Ellen McCauley Zerega was born and raised on the westside of Chicago, Il, she is the fourth of six children. She attended school at Our Lady Help of Christians, a BVM institution. After high school, Ellen the University of Illinois Chicago (then known as Circle), where her brother also attended, from 1975-1977 where she was the secretary of the history student association. In this position, she helped to bring President Jimmy Carter and Rev. Jesse Jackson to campus.
In the fall of 1977, she transferred to Mundelein College as a commuter student continuing her history education with a hope of teaching. At Mundelein, she served as the president of the history student association and was inducted into the history honor society Phi Alpha Theta. Ellen fondly remembers her time at Mundelein, particularly her student teaching experience and her interaction with faculty. Ellen also held a part-time position at Saks 5th Avenue.
Shortly after graduation, Ellen married her husband Joe Zerega in 1979. Joe and Ellen welcomed their eldest daughter in 1984, her son in 1985, her second daughter in 1988, and her youngest in 1991. After the birth of her son Ellen chose to become a stay-at-home mother to care for her children before going into business with her husband Joe, starting Preferred Network Access, a healthcare cost containment company in 1995 which is still in operation.
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