Alice Phillips is President of Government Affairs Specialists, Inc., a lobbying and government relations consulting firm based in the state capitol of Illinois at Springfield. Before founding the advocacy firm, affectionately known as “GASI,” in 1998, Alice was Director of Government Relations for Chicago Title Insurance Company, a national corporation, which she still represents in her current capacity. Her female-owned, bi-partisan firm represents many clients of diverse interests, ranging from not-for-profit organizations to local governments to institutions of higher education. Her business partner is Loretta Durbin, wife of United States Senate Majority Whip, Dick Durbin.

Prior to her career in government relations, Alice worked at the former Continental Illinois National Bank - now Bank of America - as a Vice President in its Public Finance and Real Estate Departments.  She has also worked in many areas of government, including several years on staff in the Illinois House of Representatives and in county government.

Alice is a founder and past president of the Illinois Lincoln Excellence in Public Service Series, a leadership-training program for Republican women. Since accepting its first class in 1995, the Lincoln Series has trained over 150 women.  Its graduates have gone on to successfully seek elected office from the local level, such as school and library boards, to the office of Lieutenant Governor of Illinois. And many have achieved policy level appointments at all levels of government - local, state and federal. This widely recognized program has gone on to be adopted by 20 other states. Democrat women in Illinois have also modeled after the Lincoln Series a training program, known as Illinois Women Institute for Leadership.

In 1997, her leadership in preparing women for policy level positions in government led the International Republican Institute to recruit her to conduct training programs in the new democracies of Moldova and Ukraine.  Her seminars were well attended by many women - and men - interested in becoming involved in their new government as well as those already doing so, such as newly elected members of Parliament.  Also in 1997, Alice was invited to join a group of 15 women leaders from throughout the United States to be the guest of the American Jewish Committee Project Interchange in touring Israel and meeting with the government leaders of both the Israeli and Palestinian governments.

Alice was the 1996 Speaker of the Illinois Third House, the association of registered lobbyists, and was the first woman to serve in that capacity in its over 60 years existence. From 1986 to 1997, she served on the Board of Directors of Prairie State 2000 Authority and as its Chair for seven years. She was appointed to that Board by then Illinois Governor James R. Thompson and confirmed by the Senate. She was also appointed by former Governor Jim Edgar to the Illinois Economic Development Council and the Commission on the 75th Anniversary of Women’s Suffrage. In addition, she served on his Task Force on Illinois Workforce Preparation and Development Initiative and the Governor’s Conference Steering Committee. She also served for a number of years on the Secretary of State’s Motor Vehicle Review Board.

Alice serves on the Board of Directors of the DuPage Children’s Museum and is a Director of Chicago Area Public Affairs Group. She served on the Board of Directors of RW-PAC, on the Advisory Board of Leadership Illinois, Chicago Real Estate Executive Women and the Women’s Legislative Network. The DuPage County YWCA named her 1999 Woman of the Year in Government, Politics and Community Affairs. She is also a Life Member of the DuPage Art League and a regular volunteer at the Art Institute of Chicago.

A native of downstate Illinois, she now resides in Oak Brook. Alice has three grown daughters, five wonderful grandchildren and two perfect great-grandchildren.