Alice Brown holds a B.S. and M.A. in English from Appalachian State University and a doctorate in Higher Education from the University of Kentucky. She taught at high schools in North Carolina and Kentucky before moving into college teaching at Appalachian State, Ohio University, Eastern Kentucky University and the University of Kentucky. From 1983 until 1993 she directed the Appalachian College Program at the University of Kentucky. In 1993, that program became a 501 (c) 3 organization and established headquarters in Berea, Kentucky. Until June 2008, Dr. Brown has served as president of the Appalachian College Association, supporting 37 private colleges across central Appalachia through a variety of opportunities for students, faculty and staff at those institutions. In this position, she has raised almost $50 million for the support of the faculty, students and staff at those institutions, including $25 million to endow various ACA programs.

Susan Whealler Johnston, executive vice president of the Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges (AGB), joined the staff in July 2000 as director of private sector programs and soon became vice president for programs. She has served as executive vice president since 2007. At AGB she has directed the association’s projects on boards and academic affairs, assessment, fundraising, and strategic finance. She has nearly 30 years’ experience in higher education, including 18 years as a faculty member and administrator. At Rockford College, she served as dean of academic development, directing the college’s strategic planning, assessment, and faculty development efforts as well as a number of grant-funded activities linking the college and the community. She served as associate dean at Regent’s College in London, England, from 1995 to 1996. Susan also has experience as a communications consultant in business and industry. She has worked with governmental and non-profit agencies, and has served on boards of several local social service agencies. She is a member of the board of directors of the Association for Consortia Leadership, the advisory board for the Policy Center for the First Year of College, the National Institute for Learning Outcomes Assessment, and is a member of the boards of trustees of Rollins College and Rockford College. Susan earned her Ph.D. and M.A. in 18th century British literature from Purdue University, and her undergraduate degree in English (summa cum laude), is from Rollins College. She was awarded an honorary doctorate from Rockford College. Her research, publications, and presentations are in the areas of governance, higher education, and Jane Austen. Included among her recent publications are AGB’s Survey of Higher Education Governance, a chapter on governing boards and civic engagement in Higher Education for the Public Good: Emerging Voices from a National Movement, and a chapter on shared governance in Faculty Governance and Effective Academic Administrative Leadership.

Cyrus M. Jollivette, Chair, is Senior Vice President of Federal Government Relations Florida and former Vice President, Public Affairs, for Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Florida (BCBSF), headquartered in Jacksonville. Prior to joining BCBSF, he established a consulting practice representing private sector clients in Washington, D.C. From 1977 to 2001, Jollivette held a number of senior executive positions at the University of Miami, including leading public affairs, government relations, university advancement and corporate relations. Mr. Jollivette earned bachelor and master of business administration degrees from Long Island University in 1968 and 1970 respectively, and a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Miami School of Law in 1980. Throughout his career, Jollivette has been active in government, community and non-profit organizations in both the Jacksonville and Miami communities. He most recently was named to the Jacksonville Airport Authority’s board of directors by Mayor John Peyton. He is the secretary of the board of trustees of St. Thomas University, Miami, as well as a member of the board of governors of the statewide Florida Chamber of Commerce. He has twice served on the Campaign Cabinet for the United Way of Miami-Dade County; chaired the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE), Washington, D.C.; and served as a member and chair of the Public Health Trust of Miami-Dade County and the Biracial/Triethnic Advisory Committee of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida.

Kent McGuire (ex-officio) is President and CEO of the Southern Education Foundation (SEF), a public charity whose mission is the advancement of equity and excellence in education in the American South, k-16, for low-income students, especially African Americans, who need help the most. Prior to joining SEF, Dr. McGuire served as the Dean of the College of Education, and received tenure as professor in the Educational Administration Program in the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies. Dr. McGuire was also a Senior Vice President at the Manpower Demonstration Research Corporation, and served in the Clinton administration as Assistant Secretary of the U.S. Department of Education. He was the Education Program Officer for the Philadelphia-based Pew Charitable Trusts and served as Education Program Director for the Eli Lilly Endowment. He has written and coauthored various policy reports, monographs, book chapters, articles and papers in professional journals. He currently serves on the following boards: Moorestown Public School, Institute for Education Leadership, The New Teacher Project, Board of Managers of Girard College, Wachovia Regional Foundation and The Free Library of Philadelphia Foundation. Dr. McGuire received his PhD in public administration from the University of Colorado at Boulder, his MA in education administration and policy from Columbia University Teacher's College, and his BA in economics from the University of Michigan.

