​Jim Liske – Co-Chair

Jim Liske is a Senior Team Member and the Executive Director at movement.org. He most recently served as the Lead Pastor at Christ Memorial Church in Holland, Michigan. Jim has served as President and CEO of Prison Fellowship Ministries from 2011-2015, during which that time he spoke in cities and prisons throughout the country on behalf of those incarcerated.  He also served on the Colson Congressional Task Force for Federal Prison Reform. Before leading Prison Fellowship Ministries, Jim was the senior pastor of Ridge Point Community Church in Holland from 2002-2011. From 1986-2002 he served churches in Bridgman, Michigan; Alberta, Canada; and Ontario, Canada.Jim serves as the Chairman of the board of Crossroads Prison Ministries. He has been both a presenter and speaker at Movement Day in New York City, and his articles have appeared in Huffington Post, U.S. News & World Report, USA Today, the Washington Times, and Real Simple magazine.

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Jim has been married to Cathy, his high school sweetheart, for 35 years and they live in Zeeland, Michigan. Jim and Cathy have two grown and married children. Daughter Allison and her husband Colin Boevers are both track and field coaches at the University of Oklahoma and the parents of Wren Catherine. Jim and Cathy’s son Joshua is a Michigan County Sheriff Deputy and corrections officer while his wife Jenn is an emergency room nurse. They are the parents of Jim and Cathy’s second granddaughter, Clara Jae, born November 15.

Dr. Antonia Coello Novello MD - Co-Chair

Dr. Antonia Coello Novello was born in Fajardo, Puerto Rico. She graduated from the University of Puerto Rico with a B.S. degree in 1965 and an M.D. degree in 1970. She served her pediatric internship and residency in Ann Arbor at the University of Michigan. She completed her subspecialty training in pediatric nephrology at University of Michigan and Georgetown University. Dr. Novello received a master’s in Public Health from the Johns Hopkins School of Hygiene and Public Health in 1982 and a Doctor of Public health in May 2000. She holds countless awards, including the Legion of Merit, The James Smithson Bicentennial Medal, and the National Governor’s Association Distinguished Service to State Government Award, as well as a membership in the Alpha Omega Alpha Medical Society and Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences to name a few, and over 53 honoris causa. In 2011, Dr. Novello received the Don Quijote Lifetime Achievement Award.

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Dr. Novello entered the U.S. Public Health Service (USPHS) in 1978 after working in the private practice of pediatrics and nephrology. Her entire USPHS career was spent at the National Institutes of Health, rising to deputy director of the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. While at NICHD, she chaired HHS Task Force on Pediatric HIV/AIDS, co-chaired the NIH Advisory Committee on Women’s Health Issues, and chaired the USPHS revitalization of the Commissioned Corps.

While at NIH, Dr. Novello gained experience on Capitol Hill as she was detailed to the Senate Committee on Labor and Human Resources. During this time, she made major contributions to the drafting and enactment of the Organ Procurement Transplantation Act of 1984 (P.L.98-507) and was successful in drafting warning labels concerning the health risks of cigarette smoking.

On March 9th, 1990, Dr. Antonia Novello was sworn in by Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor to serve as the 14th Surgeon General of the U.S. Public Health Service. Her appointment marked two firsts: Dr. Novello became the first woman and the first Hispanic ever to hold this position. As Surgeon General, Dr. Novello advised the public on health matters such as smoking, AIDS, diet and nutrition, environmental health hazards, and the importance of immunization and disease prevention.

After her Surgeon General tenureship, she served as United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) Special Representative for Health and Nutrition where she advised the Executive Director on issues pertaining to women, children and youth. In particular, Dr. Novello provided leadership toward the global efforts to eliminate iodine and vitamin A deficiency disorders, immunizing the world’s children, and preventing smoking and substance abuse in youth.

On June 3, 1999, Governor George E. Pataki nominated Dr. Novello to be the 13th New York State Health Commissioner. In this capacity, she headed one of the leading health agencies in the nation with a $49 billion budget – one-third of the whole NY state budget. Some of her responsibilities included improving Medicaid and Medicare, regulation of hospitals and nursing homes, bio-terrorism preparedness, and September 11th disaster management.

Most recently, Dr. Novello served as the Executive Director of Public Health Policy at Florida Hospital, where she was in charge of advocating, translating and implementing public health issues across the board, as well as directing and organizing a lecture series involving the top medical professionals in the nation, known as The Distinguished Lecture Series at Florida Hospital. Currently, she serves as a liaison between the U.S. Embassy and the government of Dominican Republic on raising the awareness of domestic violence and spearheading efforts for national legislation.

Phil Burgess - Co-Chair

Phil Burgess is an educator, author, columnist, businessman, and association executive who has lived and worked in the US, Europe, Asia, and Australia.

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Educator:

Phil spent 19 years in higher education (1965-84) where he taught public policy, management and resource economics including faculty positions at The Ohio State University (where he was director of graduate studies in political science and Mershon Professor of Policy Sciences), the University of Colorado (where he was founding director of the Ph.D. program in public administration and non-profit management) and the Colorado School of Mines (where he was the founding director of the Institute for
Minerals and Energy Management).

