Senior Municipal Staff

Kevin J. Jackson became the Village Manager in March 2022. His career in local government spans 25 years. Prior to assuming his role as Oak Park’s Village Manager, he had served for more than four years as Deputy City Manager of Long Beach, California. Kevin also spent more than nine years as Neighborhood Services Director for the City of Champaign, Illinois, after serving in progressive roles in city governments in Arizona.

Education: Master of Public Administration and Bachelor's degrees in Psychology and Sociology from Arizona State University.

Notable Professional Activities/Affiliations: International City Managers Association (ICMA); National Forum for Black Public Administrators.

Lisa Shelley's career in municipal government has spanned two decades, including city management positions with the Village of Lake Bluff, Village of Barrington and Village of Woodridge. She joined the Village of Oak Park as assistant to the Public Works Director in January 1998. She was promoted to Assistant to the Village Manager in September 2000, then promoted to the position of Deputy Village Manager in December 2003. She was named Interim Village Manager in August 2021, a post she held through March 21, 2021.

Education: Masters of Public Administration in City Management from Northern Illinois University in DeKalb; Bachelor of Political Science from Lake Forest College.

Notable Professional Activities/Affiliations: International City Managers Association (ICMA); Illinois City Manager’s Association (ILCMA) and served on various ILCMA committees such as State Conference(s) Committee, Professional Development, Chairperson of Diversity and Membership; also member of Illinois Association of Municipal Management Assistants (IAMMA) and served on various IAMMA Committees such as Professional Development and Training Committee.

Ahmad Zayyad joined the Village in February 2021 as the Deputy Village Manager. He has more than eight years of experience in government administration overseeing organizational-wide initiatives, project management, budgeting, contract management, policy development, data analysis, RFP/BID development, grant funding coordination, identifying and implementing performance measures and opportunities for process improvements enhancements to increase Return on Investments (ROI).

Prior to joining the Oak Park team, he worked as the Risk Manager/Assistant to the Village Manager in the Village of Orland Park. After completing his graduate studies, he began his career in city management with the City Manager’s Office in the City of Evanston.

Education: Master’s Degree in Public Administration with a concentration in Local Government Management from the University of Illinois Chicago, multiple Lean Six Sigma Certifications from Northern Illinois University, and a Bachelor’s Degree in Industrial/Organizational Psychology from Governors State University.

Notable Professional Activities/Affiliations: International City Managers Association (ICMA); Illinois City Manager’s Association (ILCMA); Illinois Association of Municipal Management Assistants (IAMMA); and also a Board Member of the GIS Consortium Board which includes over 35 regional communities.

Jonathan Burch is a housing policy and planning expert with extensive knowledge of federal, state and local approaches. He was named Neighborhood Services Director/Assistant Village Manager in June 2024. Prior to coming to the Village, Burch worked for the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning (CMAP). As a Principal Planner for CMAP, Burch managed a large portfolio of grants, research and technical assistance projects, including all housing technical assistance. He worked on several important projects, including Regional Housing Solutions, Homes for a Changing Region and the Regional Housing Initiative. Between those three developments, Burch and his team were awarded $1.7 million in funding to support work being done. Additionally, he oversaw the launch of CMAP’s Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) technical assistance program and secured $3 million in funding from the State of Illinois within the first nine months of launch. Prior to his work with CMAP, Burch worked as a Senior Planner with the Lake County Community Development Division, and an Associate Planner and Senior Planner with Heyer, Gruel & Associates.

Education: Masters of City and Regional Planning from Rutgers: The State University of New Jersey; Bachelor of Arts in History and Econonics from St. Olaf College.

Notable Professional Activities/Affiliations: American Institute of Certified Planners, American Planning Association.

