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Kilts Center Leadership

The Kilts Center leadership team comprises our founder and namesake, top marketing faculty at Booth, and staff. We are committed to pushing the marketing conversation forward at Booth and cultivating new opportunities for engagement, enrichment, and growth for Booth students, alumni, and the general business community.

James M. Kilts, ’74, Founder

Founding Partner, Centerview Capital

Jim Kilts is a founding partner of the private equity firm Centerview Capital and currently chairman of the board of Advantage Solutions, chairman of The Simply Good Foods Company, and a member of the board of directors of Unifi, Inc., and Viatris Inc. He served as chairman of the board, CEO, and President of Gillette before it merged with the Procter & Gamble Company. Prior to Gillette, Mr. Kilts served as President and CEO of Nabisco until its acquisition by the Philip Morris Companies. His book, Doing What Matters, reflects on his business experiences.

Arthur Middlebrooks, ’88, Executive Director

Clinical Professor of Marketing

A management consultant and trainer, Art helps service companies grow through new product and service development, branding, and effective marketing strategies. His clients include Bank of America, BP/Amoco, Hewitt Associates, and IBM Consulting Group. Art is the coauthor of two books, Innovating the Corporation and Market Leadership Strategies for Service Companies.

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Jean-Pierre Dubé, Faculty Director

James M. Kilts Distinguished Service Professor of Marketing

A faculty research associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research, Jean-Pierre has published numerous papers on quantitative marketing and empirical industrial organization. He’s the recipient of the 2008 Paul E. Green Award for best paper in the Journal of Marketing Research, the 2005 Faculty Teaching Excellence Award, and several research grants.

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Katie Claussen Bell

Senior Director and COO

As Director and COO at the Kilts Center, Katie oversees day-to-day operations, guides strategy, and manages a multitude of projects aimed at supporting the Chicago Booth’s marketing community. For more than a decade, she has worked closely with faculty, students, and alumni with an interest in marketing, general management, technology, and more.

Prior to her role at Chicago Booth, Katie was a research analyst and project specialist at Chapin Hall at the University of Chicago where she worked on a variety of social policy research projects focused on topics including community development, foster care, and juvenile recidivism.

She launched her professional career at CNA Insurance, where she worked in corporate marketing and communications.

Katie is a 2023 MBA candidate in the Evening MBA program at Chicago Booth. In addition, she holds a BA in sociology from Saint Mary’s College (Notre Dame, Indiana) and a master of arts in sociology from Loyola University Chicago.

Kilts Center Staff

Samreen Imami

Senior Associate Director, Events

Samreen has a background in communications, management, and marketing, with expertise in imaging and design. She has taught courses in multimedia design and developed creative solutions throughout her career in industries such as marketing, tech, education, and healthcare. Before joining the Kilts Center, she managed a primary care clinic, where she enhanced patient relations and development.

Heather McGuire

Senior Associate Director, Data Center Operations

Heather has a long history with the University of Chicago, helping elevate research projects and communication efforts for Chapin Hall and the Research Computing Center before joining the Kilts Center team. Previously, she worked in the Provost Office at Valparaiso University, International Affairs, where she spearheaded the restructuring of the Confucius Institute, optimizing project and budget resource management.

Heather earned her bachelor’s degree in Business Management from Western Governors University and her MBA degree from Valparaiso University.

Maureen St George

Associate Director, Communications and Marketing

Maureen’s background is in internal communications and English as a Second Language education. She has extensive experience creating and deploying communications strategies in the travel, fashion, education, and professional services industries. Before joining the Kilts Center, she managed internal and corporate communications for a Top 20 accounting firm.

Flora Alvarado

Assistant Director, Kilts Center

Flora has a background in event planning and student engagement. Prior to joining the Kilts team, she worked with the residence life departments at Lewis University and Arizona State University. In her roles, she directed student leaders on managing new student housing orientation, conflict resolution, and monthly event planning and implementation. She also spearheaded event budgets, crisis management, diverse department collaboration, and event promotion.

Flora earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing and Social Media Marketing followed by her Master of Arts in Organizational Leadership with a focus in Higher Education from Lewis University.

Riley Langefeld

Assistant Director, Data Center Operations

Riley has a background in communications, writing, and political work. He also has experience as a law clerk and an academic research analyst. Before joining the Kilts Center, he worked as a beat journalist and news editor at a daily newspaper, where he covered state and local government.

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