At Ohio State, Where he won the President’s Citation for Inspirational Teaching in 1967, he also directed The Behavioral Sciences Laboratory (1967-73), a university-wide research facility, and taught a graduate seminar in health care administration at the OSU College of Medicine.

Visiting Professorships and Lectureships in the US, Australia, India and Vietnam Phil has also served as a Visiting professor at UCLA’s School for Public Policy and Social Research at the University of West Florida in Pensacola (Summer 1976), the business school of the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT) in Australia (2006-08) and NASA’s

Johnson Space Center in Houston Where he chaired an off-campus Ph.D. program and invited lectures at XLRI School of Business in Bhubaneswar, India (2007), school of communications at Saigon University in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam (2007), and multi-year lectures at the Department of State’s Senior Seminar as well as advanced studies programs of the US Department Of Defense including the Naval War College, the Industrial College of the Armed Forces and SCUSA programs at the US Military Academy at West Point.

Work as a C-Suite Executive and On Private Sector Boards:

In the private sector, Phil has served on the board of Gilbert Engineering, Resource Data International, Effinity On-Line, Crystal Computer Corporation and the Puerto Rican Institute of Opinion Research and as a C-Suite executive in large-cap global corporations in the media—communications space:
* senior Vice president for Communications and Corporate Affairs at US West Communications (now CenturyLink, Inc.) in Denver, Colorado (1999-2000); and
* group managing director for Public Policy, Communications and Corporate Affairs at Telstra — including responsibilities for public policy, regulatory affairs, government relations, media relations, corporate communications, executive and business unit services and the Telstra Foundation at Telstra Communications Corporation in Sydney, Australia (2005-08), Where he was named “Corporate Communicator of the Year” for 2008 by Telecommunications Magazine of Australia.

Work in the Voluntary Sector:

Phil was the founding director of one of the nation’s first doctoral programs in non-profit management at the University of Colorado in the 1970s. He has also served as a board member of non—profits such as the Progress & Freedom Foundation, Denver’s Technical Assistance Center and Maryland’s Partners in Care and several faith-based non-profits including The Denver Seminary, Maryland’s Fellowship of Christian Athletes and the Clapham Institute.

Author, Columnist and Media Commentator:

A former Fulbright Scholar, Phil is the author or co-author of nine books — beginning with Elite Images and Foreign Policy Outcomes (1968) and most recently, “Reboot!

What To Do When Your Career is Over But Your Life Isn‘t” (2011) — and many peer-reviewed journal articles and technical reports, and more than 550 op—ed commentaries.

For 11 years beginning in 1990, Phil wrote a weekly column, New Economy Notes, on political economic and cultural issues for the Rocky Mountain News that was nationally distributed by Scripps Howard News Service and, since 2012, a weekly commentary, “Bonus Years”, on America’s aging culture for the Annapolis Capital Gazette.

Other media work includes hosting a popular weekly TV public affairs interview program called Body Politic on Denver PBS station (1995—96) and many years of commentary and guest appearances on social, economic, business and public policy issues for broadcast news outlets. These include PBS’s McNeil—Lehrer News Hour and the Nightly Business Report, Crain’s Business Report, Fox Network News, McLaughlin Group, CNN, CNBC, CNBC Asia, C-SPAN, National Public Radio (NPR), National Empowerment
Television (NET), and other media outlets.

Public Service, Non-Profit and Association Leadership:

Phil has served in a variety of public service posts at the federal, state and local levels:

At the national level.
* chief executive, the National Academy of Public Administration, chartered by the US Congress to provide trusted advice to Federal institutions, including the White House
and Congress 2001-02;
* executive director, National Policy Commission, Democratic National Committee, 1985-86;
* member, America’s first privacy commission (1974), co-Chaired by Elliott
Richardson and, later, Caspar Weinberger.
* member, Committee on Planning and Research, White House Conference on Aging, (1970);
* member, US. Department of State’s European Advisory Council;
* member, Committee on Regional Planning, White House Conference on Balanced Growth and Economic Development (1978);
* member, US committee of the Pacific Economic Cooperation Council (PECC) and chair of the Committee on Transportation, Telecommunications and Tourism;
* Chief executive of policy research organizations — The Annapolis Institute (1994-present) and the Denver—based Center for the New West (1987-2000).

At the multi-state regional level:
* chief executive of economic development associations, the Federation of Rocky Mountain States (1975—76) and the Western Coal Export Council (1981-84);
* president of the Western Governors’ Policy Office (WESTPO), where he served 43 governors during the West’s energy boom years (1975 -82).
* Commissioner for Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education (1978—83).

Education, Honors and Awards:

Phil received his undergraduate degree with honors from Knox College in Galesburg, Illinois in 1961, where he also won the Hunter Trophy for Outstanding Scholar—Athlete and the school’s Alumni Achievement Award. He earned his Ph.D. from The American University in Washington, DC. in 1965 and a post-doctoral fellowship in simulation research at The Ohio State University.

A former Fulbright Scholar (Norway, 1963-65) and Business Communicator of the Year (Australia, 2008), Burgess has received awards and fellowships from institutions such as the National Science Foundation, NATO Research Fellowship, The Rockefeller Foundation, the American Philosophical Society, The Academy for Contemporary Problems, and the El Pomar Foundation. He was elected Fellow of the National Academy of Public Administration (1978) and awarded the Western Governors’ Cup for Regional Leadership
(1984).

