Justice Sandra Day O’Connor was the first woman named to serve on the Supreme Court of the United States. She served as an Associate Justice from 1981 until her retirement from the bench in 2005. The first woman to serve on the Supreme Court, Justice O’Connor has a keen interest in promoting civics education. Prior to her appointment to the Supreme Court, she was a politician and jurist in Arizona. President Ronald Reagan nominated Justice O’Connor to the Court in 1981. She is currently the Chancellor of the College of William and Mary, and also currently serves on the board of trustees of the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia. Concerned that young people today are not learning what they need to know to become knowledgeable and active participants in civic life, Justice O’Connor is spearheading the creation of a simulated court game to engage youth.

Kirk Ankeney is the Executive Director for Curriculum and Instruction in the San Diego Unified School District, where he has served as curriculum leader for history/social studies, a school administrator, and a history teacher at both the middle and high school level. A former chair of the California Curriculum Commission and Sand Diego County Social Studies Teacher of the Year, Ankeney is a co-author of primary source lessons for successive Huntington Library exhibitions on Abraham Lincoln, George Washington, and the Gold Rush; several lessons about Lincoln for the National Center for History in the Schools, UCLA; and lessons about George Washington for the Library of Congress. Ankeney is chairman of the state’s history-social science Curriculum Framework Criteria and Evaluation Committee (CFCC), serves on the Assessment Review Panel (ARP) for the history-social science assessments for California schools, and is on the board of directors of the Friends of the California State Archives and the California Council for the Social Studies. He is the past recipient of two NEH summer scholar designations, two National Fellowships for Independent Study in the Humanities, and two Gilder Lehram seminar institute invitations.

Dr. Bobby Austin is the Executive Director of the National Alliance for Public Trust. He is the former Executive Secretary to the Board of Trustees at the University of the District of Columbia and Vice President for University Relations there. He is the Chairman of the Planning Committee on the Status of African American Men, convened by Congressman Danny Davis, (D) Ill. He brings an extensive and illustrious background as a sociologist, foundation executive, college administrator, editor and policy consultant in Education and the Humanities. Mr. Austin was the founding editor of the Urban League Review, the national research and policy journal of the National Urban League. He has a number of books, monographs, articles and artistic works to his credit. Mr. Austin served as a campaign speech writer and issues director in the mayoral campaign of Patricia Roberts Harris as well as for Washington DC Mayor, the Honorable Sharon Pratt. He also served as Special Consultant on American Culture to the Honorable Joseph Duffey at the National Endowment for the Humanities and as Staff Director and Research Coordinator for the District of Columbia Statehood Constitutional Convention. He is a recipient of the Kellogg National Fellowship Award and is listed in Who’s who in Black America, Outstanding Young Men of America, the International Dictionary of Biographies and the International Edition of Men of Achievement. He is Mahatma Gandhi Fellow of the American Academy of Political and Social Science. Dr. Austin serves as a board member for the National Housing Trust, and the World Policy Board of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. He was Operational Chair, Centennial Family Symposium Alpha Phi Alpha, Inc; Chairman, The Year of the African American Male; Co-Convener of the Secretariat for African American Civil Society Leaders; and Co-Convener of the Citizen Diplomats.

Michael Berenbaum is adjunct Professor of Theology at the University of Judaism in Los Angeles. He was President and CEO of the Survivors of the Shoah Visual History Foundation and Director of the United States Holocaust Research Institute at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum and the Hymen Goldman Adjunct Professor of Theology at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. He served as Project Director of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, overseeing its creation. He also served as Director of the Jewish Community Council of Greater Washington, Opinion-Page Editor of the Washington Jewish Week and Deputy Director of the President’s Commission on the Holocaust where he authored its Report to the President. He has previously taught at Wesleyan University, Yale University and has served as a visiting professor at three of the major Washington area universities - George Washington University, The University of Maryland and American University.