Emily Egan was named Development Services Director in February 2024. She arrived in Oak Park with extensive experience in municipal government. Starting in 2021 she served as the Director of Community Development for the Village of Brookfield. In that role she has led Joint Review Board meetings for the community’s four Tax Incremental Financing (TIF) districts, directed the transition of Code Enforcement activities to focus on life safety and community service and implemented innovative policies to support the local business community. In her capacity with nearby Brookfield, she also served on the Executive Board for Visit Oak Park, the state-certified convention and visitors bureau for Western Cook County. Prior to returning to Brookfield, where she also served as the Village Planner for three years beginning in 2015, Egan worked as the Assistant City Planner for the City of Elmhurst from 2018-21. She worked closely with both the City Council and Zoning and Planning Commission, while also leading the implementation of Elmhurst’s sustainability plan and the accompanying educational efforts. Egan has also served as a trainer for plan commissions with DePaul University’s Chaddick Institute, American Planning Association Illinois (APA-IL) and Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning (CMAP), providing training on zoning, land use law, ethics and economic development.

Education: Master of Urban Planning and Policy degree from UIC with a concentration in economic development; Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Studies from Grand Valley State University

Notable Professional Activities/Affiliations: American Institute of Certified Planners.

Dan Yopchick was named Chief Communications Officer in October 2022. Prior to arriving at the Village, Yopchick served as Senior Associate Athletic Director of Strategic Communications with the University of Illinois Chicago. His 15-year communications career prior to coming to Oak Park also included communications roles with Northwestern University, the Chicago White Sox and the Bakersfield Blitz. 

Education: Master’s degree from Northwestern University; Bachelor’s degree from the University of Iowa.

Ronald Kobyleski became Fire Chief in December 2021. A veteran of the Oak Park Fire Department since 1985, Chief Kobyleski had served as an interim Fire Chief since April 2021 following the retirement of his predecessor. He had been Deputy Fire Chief since July 2020. Ron has held every rank available in the Oak Park Fire Department, including 10 years as a Battalion Chief and five years as the department’s Training Officer. He has been a certified Fire Investigator, Hazardous-Materials Technician, Technical Rescue in building collapse, high rise rescue, trench rescue and confined space rescue. He also was the Mutual Aid Box Alarm System (MABAS) Division 11 Hazardous Materials and Technical Rescue Team leader for nine years.

Education: State of Illinois Fire Marshal certified Advance Fire Officer, State Fire Marshal Certified Training Program Manager, Study done in architectural design and building construction. 

Notable Professional Activities/Affiliations: International Fire Chief’s Association; Illinois Fire Chiefs Association; National Fire Protection Association.

Shatonya Johnson was named Chief of Police in October 2022. She joined the Oak Park Police Department in 2000 as a patrol officer and rose steadily through the ranks to serve as a neighborhood resource officer, juvenile specialist, detective, sergeant and commander, deputy chief and interim chief. She was promoted to Deputy Police Chief in October 2020 after serving as detective commander. Prior to arriving in Oak Park, Johnson served in a variety of public service roles including as a case manager with the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services, a correctional officer at the Will County Jail, and a patrol officer for the Cook County Forest Preserves.

Education: Masters in Organizational Behavior/Organizational Development from Benedictine University. Bachelors in Law Enforcement Administration from Western Illinois University. A graduate of the Public Safety Staff and Command School at Northwestern University and the Senior Management Institute of Police in Boston.

Rob Sproule is a longtime public servant who became Pubic Works Director in July 2022. He served as the Village’s Assistant Public Works Director from 2020-2022, sharing in management responsibility for all Public Works services and activities. He was first hired at the Village in 2014 as Forestry Superintendent overseeing Oak Park’s urban forestry management program. Prior to his work at the Village he was a Conservatory Arborist at the Chicago Park District from 2012-2014 and Senior Horticulturist for the City of Chicago from 2009-2012.

Education: Bachelor of Arts Degree from Fordham University; Master of Forestry Degree from the University of Maine. Certified Public Works Professional in Management through the American Public Works Association. Board Certified Master Arborist through the International Society of Arboriculture.