Personal:
An avid mariner, Phil crewed an open-cockpit sailboat in the 1992 Americas 500, a trans-Atlantic sailboat race from Palos, Spain and the Canary Islands to San Salvador Island in the Bahamas and has captained passages across the Great Lakes and Florida’s West Coast and through the canals, rivers and inland waterways of the Pacific Northwest, the Northeast and Mid—Atlantic regions of the US. Phil and Mary Sue, his wife of 36 years, have three grown children, two grandchildren and reside in Annapolis, Maryland, where he can be reached at [email protected].

For more information, go to www.annapolisinstitute.net and/or www.bonusyearsliving.com.

Alma Robinson - Co-Chair

Alma Robinson, Executive Director of California Lawyers for the Arts (CLA), has led the organization's Arts in Corrections Initiative for the past 10 years. CLA, founded in 1974 as Bay Area Lawyers for the Arts, is a multi-faceted arts service organization that provides legal support, alternative dispute resolution services, educational programs and advocacy for the arts and justice reform.  
She is a member of the national strategy committee of the Abolish Slavery National Network, an organization that advocates to eliminate the exception clauses in many state constitutions, as well as the U.S. Constitution.  She also serves on the social justice working group at Grace Cathedral in San Francisco, which recently joined forces with All of Us or None and other justice reform organizations to help pass Proposition 17, a measure that expanded voting rights for people on parole in California.

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In 2011, in collaboration with the William James Association and the California Arts Council, Alma created a successful demonstration project that showed the benefits of arts programs in correctional institutions through evidence-based research. As a result, the state's stellar Arts in Corrections programs, which had been defunded in 2003, were restored and now receive approximately $8 million/year from the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation for arts classes in all 35 state prisons. She also led a successful multi-year demonstration project that took place in 15 county jails throughout California. 

As part of CLA's Arts in Corrections Initiative, Alma produced a series of three national conferences on Arts in Corrections that were attended by artists and justice advocates from five foreign countries and more than 25 states. With major support from the Art for Justice Fund, she also facilitated a series of Art for Justice Forums in 2018 in six states -- Michigan, Texas, Georgia, Alabama, New York and California. She is currently working with state and local arts council leaders to expand arts in corrections programs in New York, Michigan, Louisiana, Texas and Ohio. 

A native of Winston-Salem, N.C., Alma is a graduate of Middlebury College, where she received a B.A. degree with honors in history, and Stanford Law School. Prior to her career at CLA, she was a journalist at the Washington Star, served as program coordinator and lecturer at Stanford's African and African American Studies Program, and taught a course called "Constitutional Law and the Black Community" in the Department of Ethnic Studies at San Francisco State University.  
She has served on numerous boards including Mills College, the Urban School, California Arts Advocates, the Museum of the African Diaspora, the San Francisco Opera Association, ArtSpace Development Corporation, Grace Cathedral Corporation and Cathedral School for Boys. Her civic involvement includes previous terms on the San Francisco Human Rights Commission and the Hunters Point Shipyard Citizens Advisory Committee.

​George Pendleton

George Pendleton is the founder of The Pendleton Group, a Washington D.C.-based firm providing strategy management and advisory services to public officials, civic leaders, business enterprises and public policy research organizations. Mr. Pendleton also serves as a senior consultant to Alcalde & Fay, a Government Relations and Marketing firm based in Washington, D.C.

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Mr. Pendleton has an extensive background in public affairs, providing a broad understanding of the political process and how to make things work in political settings. He has also worked closely with leaders and organizations involved in anticipating and implementing political, economic, and institutional change – including innovations and initiatives to make sure the benefits of new economy growth and opportunity include the African American community.

A Washington D.C. native, Mr. Pendleton has twenty years’ experience observing and working with Congress, federal agencies, state and local governments and the private sector where his clients have included Will Interactive, Archura Inc., Intellectual Development Systems (IDS), Strategic Public Affairs, U.S. West Communications, SuccesSSource, Putting Children First, C.M.E. Insurance, and Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science.

From September 2004 to present, Mr. Pendleton has served as a senior consultant to the Government Relations firm of Alcalde & Fay. The firm represents numerous clients with an emphasis on counties, cities and universities.

Experience:

* September 2003 – June 2004 *
Counselor to the President, National Academy of Public Administration.

Mr. Pendleton served as a senior advisor to Dr. Phil Burgress, President of The National Academy of Public Administration in Washington, D.C., the pre-eminent organization chartered by Congress to improve the performance of government at the federal, state and local levels. In his role as Counselor to the President, he is responsible for developing and implementing external political and fundraising strategies to advance the goals of the organization.

* January 2001 – September 2003
Senior Advisor to the President, The Annapolis Institute.

Prior to joining the National Academy of Public Administration, Mr. Pendleton served as Senior Advisor to the President of The Annapolis Institute, a private, nonpartisan think-tank in Annapolis, MD, that helps leadership atall levels to anticipate the forces shaping the lives of people, communities, and institutions in the 21st century; and to advance principled leadership in the management of business enterprises, government agencies and non-profit organizations. His effective external public affairs role strategically positioned the Institute to advance its market-driven solutions to public policy problems.

