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PROPOSED RESOLUTION
HONORING MAUREEN McDONNELL
WHEREAS, Maureen McDonnell is stepping down as Executive Director of PEER Services effective January 7, 2022. Maureen McDonnell has been a passionate advocate for the health, needs, and rights of vulnerable populations including people with mental illness and substance use disorder for over 25 years. She received her bachelor’s degree from Northwestern University and a master’s degree in Public Health from the University of Illinois at Chicago, School of Public Health; and
WHEREAS, Maureen began her service with PEER Services as its Executive Director on June 12, 2017. PEER Services is a 501(c)(3) organization whose mission is to eliminate substance use and the problems it causes for individuals, families, and communities through collaborative, high-quality prevention and treatment services. They have provided community-based substance abuse prevention and treatment services to residents of Evanston, Northfield, New Trier, Maine and Niles Townships, and the north side of Chicago since 1975. PEER uses interdisciplinary teams of professionals to provide a holistic approach to treatment, recognizing that substance use can impact a person’s body, mind, and spirit; and
WHEREAS, prior to joining PEER Services, she served as National Director for Health Care Initiatives for TASC, Inc. (Treatment Alternatives for Safe Communities), which advocates for alternatives to incarceration and community reentry services for people with substance use and mental health disorders. TASC serves more than 18,000 individuals and families in Illinois each year. Prior to serving as National Director for Health Care Initiatives, she was TASC’s Director for Business & Health Care Strategy Development. During her tenure with TASC, McDonnell designed and implemented a ground-breaking collaboration among the courts, jail, health system, community providers and funders to fully leverage the Affordable Care Act to increase public health and reduce recidivism. Her many other accomplishments include developing innovative interventions that expanded access to Medicaid and health services for individuals at the point of release from Cook County Jail and other jails across the U.S. Through her efforts in designing infrastructure and systems for safe reentry into community services for people leaving jails with mental illness and substance use disorders, more than 150,000 detainees will be impacted annually; and
WHEREAS, Maureen is recognized as a national expert on building bridges between the behavioral health and justice systems, using Medicaid, Medicare, and other public health care funding. Her work to align these systems has expanded opportunities for people to access these services to avoid being incarcerated and to establish durable recovery in the community; and
WHEREAS, Maureen is the author of numerous articles and policy papers that have formed the foundation for key policy changes and programs at the state-wide and national levels. She has presented at more than 50 national, state, and local conferences, and planning sessions about leveraging the Affordable Care Act to accomplish justice reform. She has spoken at multiple events on the Opioid Epidemic including the City Club of Chicago in 2017.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the Board of Commissioners of Cook County, on behalf of the 5.2 million residents of Cook County honors the work and contributions of Maureen McDonnell, and herewith expresses its sincere gratitude for the invaluable contributions she has made to the Citizens of Cook County, Illinois; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a suitable copy of this Resolution be spread upon the official proceedings of this Honorable Body and that an official copy of the same be tendered to Maureen McDonnell.
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