The Board of Directors is elected by the membership at the Land Conservancy of Lake County Annual Meeting. Directors are elected for 3-year terms with staggered terms to retain stability within the Board of Directors. According to LCLC's bylaws, the Board of Directors may consist of a minimum of three and a maximum of seven Directors. The Board is comprised of a group of well-qualified individuals with a willingness to promote the efforts of LCLC by serving as Directors. The Land Conservancy of Lake County is also fortunate to have a number of other consultants, among them biologists, soil scientists, engineers, and other professionals and educators available to assist our organization with specific project.

2005 BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Sean S. Wiedel, President
Steve Rauch, Vice President
Betty Ann Ralston, Secretary
Jeff Koziel, Treasurer
Tim Phelan, Director
Peter Winkler, Director
Fran Metzger, Director

Sean Wiedel
B.S., University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Finance
M.S., University of Wisconsin - Madison, Water Resources Management
Sean has been a member of the LCLC Board since 1997 and has been President for the last two years. Sean works as a watershed planner with the Lake County Stormwater Management Commission (SMC). His lovely and talented wife maintains the LCLC website.

Steve Rauch
B.A., Northeastern Illinois University, Environmental Studies
Steve Rauch has been a member of the Land Conservancy of Lake County since 2000, and Vice President since 2001. He currently works as an Environmental Scientist with Hey and Associates, Inc. and his duties include wetland delineations, tree surveys, threatened and endangered species surveys, stream inventories, and farm drain tile investigations. Steve is a Certified Wetland Specialist in Lake County, as well as a Lake County Forest Preserve Steward, and his hobbies include running, biking, bird watching and just about anything that takes him outside. He grew up in Park Ridge, Illinois and now resides in Libertyville with his wife, Naomi, and their new daughter, Emily.

Betty Ann Ralston
B.A., University of Illinois-Urbana,Anthropology/Urban Planning
Betty Ann Ralson has been a member of the Land Conservancy of Lake County for twelve years, and currently serves as Secretary. She has worked for many years at the Northeastern Illinois Planning Commission in a financial and
administrative capacity.

Jeff Koziel
B.S., Northern Illinois University, Geography (emphasis on natural resources)
Jeff Koziel is one of the founding members of the Land Conservancy of Lake County and has been an officer and member of the Board of Directors since the group's inception in 1989. Jeff is a natural resources consultant who works in the environmental field specializing in design/build services for bio-engineered streambanks, shorelines, and slope stabilization. Additional background includes natural resource protection, soil erosion and sediment control, land use, stormwater management, and public education.

Tim Phelan
B.S., Geology
Tim Phelan has been an LCLC Director since 1997. He has been employed as an Environmental Inspector since 1988. Tim's areas of interest include wetlands and land management activities including acquisition, restoration, and enhancement.

Peter Winkler
B.S., Northeastern Illinois University, Biology
M.S., Eastern Illinois University, Environmental Biology
Pete Winkler has been a member of the Land Conservancy of Lake County since 1994. The first graduate student to complete the MS degree program in Environmental Biology from Eastern Illinois University, he worked in preserve management and research for the Illinois Natural History Survey as part of the degree requirements. He subsequently worked in a regulatory career with the County of Lake, Department of Building and Zoning, Environmental Control Division. Pete has gained broad experience working within his own consulting business and also as a project manager for Integrated Lakes Management, a regional consulting and environmental management firm. Throughout this progression Pete has held down Adjunct Instructor positions with Oakton Community College, College of Lake County, and Columbia College of Missouri-Lake County Extension site. In February of 2000 Pete accepted a position with Abbott Laboratories as a validation scientist, doing groundbreaking work in the construction of scientific approaches to quality manufacturing regulation. Pete grew up in Chicago's northern suburbs and resides in Lake County with his wife, son, and daughter.

Fran Metzger, CPESC
B.A., Northeastern Illinois University, Geography/Anthropolgy
M.A., Northeastern Illinois University, Physical Geography
Fran has been an LCLC member since 1991 and Director since 1993. She has spent the last 14 years working for the County of Lake, and currently is an Environmental Inspector. Certified as a Professional in Erosion and Sediment Control, she is also a member of the Soil & Water Conservation Society and the International Erosion Control Association. She has 3 sons, 3 grandchildren, and a black lab named Corrie.