* May 1999 – November 2000, Senior Consultant, Public Affairs, U.S. West Communications – Mr. Pendleton designed and conducted an effective grass-roots community and political outreach initiative to support and advance the business interests of U.S. West, the Western Baby Bell, and its Chairman & CEO, Sol Trujillo. In this role, specific objectives included developing and implementing a public relations strategy in support of broadband legislation in Congress; and assisting small business owners with strategies to get access to high-speed, broadband connections.

* January 1991-1999
Mr. Pendleton worked in a variety of Capitol Hill staff positions, including:

– National Republican Congressional Committee, African American Voter Development – Mr. Pendleton was responsible for generating increased African American voter support for targeted Republican candidates.
– Senate Republican Policy Committee – Mr. Pendleton managed the committee’s internship progam and Speaker’s Bureau.
– Special Assistant, Equal Employment Opportunity Commission – Mr. Pendleton served in the Bush Administrations Media Relations Office under Chairman Clarence Thomas.
– Congressional Staff Service – in the 1980s, Mr. Pendleton served in the Bush Administration’s Media Relations Office under Chairman Clarence Thomas.
– Congressional Staff Service – in the 1980s, Mr. Pendleton worked in the Congressional offices of Senator Pete Wilsin (R-Ca), Senator Charles Grassley (R-IA), Congressman Duncan Hunter (R-CA) and the staff of the Senate Republican Policy Committee chaired by the late Senator John Tower (R-TX).

Education

Mr. Pendleton earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Government from the University of Maryland in 1983. He also studied Government and Communications at Howard University.

Maureen Daly

Maureen Daly is an experienced social entrepreneur and philanthropist whose passion is addressing social issues through creative business initiatives. A twenty (20) year veteran of the staffing industry, Daly looks forward to assisting those leaving the penal system with dignified jobs that pay a fair living wage.

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As a former textile investor, Daly used her high profile collection of royal dresses once belonging to the late Diane, Princess of Wales, as part of a global exhibition benefitting children and those affected by Cancer and AIDS. The dresses were on display at Kensington Palace, the late Princess’s former home.

Daly was moved by a news photo of an inmate who was forced to help fight California wildfires in 2018 for $1.00 an hour. Disgusted at this injustice, Daly was moved by the mission of the Free At Last Coalition. She assists with strategy and fundraising for the organization.

Ken Blackwell

Ken Blackwell is the Senior Fellow for Human Rights and Constitutional Governance at the Family Research Council.  He is a national bestselling author of three books: Rebuilding America: A Prescription For Creating Strong Families, Building The Wealth Of Working People, And Ending Welfare; The Blueprint: Obama’s Plan to Subvert the Constitution and Build an Imperial Presidency; and Resurgent: How Constitutional Conservatism Can Save America.

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Mr. Blackwell has had a vast political career. He was mayor of Cincinnati, Treasurer and Secretary of State for Ohio, undersecretary at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, and U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Human Rights Commission. He was a delegate to the White House Summit on Retirement Savings in 1998 and 2002. During the 1990s, he served on the congressionally appointed National Commission on Economic Growth and Tax Reform and the board of the International Republican Institute. He was Co-Chairman of the U.S. Census Monitoring Board from 1999-2001.

He has received many awards and honors for his work in the public sector. These accolades include the U.S. Department of State’s Superior Honor Award for his work in the field of human rights which he received from both the administrations of Presidents George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton. In 2004, the American Conservative Union honored Mr. Blackwell with the John M. Ashbrook Award for his steadfast conservative leadership.

Ken’s commentaries have been published in major newspapers and websites: The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Washington Times, and Investor’s Business Daily.  In addition, he has been interviewed by many media outlets including CBS’s Face the Nation, NBC’s Meet the Press, ABC’s This Week, and Fox News Sunday.

His continuing education has included executive programs at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Harvard. Mr. Blackwell has also received honorary doctoral degrees from ten institutions of higher education. He holds Bachelor of Science and Master of Education degrees from Xavier University in Ohio, where he later served as a vice president and member of its faculty. In 1992, he received Xavier’s Distinguished Alumnus Award and was inducted into Xavier’s Athletic Hall of Fame in 2015.

​Billy Cockerham

Billy Cockerham is a former professional American football player. Mr. Cockerham spent two years as a Quarterback in the National Football League with the Minnesota Vikings and the San Francisco 49ers who sent him to NFL Europe’s Frankfurt Galaxy. Billy was an all Big 10 Quarterback at the University of Minnesota where he graduated with a degree in Construction Management.
​
Drawing on his experience in a start up a eco-friendly chemical company and different areas of finance (Lending, Securities and Insurance), Mr. Cockerham currently serves small to medium size businesses by helping them increase and protect their profitability through cost reduction, tax planning, risk management, and succession planning.

Daniel Zene Crowe

Daniel Zene Crowe, a fifth-generation Oregonian, grew up in the Mt. Angel farmhouse built by his grandfather. Daniel graduated from West Point as the Konstantin Kolenda Scholar of Philosophy in 1991, as well as earning All-American honors and two national championships with Army Pistol. Commissioned into the Cavalry, Daniel served in two legendary Army units – the 11th Armored Cav (Blackhorse) and the 509th Airborne (Geronimo) – after Ranger School.

