In 1986 Gene Bedley was honored by the National PTA with a special category award - National Outstanding Educator of the Year. Gene recently retired as the principal of the award winning and nationally recognized El Camino Real Elementary School in Orange County , California . He is presently the chief executive officer of the National Character Education Center , a curriculum development and marketing organization.

Bedley began his career as a 4th grade teacher in California and quickly proceeded to his status as one of the top elementary school principals in the nation. During the past 20 years of development and testing, Gene authored and successfully introduced his "Values-In-Action” conflict prevention school curriculum into the Irvine Unified School District . It was the first district in California to adopt an all-encompassing character education lesson plan for its 21 elementary schools. The district is being watched closely as a possible model for a state and national prototype.

Gene is the author of a number of books including: The Big R-Responsibility , and How Do You Recognize a Good School When You Walk Into One?

Mr. Bedley has received numerous other outstanding awards such as: the Golden Apple Award; Distinguished Achievement Award from the California Administrators Association; Keeper of the Dream Award in 1989; a Milken Foundation Educator of the Year Award; and the National Principal's Medal from the Freedom Foundation.

Gene conducted his undergraduate and graduate studies at Long Beach State University in California , and at Florida State University in Tallahassee , Florida .

Anne Canfield is President of Canfield & Associates, Inc., a firm she formed in October 1996. Canfield & Associates, Inc. is a Washington , D.C. based government relations consulting firm providing strategic planning, policy advice, and representational services to major U.S. corporations on federal and state legislative and regulatory issues.

Ms. Canfield also serves as Executive Director of the Consumer Mortgage Coalition, a trade association representing national mortgage providers. As the Executive Director of the CMC, Ms. Canfield has appeared publicly on nationally televised programs, at industry conferences, and testified on Capitol Hill to advocate proposals to streamline the mortgage process along with other initiatives that would benefit the industry and consumers alike.

She also serves as Executive Director of the Rx Benefits Coalition, a diverse group of employers and others payers and providers of prescription drug benefits, committed to ensuring that consumers have access to safe and affordable prescription drug services.

Prior to forming Canfield & Associates, Inc. Ms. Canfield was a Principal in the firm of McClure, Gerard & Neuenschwander, Inc. (MGN). Ms. Canfield joined MGN following ten years as Manager of Government Relations for GE Capital Services. In that position, she developed and implemented corporate policy and legislative and regulatory strategies both domestically and abroad. Ms. Canfield was also a member of Kidder, Peabody 's Senior Strategic Policy Group that focused on the market impact of economic and political trends around the world for the firm's worldwide clients.

Before joining GE Capital, Ms. Canfield had over ten years of experience on Capitol Hill, working as a senior staff advisor for three Members of the U.S. House of Representatives, and then as the senior advisor and Senate Finance Committee aide to a member of the Senate Finance Committee.

Ms. Canfield received degrees from Northwestern University and the University of Paris , Paris , France .

Dr. Barbara Christmas is the newest member to be elected to the AAE Foundation Board of Directors. Barbara's well-rounded educational experience is welcomed by the AAEF!

Dr. Christmas began her distinguished career as a high school English teacher and Guidance Counselor in Tattnall County , Georgia . A number of years later, she served as the principal of several elementary schools in the state and earned the Distinguished School Bell Award from the Georgia Association of Elementary School Principals.

Additionally, Barbara's teaching experience includes stints as instructor in the adult education program for the U.S. Army in Germany and as Adjunct Instructor at the Georgia Military College , Kings Bay Naval Submarine Base.

Dr. Christmas was selected to be a participant at the Education Summit (of the nation's Governors and top CEOs), Palisades , New York in 1996. The following year she was selected as a participant of the National Roundtable hosted by President Bill Clinton and Secretary of Education Richard Riley. Other leadership roles include having served as Vice Chair of the Georgia School Improvement Panel for the Georgia Department of Education.

A number of Barbara's articles on education reform have been published in newspapers across the state, including The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. In addition, she has developed and conducted workshops entitled "Creating a Positive Climate for Education Reform", "Supporting and Nurturing Beginning Teachers," and "Improving Reading Test Scores through Teaching Developmental Vocabulary."

Barbara has served on the Board of Directors of the Georgia Chamber of Commerce, the Georgia Early Learning Initiative, and presently serves as a Trustee for Georgia Southern University.

Perhaps the most unique skill set Barbara brings to the AAE is her previous experience as Executive Vice President of the Professional Association of Georgia Educators (PAGE)—the largest professional teachers association in the state of Georgia. Since one of AAE's long-range goals is to establish and grow professional nonunion teacher associations in every state in the union, Dr. Christmas will be able to lead by example in that endeavor.

Most recently, Barbara was part of the team that established Tech High in Atlanta —a fully-funded, inner city, public charter school featured in AAE's March 2007 issue of Education Matters.

Welcome Dr. Barbara Christmas!

Becky Norton Dunlop serves on the senior management team of the Washington , D.C. based Heritage Foundation as Vice President for External Relations. Her responsibilities include oversight of the departments engaged in strategic outreach and communication to public policy institutions and other leadership organizations, international, state and local government officials, business leaders and policy activists.

