Executive Director and Treasurer of the Field Foundation of Illinois, where she is responsible for over sixty million dollars in foundation assets. Ms. Pennick has a BA and MA in the Administration of Criminal Justice from the University of Illinois at Chicago and a JD from John Marshall. She has held positions at the Chicago Community Trust and the John D. and Catherine MacArthur Foundation. She was also the Managing Attorney Administration for the Chicago Transit Authority’s Legal Department. Before returning to philanthropy, Aurie was the president and CEO of the Leadership Council for Metropolitan Open Communities, founded by Dr. King in 1966. She co-authored an article on affordable housing in the book New Chicago published by Temple Press. Aurie was invited by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to be a panelist at their national conference in observance of the 40th anniversary of the passage of the Fair Housing Act. Aurie serves on the board of trustees of the Field Museum, Rush University Medical Center and the Adler School of Psychology. She is a member of the Economic Club and the Commercial Club of Chicago. A native Chicagoan, Aurie has two multi-talented daughters Faith and Keidra.