. Clark St. Chicago, Illinois 60601
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Event Speakers & Panelists
Aries Pickett
Director of People Operations, National Women’s Soccer League
Director of People Operations for the National Women’s Soccer League
Aries Pickett is a Chicago native with over 15 years of professional HR experience in the sports industry, where she’s become a trusted leader in her field. A proud alum of Eureka College, Class of 2005, she earned her B.S. in Business Administration with a minor in Communications.
Currently serving as the Director of People Operations for the National Women’s Soccer League (the world’s premier women’s soccer league), Aries Pickett oversees benefits plan design, HRIS systems and tools, policies and procedures, all while fostering a culture of trust and collaboration through her approach to employee relations. Known for her expertise in building relationships, strategic problem solving, communication, leadership, empathy, and sound judgment, she is dedicated to fostering meaningful employee experiences.
Aries Pickett often shares that she didn’t choose sports, but sports chose her. She embraced that calling and loved every moment of her journey. What she finds most rewarding about working in sports is their unique ability to bring people together, which perfectly reflects her people’s first philosophy.
Beyond her professional life, Aries Pickett is a devoted wife and mother of two daughters. She thrives on building connections and creating spaces where people feel united and valued.
Aries will focus on addressing the unique value of a liberal arts education when it comes to preparing students for the workforce. She will also share her unique perspective on her journey as a graduate of Eureka College (an ACI member school) to her current role, while highlighting strategies used to recruit and retain new talent to NWSL.
Dr. Aaron J. Kuecker
President, Trinity Christian College
Dr. Aaron Kuecker serves as president of Trinity Christian College. Before assuming this role, he had served as the College’s provost since July 2016. His work as interim president and provost represents a sort of homecoming to the Trinity community. From 2008-2013, Kuecker was associate professor of theology and director of education at the College. In the intervening years, he served at LeTourneau University in Longview, Texas, most recently as dean of the School of Theology & Vocation, professor of theology, and director of the Honors College.
At Trinity Christian College, Dr. Kuecker has implemented innovative solutions to mutually benefit their students’ education and employers. Aaron will speak on the innovative solutions that Trinity Christian College has implemented to mutually benefit their students, higher education, and employers through the creation of scalable, economically productive, and permanent upstream solutions that support career pathways and wealth building.
Shannon D. Fuller
Vice President of Talent Solutions, Health Care Service Corporation
A leader and innovator in linking business decisions with people strategies, Shannon Fuller has built a career exemplified by excellence in partnering with all business areas to bring about effective change. He considers himself a fully immersed business partner but also someone who understands HR exceptionally well. Shannon’s HR career commenced after a chance meeting and unexpected opportunity.
After being offered the chance to shadow a mentor in HR, he was hooked. This led to a highly successful 15-year tenure at Pepsico’s Yum Brands division, where he was promoted multiple times to drive major HR initiatives and business strategies. And he hasn’t looked back! In fact, in every leadership position he’s held over the past 20+ years, Shannon has championed HR innovation. At Pepsico, he was one of the leaders who launched a new business training model that still prospers today. At BestBuy, Shannon spearheaded the revitalization of Sup University – a learning and development program for frontline leaders – which eventually brought him to Chicago to oversee a $600M division where his staffing strategy resulted in a 30% spike in sales. Additional HR leadership successes include re-shaping an HR business partner model for Walgreens, which redefined how HR walked alongside the business. Similarly, for BlueCross Blue Shield of Illinois, Shannon reshaped the enterprise’s HR business partner model as a senior HR leader while fostering relationships with colleges across Illinois to establish a new internship program.
Known for his energy, enthusiasm, and forward-thinking strategies, Shannon’s HR career has advanced him into roles at large, global brands across various industries. He has worked for major Fortune 50 and Fortune 250 companies and directed large-scale HR initiatives spanning succession planning, leadership training, organizational design, and workforce planning for companies with 200k+ employees.