John Bridgeland is President & CEO of Civic Enterprises and Vice Chairman of Malaria No More. Bridgeland served as Assistant to the President of the United States and the first Director of the USA Freedom Corps., where he helped create the new Citizens Corps and Volunteers for Prosperity while overseeing the Peace Corps, AmeriCorps and Senior Corps. He also served as Deputy Assistant to the President and Director of the Domestic Policy Council at the White House. As a Teaching Fellow at the Institute of Politics at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, Bridgeland taught a class on Presidential Decision Making Bridgeland. He graduated with honors in government from Harvard University, studied at the College of Europe and the Universite Libre de Bruxelles in Belgium as a Rotary International Fellow, and received his J.D. at the University of Virginia School of Law. He serves on numerous boards including the National Conference on Citizenship and We the People National Advisory Committee for Civic Education.

Maria Cardona is a seasoned public affairs and communications professional with more than 18 years experience in the political, government, public relations, campaign, community and coalition building arenas. She joined the Dewey Square Group (DSG) – a premier national public affairs firm - as a Principal in February of 2005 to assist DSG’s corporate, non-profit and trade association clients with strategic partnerships at the national, state and local level, especially within the Latino community. She served as a Senior Advisor to the Hillary Clinton for President campaign where she took on the role of campaign surrogate and spokesperson representing the campaign on major national TV, radio as well as Spanish language television news and political shows. She also served on Senator Clinton’s formidable Hispanic Outreach team, helping to ensure Senator Clinton’s message reached Latinos all across the country. Prior to that role, Ms. Cardona served as Communications Director for the Democratic National Committee. For her work as the top communications officer in the Democratic Party, she was chosen by Hispanic Business Magazine as one of the 100 Most Influential Hispanics in the country. From 1998 to 2001, she was the Director of Communications for the Department of Justice’s Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS), acting as the Clinton Administration’s top spokesperson on the complex issues surrounding immigration.

Mark French is President of Leading Authorities, Inc., one of North America’s top lecture agencies with adjacent business interests in video production and publishing. French founded Leading Authorities in December 1990 following more than a decade of achievement with two major national associations. As Senior Vice President of Development of the American Trucking Associations (ATA) and Executive Vice President of the ATA Foundation, French was responsible for a major increase in membership and funding for both ATA and the ATA Foundation. From 1979-1987, French held key positions in the membership and development areas of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. He was the Chamber’s leading national account manager in 1981 and 1982. In 1982, he was appointed Director of the Chamber’s Spirit of Enterprise Capital Campaign. He led a successful effort to raise $35 million for the restoration of the Chamber’s historic headquarters across from The White House. French is a member of the US Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors.

Carlos M. Gutierrez was the 35th Secretary of the U.S. Department of Commerce from Feb. 2005 until Jan. 2009. Before his government service he was Chairman and CEO of the Kellogg Company, a global manufacturer and marketer of well - known food brands. Secretary Gutierrez was born in Havana, Cuba in 1953 and came to the United States with his family in 1960. In 1975, he joined the Kellogg Company as a sales representative in Mexico City, Mexico. After assignments in Latin America, Canada, Asia, and the United States, he became President and CEO in 1999 and Chairman of the Board in April, 2000. Secretary Gutierrez studied Business Administration at the Monterrey Institute of Technology in Queretaro, Mexico. He and his wife, Edilia, live in Georgetown and have three children, Carlos, Erika, and Karina.

Award-winning journalist Leon Harris is the news anchor for Washington D.C.’s 5 p.m. and 11 p.m. newscasts for ABC7/WJLA-TV. He came to Washington after 20 years at CNN’s Atlanta Headquarters, where he co-anchored CNN Live Today and Prime News, and hosted CNN Presents and American Stories. Mr. Harris has covered a wide variety of stories including the September 11^thterror strikes, the Oklahoma City bombing, the Asian Tsunami of 2004, the explosion and crash of TWA Flight 800 and the Los Angeles riots. He has interviewed presidential candidates, and reported live from both the Republican and Democratic National Conventions. His professionalism and hard work has earned him a number of honors, among them multiple CableAce awards for Best Newscaster, and National Emmy Awards for coverage of the September 11^th terror strikes, the Oklahoma City bombing and the 2000 presidential election. He was honored, too, with a National Headliner Award and more recently with a National Capital Area Emmy Award for Best Anchor. A Cum Laude and honorary doctorate recipient from Ohio University, he is passionate about improving the lives of children and serves on numerous charitable boards including those of For the Love of Children, Junior Achievement of the National Capital Area, and MenzFit.