Dick Molpus is current President of The Molpus Woodlands Group, LLC (MWG), a timberland investment management organization headquartered in Jackson, Mississippi. In 1980, he was Governor William Winter’s first appointee and was selected as Executive Director of the Governor’s Office of Federal-State Programs. In 1983, he became Secretary of State of Mississippi and was re-elected by significant margins in 1987 and 1991. In 1993, he was elected President of the National Association of Secretaries of State, where he founded Project Democracy, an effort chaired by former Presidents Gerald Ford and Jimmy Carter to increase voter participation in the U.S. Dick Molpus and his wife, Sally, were the founders of Parents for Public Schools, which now has chapters in 25 cities across the U.S. He was also Co-Chairman of the successful 2006 Jackson Public School Bond Campaign that brought $150MM in renovations and new schools to Jackson. In 2007 he became the founding Chairman of the United States Endowment for Forestry and Communities, a $200MM endowment funded by the U.S./Canada Softwood Lumber Agreement. The endowment is focused on improving forest health and assisting timber-reliant communities in the U.S.

Warren Simmons directs the work of the Annenberg Institute and team-teaches a course in Urban Systems and Structure in the Urban Education Policy Program. He was formerly the executive director of the Philadelphia Education Fund, a nonprofit organization that helped the School District of Philadelphia to fund, develop, and implement new academic standards, content-based professional development, standards-based curriculum resources, and comprehensive school reform, as part of the Children Achieving reform agenda. At the Annie E. Casey Foundation he developed and funded initiatives on community development and urban school reform. He also served as director of equity initiatives for the New Standards Project and as a special assistant to the superintendent of schools in Prince George’s County, Maryland, where he planned and/or implemented district-wide initiatives on improving the achievement of disadvantages students. He received a B.A. in psychology from Macalester College and a Ph.D. in psychology from Cornell University. He serves on the boards and advisory groups of numerous education reform organizations including the Public Education Network, the Merck Institute, the National Center on Education and the Economy, PLATO Learning, Inc. the College Crusade of Rhode Island, and the Cowen Institute’s National Advisory Council.

Allan J. Tanenbaum is General Counsel & Managing Partner for Equicorp Partners, LLC, an Atlanta-based private investment and advisory firm. He is the former General Counsel for AFC Enterprises and was in private law practice for 30 years, specializing in business transactions. Mr. Tanenbaum has a broad range of experience in representing public and private companies in financing, mergers and acquisitions, compliance and corporate governance matters. He has managed public offerings of debt and equity securities, as well as institutional private placements of high-yield securities and venture capital financings. Acquisitions and dispositions have included transactions between public companies, transactions involving small to middle market private companies, and related bank and private financing transactions. Mr. Tanenbaum formerly chaired the American Bar Association's Division of Public Education which promotes public understanding of and respect for the law and the legal process. He represents the State of Georgia in the ABA’s House of Delegates, is a liaison to the Georgia Supreme Court Chief Justices’ Commission on Public Trust and Confidence, and Vice President of the Atlanta Bar Foundation. He has also been involved in the national initiative of the American Bar Association dealing with the public’s perception of the legal profession. As former Chair of the ABA’s Commission on Partnership Programs, he helped develop a nationwide program to improve client relations and communications. Mr. Tanenbaum’s community involvement is primarily related to children’s issues including serving on the Boards of Directors of The Hank Aaron Chasing the Dream Foundation; The Truancy Intervention Program; Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation – Georgia; Camp Kudzu (for children with diabetes); and a founding director of The Children’s Museum of Atlanta.

Thomas S. Tisdale, Jr. practices in the litigation and appellate groups of Nexsen Pruett, LLC. Mr. Tisdale serves companies and individuals. Among his clients are: The Belle W. Baruch Foundation, Kimberly Clark Corporation, South Carolina Aquarium, and The Beatty Companies. Prior to joining Nexsen Pruet, Mr. Tisdale was a founding partner of Young, Clement, Rivers and Tisdale in Charleston, SC. He served as assistant solicitor for the 9th Judicial Circuit and as a municipal court judge for the City of Charleston. Mr. Tisdale served as a former member of both the Supreme Court Commission on Grievances and Discipline and the Supreme Court Commission on Continuing Lawyer Competency. He is a member of the Charleston Lawyers Club and the South Carolina Bar.