Meet Our Board Members

Darrell Jefferson   

became involved in unions because His mother served as a union steward and he saw actions taken in his work place that were not in the best interest of the membership. Darrell began his union journey as an employee of Illinois Bell Telephone Company where he advanced to the position of Executive Vice President. Darrell transitioned to the Chicago Transit Authority and quickly moved up the ranks and  served  in various positions from Warden to President of the Amalgamated Transit Union Local 241. Darrell also served as chair and co-chair of the Chicago Transit Authority's retirement plan where he secured over $1B to repair the retirement plan that was scheduled to become insolvent in 2010. Darrell has over 30 years of experience in labor relations, arbitration, negotiating labor contracts, and side agreements. Darrell currently serves as second ward alderman in the city of Crest Hill Illinois where he resides and sits on three executive boards.

John Worthy   

is the CEO of Spartan General Contracting LLC a Disadvantaged Business Enterprise, Minority Business Enterprise and certified service-disabled veteran business. He has been a licensed city of Chicago general contractor for eight years. He has also worked in commercial mortgage financing for 25 years as a commercial mortgage broker. John served four years on active duty in the United States Army as a member of a nuclear missile launch crew in Germany during the height of the cold war and two years as a Reservist in the Illinois National Guard. He has also served as the state commander for the National Association of Black Veterans and as a platoon leader for The Mission Continues. He currently sits on the board of several veteran non-profits that provide food and housing for homeless veterans in and around Chicago Illinois.   

Nathaniel Scurlock served three years active duty in the United States Army and six years as a Reservist in the Illinois Army National Guard. Nathaniel was employed by the Chicago Transit Authority for 28 years and during his employment served three consecutive terms as an Executive Board Member of the Amalgamated Transit Union for Local 241. Nathaniel is also co-founder and President of the Board of Directors of the Black Caucus Chicago Chapter.  Nathaniel attended Olive-Harvey College and later transferred to Southern Illinois University at Carbondale where he obtained a Bachlor of Science in Architecture Technology. Nathaniel is married and the proud father of seven children, 10 grandchildren and one great grandchild.

Valerie Allen served as the Director of Retirement and Survivor Benefits for the Railroad Retirement Board, a federal agency that administers unemployment, sickness, retirement and survivor benefits to the nations railroad workers and their families. With 35 years of federal experience, Valerie managed a $13B annuity fund for over 500,000 beneficiaries. Valerie has over 10 years of experience in labor relations and negotiations and served as the management representative and negotiated a nationwide Collective Bargaining Agreement with the American Federation of Government Employees. Valerie holds both a Bachelor and a Master of Arts degree from Purdue University.