Over the years, Shannon’s passion for HR, business strategy, and employees has never wavered. He thrives at orchestrating successes ‘behind the scenes,’ deftly supporting and enabling critical business decisions. In addition, Shannon is an executive coach with Lee Hecht Harrison executive coaching firm and sits on several boards including Girls Scouts for Chicagoland and NW Indiana and Utmost U. Shannon holds both an undergrad and graduate degree in Business Administration.
Beyond his talent for sitting with all aspects of business and innovating HR offerings, Shannon is immensely proud of his people-centric efforts. He strives to transform cultures through corporate-wide people strategies and employee engagement. Ultimately, Shannon feels that employees make business possible, so integrating people strategies into business strategies is critical to helping companies grow and develop. In his recent work as an HR executive for Centene, the largest Medicaid insurer in the US, Shannon has overseen the Midwest’s complete HR strategy while guiding business leaders through the pandemic. Now back at HCSC (Blue Cross Blue Shield) Shannon is navigating the organization through ambiguity, challenge, and change, he also leads the company’s enterprise talent and workforce strategy end to end.
Shannon’s affinity for identifying barriers, stretching ideas into new concepts, and fostering partnerships in business has grown him a reputation for being strategic and forward-thinking. His goal as an executive leader is to equip both organizations and people with tactics that bring about effective change.
Marie Trzupek Lynch
Chief People Officer, Morningstar
Marie Trzupek Lynch is the chief people officer at Morningstar. Lynch leads Morningstar’s global people and culture team responsible for scaling its talent strategy and operations, building an inclusive culture, overseeing the DEI strategy, and driving a world class employee experience for all Morningstar employees.
Lynch brings a passion for developing innovative talent strategies for Fortune 500 companies and a flair for entrepreneurship. She is recognized as a results-driven executive that has grown organizations from inception with a track record of building high performing teams. She previously served as the founding president and CEO for Skills for Chicagoland’s Future, a nationally recognized nonprofit that partners with companies to create equal access to jobs and economic mobility. She worked with its Board of Directors to expand the organization into multiple cities in the United States. Prior to Skills, she spent eight years working for the YMCA of Chicago and the National YMCA of the USA in executive roles in human services and operations. Lynch has also worked at Deloitte in the consulting practice and in the City of Chicago Mayor’s Office.
Lynch attended the University of Illinois-Champaign, where she was awarded the 2018 LAS Alumni Humanitarian Award, and holds a master’s degree in public policy from the University of Chicago.
Toby Eveland
Chicago Managing Partner, Saul Ewing LLP
With successes in state, federal, and appellate courts across the country, Toby Eveland is a skilled litigator that clients often retain when their reputation is on the line and when they are involved in high-profile cases that could affect their viability.
Toby’s nationwide litigation practice focuses on three main areas: higher education, municipal and government, and complex business disputes. He works across numerous industries and handles matters involving a range of issues such as class action defense, tort defense, employment, real estate finance, and shareholder disputes. Given his results-oriented approach and national recognition, Toby is often retained when the stakes are the highest. In 2024 he successfully defended clients in claims that sought in excess of $275 million.
In addition to his work in the courtroom, clients retain Toby because of his servant leadership, customized team-building approach, and commitment to excellence and client service. He also is a passionate civil rights advocate and regular speaker and panelists at conferences.
* Discounted hotel accommodations are available for the night of April 9th at Arlo Chicago, located at 168 N. Michigan Ave., Chicago, IL 60601. Please reserve your room online using this link and enter the promo code JENEVIEVE, to unlock room rates starting at $150 plus taxes. Prices are subject to change depending on availability.
*Self-parking is available at the Government Center Parking Garage located at181 N. Clark St., Chicago, IL 60601. Reserve your $20 spot online using this link.Please note that garage entrance is between 5 a.m. and 9 a.m. Prices are also subject to change depending on availability.
Associated Colleges of Illinois is a 501(c)(3) organization.
