Board of Directors

Caryn Jacobs, President
Caryn Jacobs is a long-time Board member and supporter of The Newberry Consort. She is a retired partner of Winston & Strawn LLP and an active supporter of her late husband’s foundation, The Mordechai Kaplan Center for Jewish Peoplehood.

James Fackenthal, Secretary
Jim Fackenthal began performing on several instruments with the University of Chicago Early Music Ensemble under the direction of The Newberry Consort in 2005. He joined the Board of Directors in 2010 and currently serves as Secretary. Jim is a professor of Biological Sciences at Benedictine University where he studies the molecular genetics of cancer.

Karen Webb Owen, Treasurer
Karen Webb Owen holds degrees in Sociology and Mathematics from the University of California, Davis. An accomplished singer, she has studied with Elsa Charlston and Ellen Hargis. She is a retired Member of the Technical Staff of Bell Laboratories where she held positions in Quality Assurance, Systems Engineering, and Product Management.

Frederick N. Bates

Linda Kroning

Susan M. Griffin
Susan M. Griffin, who received her M.A. and Ph.D. at the University of Chicago, was Professor of English at the University of Louisville, author and editor of a number of books, and editor of THE HENRY JAMES REVIEW. She and her husband, Douglas Sharps, have retired to Chicago, happy at the opportunities to hear so much wonderful music.

James R. McDaniel
James R. McDaniel has been a friend and supporter of The Newberry Consort since its creation as an adjunct of The Newberry Library in the 1980’s. Jim has served as a member of the Board of Directors of The Newberry Consort, NFP since its incorporation as an independent entity. He is an active alumnus of the University of Chicago and a member of its College Advisory Council. He is a retired partner of the law firm of Sidley Austin LLP.

Joan Pantsios
Joan Pantsios is a retired public defender. She received her B.A. from Barnard College, and her J.D. from John Marshall Law School (now University of Illinois at Chicago School of Law). A long-time attendee of Newberry Consort performances, she was honored to be asked to serve on the Board. In addition to her work with the Consort, she is a volunteer with the Frank Lloyd Wright Trust, and was a board member of The Cliff Dwellers, where she currently serves as Program Chair.

Chris Stavrou
Chris Stavrou is an experienced baroque cellist and former interim general manager for The Newberry Consort. A George Washington University International Affairs graduate, he is also a partner at Wilmette's Valley Lodge Tavern, continuing a family tradition in the restaurant industry.

John Winemiller
John T. Winemiller first encountered The Newberry Consort when the ensemble presented a workshop on performance practice for one of Howard Mayer Brown's seminars at the University of Chicago. Years later, he brought the Consort to Knoxville, TN to perform (twice) on a performing arts series he ran there. He joined the Board of Directors of The Newberry Consort in 2020. John earned his Ph.D. in music history from the University of Chicago, writing on 18th-century notions of creative work as intellectual property. He taught early music and performance practice at the State University of New York at Stony Brook in the mid-1990s before turning his focus on intellectual property law. He is currently a partner of the law firm of Merchant Gould PC.