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​Upon promotion to Captain, Daniel was directed to law school under the Army’s Funded Legal Education Program, concentrating on criminal justice reform and producing “Suggestions for U.S. Service Members in Japanese Criminal Proceedings.” He led the Intl Law Society and won an ABA writing award for an editorial denouncing the defacement of Hillary Clinton’s photo in his piece, “Conservative? No, Just a Moron.” Upon Graduation from law school, Captain Crowe was assigned to Fort Hood, Texas, where he led the Army’s largest and busiest legal aid office and served as a defense attorney at numerous courts-martial. Captain Crowe then deployed to Cairo to establish a legal position in the Cairo Embassy’s Office of Military Cooperation, working closely with U.S. defense contractors, Egyptian government officials, and U.S. embassy personnel to regain accountability of the $1.3B per year of military aid the U.S. provides Egypt pursuant to the Camp David Peace Accords.

After those assignments, Major Crowe deployed to Korea where he served back-to-back unaccompanied tours, first in the 2nd Infantry Division and then as the Chief Prosecutor for the Korean Peninsula. In May 2004, Major Crowe left active service to better care for his disabled daughter, Anna, and son, Thomas, as a single dad. Stabilized in Germany, Major Crowe began work at U.S. European Command (EUCOM) in Stuttgart, Germany, specializing in humanitarian assistance in Africa. Following that tour, Major Crowe joined the inaugural class of the European School of Management and Technology in Berlin, obtaining an MBA under the sponsorship of DHL. Daniel wrote his MBA thesis for Children for Tomorrow, a nonprofit which provides psychiatric care for children caught in war.

After earning his MBA, Major Crowe returned to European Command and served as a legal subject-matter expert on Counter-Narcoterrorism, Human Intelligence (HUMINT), and the EUCOM Joint Interagency Control Group, synchronizing U.S. Government activities across various agencies and allies, as well as modeling the Iranian threat to the Caucuses. Lieutenant Colonel Crowe then worked as a criminal defense attorney, Europewide, specializing in defending Soldiers suffering from post-combat stress. As a military defense counsel, Daniel has tried over 100 courts-martial—including defending five premeditated murder cases, all of which vindicated his Soldier clients.

When his father passed away, Daniel returned to Oregon to stabilize a family business which had been operating in Mount Angel since 1940. Continuing to advocate for Veterans, Daniel founded several nonprofits, built up the Veterans’ Justice Project in the Portland Public Defenders, and fought for our Veterans and Veteran Families throughout Oregon—particularly those struggling with homelessness, mental illness, and addiction.

In 2016, Daniel was the Republican nominee for Oregon Attorney General. Although outspent 8:1, Daniel fought the incumbent Democrat AG to a tie in 35 of Oregon’s 36 counties by championing the supremely Oregonian Republican idea that no Oregonian is free if any Oregonian – foster kids, the mentally ill, black Oregonians, migrants, the homeless, the working poor, the disabled, the inconvenient unborn – is denied the full protection of the law. Daniel also led the “Yes on Measure 96” Campaign to a 66-point vistory, embedding into Oregon’s Constitution funding for Veteran Services, a first in our Nation.

In his off-duty hours, Daniel created the Oregon Veterans Legal Clinic at Willamette Law School, served as the chair of the Oregon State Bar’s Military & Veterans Law Section, and served on the Mt. Angel School Board—helping tiny Mt. Angel win an unprecedented three Oregon Cups and Kennedy’s first state football championship, closing a circle which began when Daniel served as the football team captain and all-league middle linebacker.

Daniel is a life member of Mensa, the U.S. Chess Federation, and the NRA. He is married to Anita (“Aer”) Dittrich-Crowe, who now shares with him the triumphs and tribulations of Anna Bettina and Private Thomas Zene Crowe, U.S. Army. The Crowe Family still own the family farmhouse in which Daniel grew up, and Daniel and Aer split time between Mount Angel and Jensen Beach, Florida, where Daniel has joined the Free at Last Coalition, which aims to make the conservative case for the dis-incarceration of a significant percentage of the more than 2 million Americans who are currently behind bars, more than China and Russia combined.

Lou Piniella

Louis Victor Piniella is a former professional baseball player and manager. An outfielder in the major leagues, he played sixteen seasons with the Baltimore Orioles, Cleveland Indians, Kansas City Royals and New York Yankees. During his playing career, he was named AL Rookie of the Year in 1969 and captured two World Series championships with the Yankees (1977, 1978). 

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Following his playing career, Piniella became a manager for the New York Yankees (1986–1988), Cincinnati Reds (1990–1992), Seattle Mariners (1993–2002), Tampa Bay Devil Rays (2003–2005), and Chicago Cubs (2007–2010). He won the 1990 World Series championship with the Reds and led the Mariners to four postseason appearances in seven years (including a record 116-win regular season in 2001). He also captured back-to-back division titles (2007–2008) during his time with the Cubs. Piniella was named Manager of the Year three times during his career (1995, 2001, 2008) and finished his managerial career ranked 14th all-time on the list of managerial wins. 

