BOARD PRESIDENT

Eleni Vrettos is a dedicated educator and leader with a deep commitment to arts-integrated learning. She graduated from Elmhurst University in 2015 and began her teaching career at Spring Wood Middle School in Keeneyville District 20 as a 7th grade Language Arts teacher.

In 2018, Eleni earned her Master’s in Educational Technology Leadership from Concordia University and taught the first-ever middle school cohort in ARTSiE’s Literacy Through the Arts (LTA) summer program. She returned the following summer to teach again and later stepped into a leadership role, directing ARTSiE’s summer school program in both 2021 and 2022.

A passionate advocate for literacy and the arts, Eleni presented ARTSiE programming at the Illinois Reading Conference in both 2022 and 2023. That same year, she joined the ARTSiE Board as President, a role she continues to hold with vision and heart. In 2023, she completed her second Master's in Principal Leadership from Concordia University.

After eight wonderful years in District 20, Eleni returned to her roots and joined Cicero District 99 as the Dean of Students at Unity Jr. High School—her alma mater.

SECRETARY

Christen Park is a community psychologist and education researcher at SRI International as a content-area expert in early childhood education, workforce development, and child development. In her current role, she conducts program evaluation and research to support program implementation, document and measure impact, and work with organizations to learn about their communities —particularly through mixed-methods and community-engaged research approaches. She partners with state agencies, nonprofits, and educational programs to create meaningful, lasting change for children and families.

Her deep appreciation for the role of the arts in child development made joining ARTSiE’s board a natural fit. She strongly believes in the power of community-based approaches and in using the arts as a bridge to support children’s social-emotional growth, literacy, and thriving. Through her service on the board, she hopes to contribute her evaluation expertise to help ARTSiE document, evaluate, and amplify the impact of its work in the communities it serves.

TREASURER

Bio coming soon!