Distinguished Alumni

Glenbrook South High School
Distinguished Alumnus Award
2025
Eric Carlson
Class of 1997

Eric Carlson, Glenbrook South class of 1997, has been a Social Science educator and curriculum designer for over 20 years. After studying history and education at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, he developed expertise in inquiry-based, experiential learning focused on civic action. His career has taken him from Springman Middle School to schools in Tegucigalpa, Beijing, Lisbon, and across Chicago, including Brighton Park and Englewood. Inspired by the power of food and community, Eric and his wife began to think about the power of great food and beautiful spaces to bring people together. This led them to open Cadinho Bakery, a Portuguese-inspired cafe in McKinley Park praised by NBC and The Chicago Reader. He now designs Social Science curriculum for Chicago Public Schools and serves on the McKinley Park Development Council. At GBS, Eric played soccer, was in Key Club, and co-founded the Film Students Club. 
 

Glenbrook South High School
Distinguished Alumnus Award
2024
Dr. James Klausner
Class of 1980

Dr. James Klausner,  a Glenbrook South class of 1980 graduate, is the co-founder and Executive Chairman of the long-duration energy storage company, RedoxBlox. Additionally, he is the MSU Foundation Professor at Michigan State University. Dr. Klausner serves on the Board of Directors for the American Society of Thermal Fluid Engineers and the International Titanium Association Foundation. He has written more than 175 referred publications and is the author of more than 10 patents and four provisional patents. While at GBS, he participated in wrestling, football, track and baseball. During Dr. Klausner’s senior year of high school, he was honored with the co-most valuable player for both football and wrestling. He continued playing NCAA football for the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy, where he earned his undergraduate degree in Marine Systems Engineering. Dr. Klausner received his Ph.D. in 1989 from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign in Mechanical Engineering. 

Glenbrook South High School
Distinguished Alumnus Award
2023
Matthew Ferraro
Class of 1983

Matthew Ferraro is an American composer, producer and director. He has written and orchestrated original music for Academy Award-winning films “The Insider” and “The Incredibles” and the Emmy-winning TV shows “The Muppets,” “Dune,” “Futurama,” and more. His music is licensed in television and media productions worldwide. Additionally, Ferraro has written, arranged and performed with various Grammy-winning artists such as Buddy Guy, Barbara Streisand, members of the Tonight Show Band, and The London Symphony Orchestra. Ferraro is one of the few composers who the Vatican commissions. While at GBS, he participated in marching band, orchestra, jazz band, master singers, variety show, musical, breakfast club, key club, and football. Ferraro holds a bachelor of arts in music from DePaul University. He attended the Guildhall University of Music in London and has a visual and performing arts diploma from the University of Kent at Canterbury. He participated in a composition study with Morten Lauridsen and Witold Lutoslawski from the University of Southern California.  
 

Glenbrook South High School
Distinguished Alumnus Award
2022
Molly Hellerman
Class of 1995

Molly Hellerman is a Glenbrook South 1995 graduate and is the Global Head of Innovation Programs at Atlassian, an Australian software company that develops products for software developers, project managers, and other software development teams. Molly is a former collegiate and professional athlete who played for the English Women’s Football Club Chelsea Ladies FC. In addition to serving on several non-profit boards and committees, Molly is a Fellow of both the United Nations as part of their Alliance of Civilizations, and the British Council's Transatlantic Network 2020. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics and Spanish from Wellesley College and an MBA from Harvard Business School.