He was nicknamed “Sweet Lou”, both for his swing as a major league hitter and, facetiously, to describe his demeanor as a player and manager.

Tony Dungy

Anthony Kevin Dungy is a former professional American football player and coach in the National Football League (NFL). Dungy was head coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers from 1996 to 2001, and head coach of the Indianapolis Colts from 2002 to 2008. 

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Dungy became the first black head coach to win the Super Bowl when his Colts defeated the Chicago Bears in Super Bowl XLI. Dungy set a new NFL record for consecutive playoff appearances by a head coach in 2008 after securing his tenth straight playoff appearance with a win against the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Dungy announced his retirement as coach of the Indianapolis Colts on January 12, 2009 following the Colts’ loss in the playoffs. The Colts qualified for the playoffs in every season they were coached by Dungy. Since retirement, Dungy has served as an analyst on NBC’s Football Night in America. He is also the national spokesman for the fatherhood program All Pro Dad.

Dungy was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame on February 6, 2016.

Rev. Alvin Herring

The Rev. Alvin Herring is executive director of Faith in Action, formerly PICO National Network, an international network of 46 federations and local groups across the country. Prior to assuming this leadership role, Rev. Herring worked as the director for racial equity and community engagement for the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, the fifth largest foundation in the world. While serving in this role, he advanced racial justice by ensuring groups leading racial justice work they had resources to propel their campaigns and initiatives.

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Herring has been with Faith in Action as executive director since 2018, but was with the organization previously as Faith in Action’s director of training and formation. While in this role, he expanded the organization’s training program, sharpened the group’s racial equity lens and insisted the network of faith leaders go to persons living closest to the pain of oppression and isolation. It is because of his leadership, and his partnership with others, that Faith in Action’s clergy leaders stepped out of their pulpits or congregations and stepped onto the streets of Ferguson, Missouri in the aftermath of the fatal police shooting of Michael Brown, Jr. He challenged the international network to live up to its deepest moral values and to disrupt the status quo, a mission they’ve been on ever since.
 
Most notably, Rev. Herring’s leadership spans the nonprofit and academic arenas. He previously served as dean of students and assistant vice president for student life for the University of Louisville, as executive director of the Working Interfaith Network in Baton Rouge, Louisiana and as executive director of the Muhammad Ali Institute for Peace and Justice in Louisville, Kentucky. Regardless of the titles he’s held, his experience has repeatedly testified to a truth about his character; he is a resourceful problem-solver, a skilled administrator and an attentive leader. The people who work closest with Rev. Herring have noted he is charismatic yet substantive, strong but loving and driven but fair.
 
The 21st century movement for racial and social justice is fortunate to list him among the leaders reshaping how this nation utilizes faith to organize communities to achieve progress and change.
 
Rev. Herring is a devoted husband to Debbie Herring and the proud father of two.

James Stanley

Mr. Stanley’s many positions in life are too numerous to be listed on a single page. It is his work with the International Center for Religion and Diplomacy where he devotes most of his time. The organization was founded in 1998. Mr. Stanley has served as Chairman, Vice Chairman, and Chairman of the Executive Committee and is again presently serving as Vice Chairman. I CAD is dedicated to peacemaking via a network of religious leaders representing the Jewish, Muslim and Christian faiths as well as various international diplomats groups. I CAD’s concurrent projects are dedicated to reconciliation in turbulent areas including Iran, Pakistan, Kashmir, Afghanistan, Syria and Sudan.

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In addition Mr. Stanley through Howard Dayton and his devoted associates at Compass Finances-God’ s Way, has been schooled in courses by Compass and Crown Ministries about the importance of what God has to say about money and finances. He and those close to him have come to understand that handling finances not only includes what we can put in the collection plate but also the value of our time and whatever talents we have been granted.

Through many years of trial and error, he has successfully learned how to deal with the banks, creditors, lawyers and collection agencies. He now dedicates many hours a week to getting deeply involved with many families in very serious financial trouble···not due to irresponsibility but dB to the financial upheaval in almost every aspect of our economy today. Most of the people he works with are referred by bankruptcy attorneys, pastors, past clients and of course Compass.

Doug Bennett

Instructor, Organizational Leadership and Information Analytics

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Military Career (1964-1976)
Six years active and six years reserve duty. Infantry Commander and Staff Officer with the 4th Infantry Division at Fort Lewis, Washington and The Republic of Viet Nam, instructor at the Air Mobile School at Fort Eustis, Virginia and Reserve Staff Officer with the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force, Pentagon. Awards and decorations include: Airborne Ranger, Combat Infantryman’s Badge, Bronze Star, Air Medal, Purple Heart, Army Commendation Meal and various service medals.

Political and Public Service Career ( 1969-1977, 1980-1984)
United States Congress as Legislative Assistant to Member of Congress and Member of the Armed Services Committee, Department of the Treasury as Special Assistant to the Secretary responsible for tax policy issues. The White House as Special Assistant to the President for Tax and Energy Legislative Affairs, The White House Senior Staff as Assistant to the President and Director of the Presidential Personnel Office, Department of Education as Interim General Counsel and counselor to the Secretary of Education , State Department as Special Counsel to the Administration of The Agency for International Development. Served as Member of the Education Appeals Board, the President’s Commission on Personnel Interchange, the Distinguished Federal Civilian Service Awards Board, the Board of Visitors to the United States Military Academy, chairmen and presently Trustee Emeritus, West Point Board of Trustees.