Benjamin Johnson is the Executive Director of the American Immigration Law Foundation (AILF) in Washington, D.C. The Foundation is dedicated to increasing public understanding of immigration law and policy and the value of immigration to American society, and to advancing fundamental fairness and due process under the law for immigrants. Prior to becoming Executive Director, Johnson served for four years as the Director of AILF’s Immigration Policy Center (IPC), which is the research arm of the Foundation. Johnson has studied and worked in the immigration field for more than 15 years. He has written extensively on immigration law and policy and has been an invited to present testimony on immigration issues before the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives. He is a frequent guest commentator on television and radio, with appearances on CNN, MSNBC, ABC News, Fox News, BBC World News, National Public Radio and other television and radio programs.

Jim Kielsmeier is the founder and president of the National Youth Leadership Council (NYLC), an organization founded in 1983 through the University of Minnesota. As it moves through its third decade of promoting service-learning on a national and international scale, NYLC continues to be at the forefront of education policy and research, helping to write the service-learning provision for the National Community Service Act and producing the first ongoing national study of the state of service-learning in kindergarten through 12th grade, Growing to Greatness. An adjunct professor at the University of Minnesota, Jim also founded the Center for Experiential Education and Service-Learning. He holds a doctorate in education from the University of Colorado, a master’s in international relations from American University in Washington, D.C., and a bachelor’s degree from Wheaton College.

Thomas H. Kirk, Jr. was commissioned in the U.S. Air Force in 1964 and completed his pilot training the following year. In Korea he flew 55 combat missions as a T-6 “Mosquito” pilot and in F-86s. Following Korean service, he flew various aircrafts as a line pilot, flight commander and squadron operations officer in various fighter units during from 1953-1966. In 1967, he was assigned as squadron commander of the 357th Fighter Squadron in Thailand, flying combat missions over North Vietnam in F-105s. On October 28, 1967, while leading the largest mission of the war to that date, his aircraft was hit by anti-aircraft fire over Hanoi, North Vietnam. He parachuted from his burning F-105, and was held Prisoner of War for 5 & 1/2 years. He was released at the war’s end in March, 1973 and returned home. Upon return to the United States, he was Commander for Operations and later Wing Commander of the 29th Flying Training Wing, Selma, Alabama. Next, he was Vice Commander of the Lowry Technical Training Center, Denver, Colorado. His final duty billet prior to retirement was Headquarters US European Command where he was Deputy Commander of all Special Forces in Europe. Tom’s military awards and decorations include the Air Force Cross, three Silver Stars, two Distinguished Flying Crosses, the Legion of Merit, 9 Air Medals and the Purple Heart. He received his BS from the Virginia Military Institute and his MBA from the University of Southern California.

Judy Schubert, Board Chairperson, 2001 Phoenix Woman of the Year, community leader

Rita Schaefer, Board Vice Chairperson, former President, McDougal-Littell (education publisher), K-12 education advocate

James Ullman, Board Treasurer, Shareholder, Greenberg Traurig

Amy Leveton, Board Secretary, Senior VP & Managing Director, Penn, Schoen and Berland Associates

Diane Eckstein, Clinical social worker, community leader

Syd Golston, 2009-2010 President of the National Council of Social Studies (NCSS), 1988 Middle Level Educator of the Year in Arizona, educational administrator, curriculum writer, historian and community volunteer

Paul Kohler, Director, Policy Center of WestEd and Director, Southwest Comprehensive Center of WestEd

Ron Lowe, Partner, Perkins Coie Brown & Bain

Tim Nelson, Former General Counsel to former Gov, Janet Napolitano, Special Counsel to the Salt River Pima Maricopa Indian Community

Additional board members to be announced