Melanie Barnes was a practicing attorney for 15 years before turning her attention to raising her two adopted daughters. She has an undergraduate degree in horticulture and an interest in issues including international adoption and child wellness. Ms. Barnes had a lifetime passion for horses, and currently shows hunters in state and regional shows. She also coaches children in various recreational sports on a year-round basis.

Ben Barnes was once considered a rising-star in Texas politics afer becoming a state representative at age 21. He remained a prominent political leader during the 1960s and 1970s. Elected to the Texas House of Representatives when he was in his early 20's, Ben went on to become the youngest house speaker in Texas history, Barnes did not limit his involvement to just Texas politics.

He was a member of President Johnson's Commission on Intergovernmental Relations, U.S. representative to the NATO conference in 1967 and United Nations Representative ot Geneva, Switzerland, in 1968.

In 1969, Barnes was elected lieutenant governor of Texas and served from 1969 to 1973.

Since leaving elective office, Barnes has become a successful business executive and civic leader. He is the founder of Entrecorp, a business consulting and lobbying firm. He has served as a consultant, director or chairman of more than two dozen companies, including SBC, American Airlines, Dallas Bank and Trust, Grumman Systems Support Corporation, Laredo National Bank and the Barnes/Connally Partnership.

Barnes has been active in a number of community service organizations, including the People's Community Clinic, the Boys and Girls Club, the LBJ Library and School of Public Affairs, the Huntington Art Gallery and the Longhorn Foundation.

His honors include the UT Distinguished Alumnus Award, the Ellis Island Congressional Medal of Honor (1993), recognition as one of "Ten Outstanding Young Men in America" by the U.S. Junior Chamber of Commerce (1965) and two honorary law degrees (McMurray University and Texas Tech.)

Shiela and Paul Carroza are the owners of five RunTex stores in Austin. A running specialty store, RunTex is also where the Carrozas created programs for thousands of runners -- titled the RunTex University Program, which they founded in 1989. With programs for children, like the Marathon Kids Program, RunTex reaches 20,000 Austin-area children through grassroots approaches.

The Carrozas both graduated from Abilene Christian University, where Paul earned All-American honors in the 1,500 meters and Shiela earned All-American honors in cross country. Paul began to coach Shiela, one of the most accomplished distance runners to come out of Texas, after college where she went on to earn a top three finish in the National Championships and earned a spot on the 1993 World Championships Team in the 3,000 meters.

More recently, the Carrozas are devoted to their events and projects and raising their three children: Quinn, Crayton and Coby.

Kaye Forgione, Ed.D., is a life-long educator, having devoted over 25 years to the service of children and schools. With expertise in mathematics education and education policy, she has worked at the classroom, district, state, and national levels. She is currently working as a senior consultant on a number of state and national projects. In addition, Dr. Forgione is actively engaged in community activities in Austin, TX, where she resides, particularly with respect to programs impacting children. She serves as a member of the Board of Directors of the Girl Scouts - Lone Star Council and the Board of Directors for the Zachary Scott Theatre Center.

Pat Forgione, Ph.D., is superintendent of the Austin Independent School District in Austin, TX. His career in education has spanned more than 30 years, affording him the opportunity to serve children and communities in a variety of ways. Immediately prior to coming to Austin, Dr. Forgione served a three-year Presidential appointment as Commissioner of the National Center for Education Statistics in Washington, D.C.. Other prominent leadership positions have included: State Superintendent of Public Instruction for Delaware, Executive Director of the National Education Goals Panel, and Director of the Division of Research, Evaluation and Assessment for the Connecticut Department of Education. In addition, he has served as a university faculty member, research fellow, public school administrator, and a classroom teacher. Dr. Forgione has earned numerous honors and appointments and is recognized both nationally and internationally for his expertise in research, evaluation, accountability, and educational reform. He earned his doctorate of philosophy in administration and policy from Stanford University in 1977.