Legal Career (1977-1997)
Private practice of law as Senior Partner with national firm. Various domestic and international business transactions, representation before Federal agencies and the Congress, representation of Cabinet Officer held in Contempt of Congress and resolution of charges, representation of corporate case on appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court, Transactional practice focusing on business and real estate contractual issues and finance, both domestic and international. As a retained attorney by the Federal Government responsible for negotiation of civil rights issues in the Departments of Education and Justice. Negotiated and resolved North Carolina higher education desegregation lawsuit for the Department of Education and the Department of Justice. Negotiated, resolved and created compliance plan for college Title IX regulation for the Department of Education. For the State Department advised the Nation of Liberties on the creation of it’s national Constitution. Member of the District of Columbia and Federal Bar.

Business Career (1989-2009)
Entrepreneur and commercial real estate developer in Washington D.C., Seattle, Washington and New York. Privatization of Federal governmental real property and military housing on Fort Lewis, Washington as co-developer of the $800 million military housing portfolio. Ownership, privatization and $29 million historical redevelopment of The Thayer Hotel at West Point, New York. Principal Owner of The Thayer Hotel and General Partner of Hudson River Partners, the owning entity. Development responsibilities entailed infrastructure, architectural and engineering design, construction oversight and structuring and executing multi-million dollar financing arrangements. Hospitality industry as owner, asset manager and financial principal of hotel property with staff of 300 employees. Central role in devising and structuring creative solutions to complicated business transactions and real estate financing.

Ranching Career (2005-2010)
Co-developed 160 acre ranch in the Santa Ynez Valley of Central California
Developed range land for livestock herd, horses and cattle, and agricultural crops and accompanying ranch buildings and living quarters. Sustainability concept with deep drilled wells for water and 100% solar power for electricity.

Academic Career (2010-Present)
Faculty member in the Organizational Leadership and Information Analytics Department of the Leeds School of Business. In the Organizational Leadership Department teach Executive MBA students Power. Negotiation and Conflict Resolution and Graduate MBA students Executive Leadership, Management of Organizational Change, Negotiation and Conflict Management and Consulting Skills. Additionally teach undergraduate business, students Critical Leadership, Becoming a Leader, Employee Relations, Hiring and Retaining Human Resources and Negotiations and Conflict Management, integrating ethics and social responsibility principles. In all of my teaching, I discuss legal principles related to Constitutional, Contract and Agency Law. Received the 2016/2017 CU Involvement Integrity Award, a campus wide recognition of two faculty members for their academic and leadership contributions to the University.

John Grant Jr.

John Grant Jr. has been practicing law in the Tampa Bay area since 1968. His practice has focused on a business law, real property and estate planning and administration. In addition to being in private practice, he was formerly an assistant professor of business law at the University of South Florida College of Business and has also served on the faculty of the University of Tampa and Hillsborough Community College and served as an instructor for the United States Peace Corps.

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Mr. Grant graduated from USF with a BA degree in political science where he was an honor student and subsequently named as a distinguished alumnus. He received an MS degree in government from FSU and graduated with a juris doctor degree from Stetson College of Law where he was a Dana Scholar and placed number in in appellate court competition.

As an assistant state attorney, he prosecuted capital cases and headed the Consumer Fraud division. He served as general counsel for the Tampa Housing Authority. He is admitted to practice before the Supreme Court of the United States.

In his public service, he was appointed to the Graduate Fellow Board in the United States Department of Education by President Ronald Reagan. He has been twice appointed to the Florida Commission on Ethics where he served as Vice Chairman. He was elected to the Florida House of Representatives where he served for seven years before his election to the Florida Senate. He served for fourteen years on the Florida Senate and chaired the Senate Committees on Banking and Insurance and the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Governor Jeb Bush appointed him to serve as Executive Director to the Office of Statewide Public Guardianship where he oversaw the statewide program for providing guardianship services for Florida’s indigent citizens. For his work on behalf of the elderly and disabled, he was named to the National Senior Citizen Hall of Fame and has been recognized as one of the top Legislators in America for mental health issues. He was named to Who’s Who in America.

Mark Siljander

Mark Siljander skillfully blends 30 years in America’s political power circles as a man of faith. His journey includes life-shaping stories beginning with his travels to over 145 countries. His private interactions with major political and religious world leaders, especially in conflict hotspots around the world, have gripped audiences as they compellingly defy the status quo of traditional diplomacy.

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It is said that there is “no profit in peace”. At times Mark’s success in places like Sudan, Iran and Libya threatened certain financial and political “interests” of the hidden “elite” who will do anything to protect their agenda. This resulted in personal attacks and outrageous federal charges. After years of futile efforts seeking justice, facing hostile and unrelenting legal attacks- this chapter ended as so many do in today’s justice system; with a forced settlement, making Mark likely the only person to be convicted under this law for at least 40 years (an unregistered foreign agent). Mark was surprisingly given a year and a day prison sentence (an unprecedented outcome), served not in a low-security “camp”, but among the general population of low to maximum security prisons where assaulting or killing a former congressman would certainly be a badge of honor. Yet even this frightening prospect was used for “good.” Mark found hope in this storm as hundreds of inmates, including skinheads and gang leaders, came together, affected by the transforming principles he has applied internationally. The more the prison guards attempted to humiliate Mark, the more his fellow inmates responded to the message of hope.

