Commissioners

C. Richard Costes' is honored to be appointed to the Commission on Equity and Inclusion by Governor Pritzker.  He has spent the last decade fighting for accessibility for disabled communities in the nonprofit sector.

A devoted advocate for marginalized groups, Richard joins the CEI after working for two years at Communication Service for the Deaf, a constellation of companies that provide products, programs, and services that are designed to create opportunities for deaf people to succeed.  Before that he worked for six at the Association for Corporate Growth, the premier global community for middle-market M&A deal-makers and business leaders focused on driving growth.  He has also spent nearly a decade as a accessibility consultant for various arts organizations throughout the country; speaking on panels and providing organizational feedback to make their companies more inclusive to both people with disabilities and people of color.

Richard graduated from Kent State University with a Bachelor of Arts and he currently serves on the board of the National Theatre of the Deaf, is a member of both Disability LEAD and the 3Arts Artist Council.

Benjamin Salentine is honored to be appointed by Governor Pritzker to serve on the Illinois Commission on Equity and Inclusion. Most recently, Salentine served as Associate Director of Health Sciences Managed Care at UI Health (University of Illinois Hospital and Health Sciences System). In this role, areas of focused expertise included strategic oversight and execution regarding contracting, credentialing, financial analysis, pricing analytics, business development and operations. While at UI Health/University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC), he was selected to serve on the Chancellor’s Committee on the Status of People with Disabilities, Anti-Racism and Equity Committee, Culture and Heritage Month Committee, BEST Community Advisory Committee, Social Determinants of Health Collaborative, Equity and Screening Tool Workgroup and Disability and Human Development Student Association.

Salentine serves on the Progress Center for Independent Living Board of Directors and is also a member of the Association of People Supporting Employment First (APSE-IL) Board of Directors. He is a member and serves in a mentorship capacity through Disability Lead. Salentine also participates in a research study on spinal cord injury and quality of life through the Illinois Institute of Technology. 

Through his lived experience with disability, as well as his professional and academic endeavors, and volunteer experiences within the non-profit and community-based organization sectors, Salentine has played a pivotal role in realizing positive and impactful change for minority and underrepresented populations. Salentine has worked diligently toward increasing social justice, while contributing to further education and awareness through several mediums. He was the focus of an employee spotlight for disability awareness month at UI Health, while also being featured in 2023 Crain’s Notable Leaders in Health Care. He participated in a radio interview on National Public Radio – WBEZ Chicago Reset, reflecting upon the legacy of the ADA. Salentine has contributed to publications regarding disability and healthcare (The Atlantic and Undark Magazine), while also participating in several panel speaking engagements. The culmination of his media presence, committee appointments, board memberships, academic and professional efforts all seek to add to and further highlight the voice of marginalized groups, while positively impacting efforts aimed at diversity, equity, inclusion, and access.

Salentine earned a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Psychology from Silver Lake College, as well as a Master of Science Degree in Community Health from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and a Master of Science Degree in Rehabilitation from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He also earned a Doctor of Philosophy Degree in Disability Studies from the University of Illinois Chicago (UIC). This academic endeavor has yielded not only a doctoral degree but also expertise in the subjects matters of the social determinants of health, disability, accessibility, inclusion, and health equity. Salentine also earned his Disability Ethics Certificate from UIC and obtained Fellow Academy of Healthcare Management Certification (FAHM) through AHIP.  

Ovelia Smith-Barton proudly serves as a Commission on Equity and Inclusion member. Smith-Barton has 25 years of service with the State of Illinois, becoming a Certified Master Trainer in 2003. She has worked for the Illinois Departments of Human Services and Human Rights, receiving certifications as a facilitator from the National Curriculum & Training Institute, BCON LIFO International, Prairie Crossing Institute, American Heart Association, and American Lung Association. Before her employment with the State, Ovelia was employed by Transactive Corporation as the Client Program Manager-Retail Training Coordinator. Within this role, she collaborated with the Illinois Department of Human Services to successfully implement the Illinois Link Program. Smith-Barton has served on the Board of Directors with the Springfield Urban League and Sojourn Shelter and Services and was a statewide team member with Illinois Imagines (ICASA), working to improve services for women with disabilities who had been victims of sexual violence. Smith-Barton is a University of Illinois Springfield graduate with a Bachelor of Arts in Health Services Administration.

Appointed by Governor J.B. Pritzker to serve as a Commissioner for the Commission on Equity and Inclusion (CEI), Van Austin is truly honored and grateful for the opportunity to continue serving Illinoisans by working with small and diverse businesses to help them grow and thrive by ensuring equitable treatment and inclusive access to State of Illinois contracting opportunities. 

Austin has over 19 years of procurement and project management experience, including 16 years of operations management involvement, in the private and public sector.  Prior to joining CEI, he was the Agency Procurement Officer (APO) for the Illinois Department of Innovation and Technology (DoIT), where he supervised the agency’s procurement operations.  He managed and increased the team to include 30-plus procurement professionals who support IT operations for 36 client agencies and end users statewide, equating to over one billion dollars in direct spend.  DoIT’s Joint Purchase Master Contracts are routinely utilized by hundreds of governmental entities and not-for-profits, including the Legislative branch, universities, municipalities, and counties responsible for hundreds of millions in additional indirect State spending.  While there, he was appointed by Governor, J.B. Pritzker, to represent DoIT on the bipartisan State Procurement Taskforce.   

Before arriving at DoIT, Van Austin served as the APO for the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) for nearly 5 years.  He led DCFS’ COVID-19 crisis-response for procurement and distribution operations throughout the pandemic, supporting 8,000 state and contracted staff across 330-plus offices who assist more than 18,000 youth in care.  Notably, Austin also worked with the Fair Practices in Contracting Task Force and the African American Fair Contracting Commission, led DCFS’ solicitation team that awarded over 230 million through four contracts to create a federally compliant solution to modernize the State’s comprehensive child welfare information system (CCWIS), and was honored with a “procurement innovation” award from then-DoIT Secretary, Ron Guerrier. 

Previously, Van Austin served on the Illinois Executive Ethics Commission as a Policy Advisor and Procurement Compliance Monitor for the Chief Procurement Officer for the Capital Development Board (CPO-CDB).  As a Policy Advisor, he worked extensively on administrative rules, procurement related legislative and policy issues for the CPO-CDB. 

Prior to joining the State, Austin spent 9 years in the mining industry in various procurement roles for a General Dynamics subsidiary before departing as an Asset Manager.  During his time in the mining industry, he was responsible for onsite strategic sourcing and the procurement of mining commodities, heavy equipment parts, consumables, and industrial services. 

Van Austin is a frequent speaker at government procurement forums and served as the Chair of the Illinois Association of Public Procurement Officials Legislative Review Committee for three years, providing monthly updates to membership on procurement related legislation. 

Van Austin holds a B.A. degree in Economics, with a minor in Business Administration, from the University of Illinois. He resides in Springfield, Illinois with his wife, Blair Austin. He is an avid reader, a nature and adventure enthusiast, and enjoys traveling, gardening, music concerts, and watersports.