Speaker biographies
Robert Enlow is executive director of the Friedman Foundation for Educational Choice, an organization dedicated to promoting universal school choice. He joined the Friedman Foundation when it first opened in 1996, serving as fundraiser, projects coordinator, and vice president, before being named executive director in 2004. Mr. Enlow is the coeditor of Liberty and Learning: Milton Friedman’s Voucher Idea at Fifty (Cato Institute, 2006) and author of Grading Vouchers, Ranking America’s School Choice Programs (Friedman Foundation, 2003). His articles and quotes have appeared in numerous publications, including the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times, the Arizona Republic, and the National Review. Prior to joining the Friedman Foundation, Mr. Enlow worked as a deputy day center manager and social worker for St. Botolph’s Project, an organization that provides rehabilitative care and services to homeless men, women, and families.
Howard Fuller is a distinguished professor of education and director of the Institute for the Transformation of Learning at Marquette University. He served as the superintendent of Milwaukee Public Schools from 1991 to 1995. Mr. Fuller is the chair of the board of the Black Alliance for Educational Options, the CEO Leadership Academy, the Alliance for Choices in Education in Milwaukee, and the Charter School Review Committee for the City of Milwaukee. He also serves on the board of directors of Transcenter for Youth, the Johnson Foundation, the Joyce Foundation, and Advocates for School Choice.
Frederick M. Hess is a resident scholar and director of education policy studies at AEI and executive editor of Education Next. His many books include The Future of Educational Entrepreneurship (Harvard Education Press, 2008), No Remedy Left Behind (AEI Press, 2007), Educational Entrepreneurship (Harvard Education Press, 2006), Tough Love for Schools (AEI Press, 2006), Common Sense School Reform (Palgrave Macmillan, 2004), and Spinning Wheels (Brookings Institution Press, 1998). His work has appeared in both popular and scholarly outlets including Social Science Quarterly, Harvard Educational Review, Education Week, Phi Delta Kappan, the Washington Post, and National Review. Mr. Hess serves on the review board for the Broad Prize in Urban Education, as a research associate with the Harvard University Program on Education Policy and Governance, and as a member of the research advisory board for the National Center for Educational Accountability. He is a former high school social studies teacher and professor at the University of Virginia.
Henry Olsen is vice president and director of the National Research Initiative (NRI). He disseminates and publicizes the Institute’s work to the academic community; works with AEI’s visiting, adjunct, and NRI research fellows; commissions and supervises NRI projects; and oversees the production of NRI publications. Mr. Olsen was previously vice president for programs at the Manhattan Institute and a clerk to the chief judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, Danny J. Boggs.
Sol Stern is a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute and a contributing editor to City Journal. He is the author of Breaking Free: Public School Lessons and the Imperative of School Choice (Encounter Books, 2003). Mr. Stern’s articles have appeared in the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times Magazine, Commentary, The New Republic, the Daily News, Newsday, the Village Voice, New York magazine, Sports Illustrated, and The New Statesmen. Mr. Stern was an editor and staff writer for Ramparts magazine from 1966 to 1972, and then spent the twelve years as a freelance writer and editor. From 1985 to 1994, Mr. Stern served as director of issues, press secretary, and senior policy adviser in the Office of the City Council President of New York City.
Joe Williams is executive director of Democrats for Education Reform, a New York City–based political action committee. He is a former newspaper journalist and author of the book Cheating Our Kids: How Politics and Greed Ruin Education (Palgrave Macmillan, 2005). Previously, Mr. Williams covered the New York City schools system for the New York Daily News. As an education reporter with the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, he won numerous local, state, and national awards for his coverage of the Milwaukee public schools and that city’s groundbreaking school choice programs.
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