Many of these stories are recounted in his award-winning book, A Deadly Misunderstanding. Follow Mark’s personal story of spiritual transformation from an anti-Muslim, right-wing, war-hawk to a pioneer of unique international peacemaking. His bridge-building efforts were acknowledged by former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, who publicly recognized his “…efforts toward a more just, humane and peaceful world,” with the presentation of Mohandas K. Gandhi International Peace Award in 1996. Mark regularly recounts his practical application of long-hidden linguistic and cultural common ground that connects followers of Judaism, Christianity and Islam in new and dynamic ways. Mark’s track record of seemingly unbelievable results has inspired many of America’s friends – and enemies – toward a more spiritual path achieving tangible results in complex conflicts and crises.

Days before his release, Mark was diagnosed with a rare and terminal cancer normally only found in infants. Facing a diagnosis with mere months to live, Mark was miraculously spared. According to Duke University Hospital, he may be the only adult on record to survive. These tests of faith, character and courage provided for a deeper personal transformation. Mark has experienced life from the heights of political achievement to the depths of personal brokenness. His academic achievements include a Masters Degree in Political Science and post graduate work in International Business and Education. He has served on numerous boards and lectured in diverse and prestigious institutions including Oxford University, Edinburgh University, Khartoum University, and Wheaton College.

William P. McCormick

William P. McCormick, U.S. Ambassador to New Zealand.

William (Bill) P. McCormick, born August 18, 1939, in Providence, Rhode Island, is an American businessman and diplomat. He served as the United States ambassador to New Zealand and Samoa from October 21 , 2005 until January 10, 2009. He is married and has six children.

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McCormick attended Roger Williams University and Boston University while serving in the United States Army Reserve Military Police until he was honorably discharged in 1963. He then moved to northern California and worked in the brokerage office of Connecticut General Life Insurance Company in San Francisco until 1965. It was at this time that he became a partner in the Refectory Steak House Restaurant chain. By the early 1970s, McCormick had moved further north to Portland, Oregon, and sold his interest in the Refectory Restaurants.

In 1974 he purchased the restaurant “Jake’s Famous Crawfish” and within the year had partnered with Doug Schmick. While growing the restaurant company, he attended the Harvard Business School Executive Management Program in 1979. There are 60 McCormick & Schmick’s Seafood Restaurants in 22 states employing over 8,000 people. 121 McCormick and Schmick’s is owned by Landry’s, Inc.

Throughout his business career, McCormick’s civic and charitable involvement was far-reaching. For example, he has provided thousands of pounds of food for the Pasadena, California, food bank and 11,000 books for disadvantaged children in Los Angeles County. He began the Shamrock Run 27 years ago for the benefit of many service organizations in Portland, Oregon. McCormick was awarded the Secretary’s Award by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs for his contributions to, and recognition of, the nation’s veterans. Each year, McCormick & Schmick Seafood Restaurants provides over 17,000 complimentary meals to veterans visiting any McCormick & Schmick restaurant on Veterans Day.

As co-chair of the Portland Opera Foundation, he was successful in raising $24 million to help sustain that organization in the future. Under President George W. Bush, McCormick served on the President’s Committee of the Arts & Humanities, whose Honorary Chairman is First Lady of the United States, then Laura Bush.

Ken Greenberg

Mr. Greenberg serves as the Chairman and CEO of Zenavita LLC, a leading CBD manufacturer and Emerald Shield LLC, a diversified health sciences company. Additionally, Ken serves as the President and CEO of GreenGold Consulting Corp, a professional business consulting firm and as the President and Broker of Dream It Realty, Inc, a commercial Real Estate Firm based in Orlando, Florida. Mr. Greenberg possesses an extensive executive management background with an exemplary record of achievement in the development of profitable enterprises, formulating and implementing Financial, Sales and Marketing, Administrative and Strategic plans.

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He wrote and established complex Franchise Agreements and Operations Manuals frequently used as models by other entrepreneurial organizations. Mr. Greenberg has been active in procuring capitalization to fund acquisitions, business growth and required construction and expansion projects. Additionally, Mr. Greenberg has hands on expertise in retail chain store development and operations, real estate, site selection, property management and general construction.
 
Mr. Greenberg recently retired as the CEO of US Hospitality Group, LLC, a hotel developer. He formally served as President of the Americlean Dry Cleaning retail chain with 52 company stores and 17 more franchised locations. He also had served as a Vice President of Indymac Bank, a large national lender and as the Vice President of National Sales for Peninsula Mortgage Bank, based in Miami, Florida with offices in Kansas City, Missouri. Mr. Greenberg also served his community as an elected City Commissioner and numerous other City and Community appointments.
 
Mr. Greenberg earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, is a Certified Business Intermediary (CBI) and holds a State of Florida, Real Estate Broker License for the past 32 years.