Luci Baines Johnson is Chairman of the Board of the LBJ Holding Company, Vice President of BusinesSuites, and a member of the Board of Directors of LBJ Broadcasting. In addition to her support for GENaustin, she serves the community as a member of the boards of the LBJ Foundation, the Children's Hospital Foundation of Austin, PBS station KLRU, The Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, and the SafePlace Foundation. She is Honorary Chairperson for the American Foundation for Vision Awareness, co-chair of Sigma Theta Tau's "Nurses for a Healthier Tomorrow" campaign, and a Trustee of Boston University as well as a Life Trustee of the Seton Fund. She established the Luci Baines Johnson Centennial Professorship in Nursing at the University of Texas at Austin. For her significant service to community endeavors, she has received a number of honors and awards including the Top 25 Women-Owned Businesses by the Austin Business journal and K-EYE TV, the Distinguished Service Award from Georgetown University School of Nursing, Honorary Alumna of Vanderbilt University, The Apollo Award - the highest award given to a lay person by the American Optometric Association, Honorary Member of Sigma Theta Tau, and the "Special Friend" Award from The University of Texas at Austin. She attended Georgetown University School of Nursing and UT Austin and received a degree in Communications from St. Edward's University in 1997, where she received the honors of the Outstanding New College Graduate and St. Edward's President's Award.

Jean Kilbourne, Ed.D., is internationally recognized for her pioneering work on alcohol and tobacco advertising and the image of women in advertising. In 1999 she was the main event speaker for GENaustin (formerly The Ophelia Project) in Austin, TX.

A widely published writer and speaker who has twice been named Lecturer of the Year by the National Association of Campus Activities, she is best known for her award-winning documentaries "Killing Us Softly," "Slim Hopes," and "Pack of Lies." She is a visiting scholar at Wellesley College, has served on the National Advisory Council on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, and been an adviser to two surgeons general. She lives in Boston, Massachusetts.

Pat Love, Ed.D., is a nationally known couple's therapist, and author of the best-selling book Hot Monogamy and the recently published The Truth About Love.

A graduate of West Virginia University, Pat began her professional career as a Counselor Educator in marriage and family therapy at Texas A & M University, Commerce. She went on to co-found the Austin Family Institute.

A frequent media guest, Pat has appeared on every major television talk show including numerous appearances on Oprah Winfrey and NBC's #1 Today Show. She was the main event speaker for GENaustin (formerly The Ophelia Project) during the 2000-2001 school year. Her talent and expertise as a speaker have taken her across the United States, Canada, Mexico, Europe and Australia. She lives in Austin, TX.

Lynn M. Meredith is a community leader and philanthropist whose work has received The Austin Project Commitment to Families & Children Award, the Distinguished Alumna in Humanities Award from St. Francis University in Loretto, Pensylvannia, Woman of Distinction recognition from the Long Star Girl Scout Council, and the Ma Ferguson Award for Distinguished Community Service from Women in Business International.

In addition to serving as secretary and treasurer for the Meredith Family Foundation, she holds a number of positions in community organizations, including chair of the Austin Children's Museum's Governance Committee, secretary of the Board of Trustees of St. Stephen's Episcopal School, and director of the board of the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center. She has served as Chairman of Junior League's California State Public Affairs Committee, facilitating the passage of legislation and setting the statewide advocacy agenda. She has provided on-site training to Junior Leagues across the country in the areas of leadership development, strategic planning, boardsmanship and public affairs. She holds a BS degree in elementary education from St. Francis University in Loretto, Pensylvannia, and a master of education degree in educational communications and technology from University of Pittsburgh.

Lynn and her husband, Thomas J. Meredith, are the parents of four children.

Thomas J. Meredith is a private investor, civic leader, and philanthropist. He is currently CEO of MFI Capital, the Meredith family's private investment arm, as well as chair and president of the Meredith Private Foundation. Prior to this, he served as CFO for Dell Computer, where he was instrumental in Dell�s growth from approximately $2B to $25.3B in revenue. He then served as managing director of Dell Ventures and Dell senior vice president of business development and strategy.

Mr. Meredith is a founding investor and chair of the Austin Idea Network, which focuses on Austin quality of life issues. He received his bachelors degree in political science from St. Francis University in Loretto, Pensylvannia, his master of law degree in taxation from Georgetown University, and his Juris Doctor degree from Duquesne University. In addition to their generous support of GENaustin, he and his wife, Lynn, are involved in several other significant Austin charitable activities such as the Long Performing Arts Center, Austin Museum of Art, Austin Children's Museum, and Huston-Tillotson College.

Tom and Lynn are the parents of four children.

Mary Pipher, Ph.D., is the author of Reviving Ophelia: Saving the Selves of Adolescent Girls, which spent nearly three years at the top of the New York Times Best-Seller's list, and is credited with helping launch national focus on the emotional health of adolescent girls.

