Ms. Escareño managed day-to-day operations and implemented policy reforms under three Chicago mayors and across multiple City agencies. Before she served as the Superintend and CEO of the Chicago Park District (now retired), she served as Commissioner of the City of Chicago Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection.

Rosa Escareño is a transformational public‑sector executive with two decades of experience leading large, complex government organizations through crisis, reform, and strategic growth. During her tenure as Chicago’s Business Affairs and Consumer Protection Commissioner, she modernized regulatory systems, built policy frameworks for emerging industries, fostered greater compliance through enforcement and licensing protocols, created the nights and weekend enforcement team working with public safety targeting illegal operators and creating safer corridors. To advance city’s income equity and worker protections, she launched the Office of Labor Standards.

Escareño also guided the city’s COVID‑19 business recovery, disbursed millions in grants, and championed pro‑business legislation expanding outdoor dining and public‑way activation and relaxing regulations to boost the marketplace. She most recently served as CEO of the Chicago Park District, leading agency turnaround during a crisis, restoring public trust and stabilizing the $600M enterprise, revitalized a 6,000‑person workforce, and reactivated citywide leisure programs, festivals, music, and arts experiences that contribute $1.4B in local economic impact.