Suellen Burns is a versatile public service professional in the arts, environmental, and urban planning fields with 25 years of experience in program development and assessment, community engagement, communications, marketing, fundraising, finance, executive leadership, and grantmaking. She currently serves as senior advisor -
Urban Communities & Partnerships for the
Illinois Department of Natural Resources. Her previous work has included roles with – among many others –
Arts Bridge (the nation’s first business incubator for the arts),
Friends of the Chicago River,
Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelley Foundation,
Illinois Conservation Foundation, and
South Chicago Art Center. She earned a bachelor of fine arts degree from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and a master of science degree in leadership and policy studies from
DePaul University. As part of DePaul’s School of Public Service, she studied urban planning and community development in Curitiba, Brazil and ethical leadership in public policy in Bogotá, Colombia. Suellen is a seasoned author, editor, School of Public Service adjunct, and public speaker as well as a reviewer for numerous local and regional funding programs.