Civic Leadership Academy (CLA) fellows are at the helm of critical fights against a global pandemic. The subsequent economic fallout is further widening existing economic gaps and magnifying structural and systemic biases within our policymaking institutions which ultimately shape our Chicago community.
In the midst of these critical fights, these fellows are leveraging and activating the entire CLA network in coalition efforts to effect broad-scale change. CLA is the critical linchpin—bridging fellows on the frontline of movements at the intersections of health, economic, and racial justice.
As a native of the Chicagoland region, Dean Constantinou (CLA’20) has seen the power and influence of money and capital in Chicago. “Funding is often disproportionately allocated to those who do not have the greatest need,” Constantinou said.
“Economic inequality is an increasingly pervasive threat to our community,” he continued. “It exacerbates racial tensions and is perpetuated by those that benefit from the system. If left unchecked and unrecognized, income and wealth inequality will degrade the social fabric of our society and our democracy.”
Constantinou has over ten years of experience within the finance and budgeting departments of various public-facing organizations in the Chicagoland area, including Cubic and the Regional Transportation Authority. When Constantinou joined the CLA program, he had been working at the Cook County Bureau of Finance for just over 4 years.
The division focuses on the use of statistical analysis and econometric modeling to drive the decision-making process and is responsible for financial forecasting and ad-hoc business analysis. Within this work, Constantinou is deeply aware of historical financial decisions which have exacerbated social and economic inequalities.
A main draw to the CLA program for Constantinou was the opportunity to expand his network, understand financial operations from new perspectives and sectors, and bridge his personal and professional vision with the Bureau’s work and mission.
In his current role as the Manager of Financial Planning and Analysis, Constantinou is responsible for the short- and long-term forecasting of Cook County’s $6.2 billion in revenues and expenses and supports the analytical needs of the Chief Financial Officer within the County’s Bureau of Finance.
CLA provided Constantinou with courses on strategic leadership, organizational management and accountability, mission oriented communication, and using data to advance policy making taught by renowned UChicago faculty and Chicago civic leaders.
Constantinou leveraged these courses and network connections to more intentionally align his professional vision with his organization’s vision. He focuses closely on community impact and stakeholder assessment, while implementing a lens of equity and historical context, to develop financial models that will sustain individuals and communities.
In the wake of COVID-19, the 2020 CLA cohort experienced a drastic shift. Upon return from their global practicum trip to Paris, France, in March 2020, fellows were ushered into quarantine to prevent further exposure to COVID-19.
To address these sudden new challenges, CLA launched the COVID-19 Collaboratory Initiative at the end of March, which invited CLA alumni from all cohort years to present on challenges raised by the global health pandemic and solicit ideas and best practices.
The six-week initiative engaged over 200 attendees in conversations ranging from expanding internet access for low-income individuals, racial equity in health care, resources for virtual learning in Chicago public schools, building and maintaining employee wellness, updates on new judicial system processes in a virtual time, and many others. There are few spaces like this where high-level civic leaders can engage and learn within such an active and influential community.
Constantinou was one of the first fellows to lead a discussion during the CLA COVID-19 Collaboratory Session. His presentation covered institutional financial forecasting during economic uncertainty.
Constantinou used feedback and insights gained from the COVID-19 Collaboratory Sessions as he took on the role as lead architect for the Cook County CARES Act allocation strategy, published in mid-July. Constantinou recognized this as an opportunity to allocate relief funds in a more equitable way and made strategic recommendations to Cook County’s distribution process.
In collaboration with the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning (CMAP) and using insights gained from friends across CLA cohorts and industry colleagues in Cook County, Constantinou built a need-based model for equitable funding distribution. Significant weights were applied to allocation consideration for economically disadvantaged areas, taking into account need-based metrics such as median income data and historical disinvestment in different Chicago communities.
“I would not have been comfortable making that recommendation if not for the leadership training and connections I received from CLA,” Constantinou said.
“The CLA program has had a profound and positive impact on Dean’s personal and professional development,” said Cook County Chief Financial Officer Ammar Rizki. “Dean has done a remarkable job applying the lessons received through CLA to develop a first-of-its kind model to equitably distribute relief money to local governments. CLA’s world class training and guidance played an important role in this important effort to address historic inequities in Cook County.”
The allocation plan has been received well by Cook County, and over $51 million has already been allocated across municipalities through this process. Cook County plans to distribute another $82 million using Coronavirus Relief Fund (CRF) dollars. We are seeing some of the largest impact for small businesses in the historically underserved South and West sides, which serve predominantly Black and Latinx Chicago residents.
Constantinou credits some of his success to his cohort experience. “CLA is having a $133 million impact for small businesses and local communities in this instance, but the overall positive impact of the CLA program on the broader Chicago community is priceless.”