Notable Professional Activities/Affiliations: Chairperson of the Illinois Urban and Community Forestry Committee and member of the Illinois Forestry Development Council and Chicago Region Trees Initiative Executive Advisory Council.

Kira Tchang has been supporting and leading human resources teams since 2007. She most recently served as the Chief People Officer for Civitas Education Partners, where she managed human resources and talent strategy for over 300 employees and contractors, with a particular focus on labor relations. Prior to that she held a number of HR roles with the United Neighborhood Organization of Chicago, including serving as the Director of Human Resources where she oversaw the HR needs for over 750 employees throughout the city of Chicago. She began her HR career in Community Unit School District 300, located in the northwest suburbs. Kira lives in Oak Park with her husband and three children.

Education: Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Northern Illinois University

Notable Professional Activities/Affiliations: Certified Crucial Conversations and Crucial Accountability Trainer, Society of Human Resources Management (SHRM) Certified Professionals.

Alvin Nepomuceno has served in local government since April 1990. His past positions have included Systems Analyst with the City of Highland Park from April 1990 to April 1998. He joined the Village of Oak Park as its first Director of Information Technology to modernize, centralize and integrate the Village’s technological systems.

Education: Bachelor of Science in Management Information Systems from DePaul University.

Notable Professional Activities/Affiliations: Member of Government Management Information Sciences International.

Danielle Walker, PhD, became the first person to hold the position of Chief Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Officer when she joined the Village in August 2022. Before coming to Oak Park, Dr. Walker most recently served as Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Administrator for the City and County of Denver-City Attorney’s Office. Her professional background includes serving as a Policy Advisor for the Colorado Department of Health Care, Policy and Finance with a focus on equity within the disability community. She has nearly a decade of experience researching strategies around diversity, equity and inclusion plans for a wide range of industries. Dr. Walker's accomplishments include being the founder of the Racism Lives Here initiative for higher education and receiving the 47^th NAACP Image Chairman’s Award for activism.

Education: PhD in Philosophy with a concentration on critical social issues in education from the University of Colorado-Denver, Master's degree in public affairs from the University of Missouri and Bachelor of Arts degree in interdisciplinary studies from the University of Missouri.

Lindsey Roland Nieratka is a leader in developing and implementing climate-focused sustainability programs. She spent much of her professional career in Florida prior to arrival in Oak Park, including her most recent position as Sustainability Manager for the City of Boca Raton, Fla. There, she meticulously developed sustainability plans and strategies for the community that covers five miles of Atlantic coastline from the ground up. Similarly, Roland Nieratka was the first person to work as the Environmental Sustainability Coordinator in the City of Hollywood, a suburb of Miami. She held that role for more than two and a half years, beginning in 2015. In addition to her extensive municipal background, Roland Nieratka is a founding member of the Coastal Resilience Partnership of Palm Beach County. This multi-jurisdictional team collaborated on a regional Climate Change Vulnerability Assessment, policy development drafts, grant applications and programming. Roland Nieratka is an experienced educator, too, having spent more than 15 years in higher education. Since 2012, she has been an Adjunct Environmental Science Instructor at American Intercontinental University. Previously, she served as a teaching assistant, and later as an adjunct instructor, in the Environmental Studies program at Florida International University from 2009-2012.

Education:  Roland Nieratka earned Bachelor of Arts degrees in biology and anthropology from Knox College in Galesburg, Ill. in 2003. She later studied abroad in Australia, obtaining a graduate diploma of science in tropical ecology from James Cook University with the aid of a Rotary Ambassadorial Scholarship. She received a Master of Science in environmental studies from Florida International University, where she earned an Academic Excellence Award. She recently completed coursework through Harvard University in Executive Education for Sustainability Leadership.

Notable Professional Activities/Affiliations: Member of International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives (ICLEI) and the Southeast Sustainability Directors Network.