Pipher is a psychologist trained in anthropology. She has also written In the Shelter of Each Other, a book about American families, and Another Country, which focuses on the elderly. She travels the world speaking and lecturing about how culture affects the mental health of those people who live in the culture, particularly women. Pipher has appeared twice in Austin on behalf of GENaustin (formerly The Ophelia Project) and is an ardent supporter of this organization.

Ann Richards, long a political force in Texas, grabbed the national spotlight in 1988 as the keynote speaker at the Democratic National Convention. Two years later she was swept into office as Governor of Texas, a post she held until 1994. In 1996, she helped launch The Ophelia Project (now GeNAustin) at its first major community event, speaking on "Girl Power." Gov. Richards recently joined the PR firm of Public Strategies, Inc.

Aliza Sherman is an Internet expert and spokesperson as well as founder of Cybergrrl, Inc. and Webgrrls International, a global networking group of women. She was selected by Newsweek as one of the "50 People Who Matter Most on the Internet."

Aliza is the author of Cybergrrl @ Work: Tips and Inspiration for the Professional You.

Rachel Simmons is the author of the New York Times bestseller Odd Girl Out:The Hidden Culture of Aggression in Girls, the first book to explore the phenomenon of bullying between girls. Rachel has appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Show, Today, Dateline NBC, and NPR's Diane Rehm Show and Talk of the Nation. Rachel's work has been profiled in numerous publications, including The New York Times Magazine, The Washington Post, and The Los Angeles Times. Rachel speaks all over the country to girls, parents, and teachers about female aggression and its implications for girls' and women's lives.

Rachel grew up in the Maryland suburbs of Washington, DC. After graduating from Vassar College, where she double majored in Women's Studies and Political Science, she worked for Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani in New York's City Hall as an Urban Fellow. Rachel won a Rhodes Scholarship in 1997 from New York. She worked for New York's Senior Senator Charles E. Schumer as deputy finance director for his US Senate campaign in 1998, and after the election attended Oxford University, where she began studying female aggression.

Rachel is currently the director of The Girls' Leadership Institute, a Sidwell Friends summer program,a Master Trainer for the Empower Program, and a consultant to schools all over the country. She lives in Brooklyn. To find out more about Rachel and the programs she directs see her website: www.rachelsimmons.com

Dr. Sarah Weddington is a nationally known attorney and spokesperson on leadership and public issues, and is particularly well-known for her work on issues affecting women. In l973 she won the landmark U.S. Supreme Court case Roe v. Wade; she is believe to be the youngest person ever to win a case before that Court

In 1973, Dr. Weddington became the first woman from Austin to serve in the 150-member Texas House of Representatives, serving for three terms. In 1977, she was the first woman ever to hold the title of General Counsel of the U.S. Department of Agriculture where Dr. Weddington supervised more than 200 lawyers. From 1978 to 1981, she served as Assistant to President Jimmy Carter, directing the Administration's work on women's issues and leadership outreach. From 1983 to 1985, she was the first female director of the Texas Office of State-Federal Relations.

Dr. Weddington is currently an adjunct professor at the University of Texas at Austin, where she is shaping a new generation of leaders through her classes "Gender-Based Discrimination" and "Leadership in America."

Rosalind Wiseman is the co-founder of the Empower Program, a non-profit organization that empowers youth to stop the culture of violence. Reaching over 5000 youth and educators each year, Empower recognizes that children live within a culture where they are socialized to be perpetrators, bystanders or targets of violence. Empower's revolutionary approach teaches boys and girls to transform their silence into effective action.

She is the author of Queen Bees and Wannabes: Helping Your Daughter Survive Cliques, Gossip, Boyfriends and Other Realities of Adolescence published in May 2002. A New York Times Best Seller, Queen Bees is currently in its 11th hardcover printing and was adapted into a screenplay by Tina Fey of Saturday Night Live fame then released in 2004 as the popular movie, Mean Girls.

Rosalind speaks throughout the country at universities, corporations, schools and associations including the American Association of University Women, Minnesota Teachers' Union, Texas Governor's Conference on Women, Millennium Conference on Domestic Violence, National Education Association and National Capital Girl Scout Council.

Rosalind has also been profiled in national publications and television and radio shows including the New York Times, People, Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune, Washington Post, USA Today, Oprah and National Public Radio.

A national finalist for the Jefferson Award for Greatest Public Service by an Individual 35 Years and Younger and recipient of the Donner Foundation's 21st Century Fellowship, Rosalind is certified through the Program for Young Negotiators at Harvard University and has a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Occidental College. She lives in Washington D.C. with her husband and son.

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