Prior to joining Heritage, Ms. Dunlop served as Secretary of Natural Resources for the Commonwealth of Virginia in the Cabinet of Governor (and now Senator) George Allen. During her tenure, agencies were streamlined, decentralized and down-sized while the quality and condition of the natural resources and the environment were enhanced.

In the 1980s, Ms. Dunlop was a senior official in the Administration of President Ronald Reagan, including service in the White House as Deputy Assistant to the President for Presidential Personnel and Special Assistant to the President and Director of his Cabinet office.

In addition, she served in the U.S. Department of Justice in 1985 and 1986 as Senior Special Assistant to the Attorney General managing Cabinet level domestic policy issues including environment, family policy, federalism, tort reform, privatization and welfare reform. President Reagan also appointed her to head the Interagency Committee for Women's Business Ownership.

Ms. Dunlop is the author of Clearing the Air , which discusses current environmental and natural resources challenges in the context of federalism. She is a Senior Fellow of the Alexis de Tocqueville Institution that published the book. She has also been appointed by President Bush to serve as Chair of the Federal Service Impasses Panel .

She is a frequent speaker both in the United States and internationally. Her bachelor's degree is from Miami University in Oxford , Ohio .

Alan P. Dye is a partner with the Washington , D.C. law firm of Webster, Chamberlain & Bean. Prior to joining the firm, he was law clerk to a judge of the United States Tax Court. Mr. Dye is a member of the Committee on Exempt Organizations of the Section of Taxation of the American Bar Association and past Chairman of its Subcommittee on Trade Associations, as well as a member of the Election Law Committee of the Administrative Law Section.

He is also a member of the District of Columbia and Florida bars, a fellow of the American College of Tax Counsel, and a former member of the Council of the Legal Section of the American Society of Association Executives. In addition, he is a director and former Board Chair of the Cancer Research Foundation of America and the Virginia Trust for Historic Preservation.

Mr. Dye specializes in the representation of non-profit organizations. He is frequent lecturer at programs organized by ASAE and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, among others; co-author of the Association Legal Checklist, published by the Chamber, and the Tax Management Portfolio entitled Trade Associations, published by the Bureau of National Affairs; and Chairman of the Washington Non-Profit Legal and Tax Conference.

Mr. Dye has a degree in economics from Duke University , was graduated from the University of Florida School of Law in 1971, and was awarded a Masters of Law Degree (Taxation) from New York University in 1973.

Dr. Hodge is retired professor of education at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville . He has enjoyed a uniquely diverse experience in public education. He has taught junior high school English and social studies in Dallas, Texas; served as an education and training officer, Air Training Command, USAF (during the Vietnam era); coordinated the Secondary Teaching Laboratory, University of Texas at Austin, Research and Development Center; in addition to serving as a faculty member at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville.

As a university professor and consultant, he has teamed with others to evaluate a large school system (Memphis); develop curriculum at all grade levels in small, large, rural, suburban, and inner city schools; and implemented professional enhancements systems (state and local).

Additionally, Dr. Hodge has published numerous professional papers and journal articles on teacher education. He has been active in several professional organizations and honorary societies: the Association for Supervision and Curriculum and Development, the American Educational Research Association, Kappa Delta Pi, and Phi Delta Kappa. During the 1993-94 academic year, he lectured in Russia , Belarus , and the Ukraine at the invitation of the Russian Ministry of Education on topics related to establishing a new ethically based curriculum for Russian public education.

Lewis Hodge has been uniquely recognized throughout his career as an outstanding educator, underscored with honors such as a United States Air Force Commendation Medal, Outstanding Young Men of America Award, and the Governor's Outstanding Tennessean Award.

His educational background includes earning a B.A. degree in English from Lamar State University , a M.Ed. in secondary school administration at North Texas State University , and a Ph.D. in curriculum and instruction at the University of Texas.

Michelle Guillermin, now retired, served as the Chief Financial Officer of Dutko Worldwide, a bi-partisan public policy firm located in Washington , DC .  Before joining Dutko, she was appointed by President George W. Bush and confirmed by the 107 th Senate as the Chief Financial Officer for the Corporation for National and Community Service.  Her role was expanded to include the Chief Operating Officer duties which also included management of a $600 million grant portfolio supporting Americans within their local communities.

Ms. Guillermin worked with Congress and the Administration to change the laws governing the AmeriCorps program to address funding issues and presided over unprecedented growth in the funding appropriated by Congress.

Her professional background has been largely devoted to growing new or changing companies to ensure they achieve their fullest potential.  As Co-founder and President of the Guillermin Group, she assisted financial services organizations in the launch of new products, the development of new operations and the leveraging of all their resources to better serve their customers. 

At The Prudential Bank, she was a key executive in the establishment of a remote banking environment and later developed and implemented new products to be offered to securities and insurance clients. 

While she started her career in the Audit division of Ernst & Whinney (Ernst & Young), she transitioned into the Financial Services Consulting practice, implementing bank mergers and acquisitions nationwide. 

Ms. Guillermin has a Bachelors of Science in Commerce from the University of Virginia , achieved certification as a Certified Public Accountant and serves on philanthropic advisory boards, as well as the US Army War College Board of Visitors.

Gary Beckner is a successful business executive with a vision for America's educational future. His heart for education comes from his love for children and his desire to see America's young people develop with academic and moral excellence.

Mr. Beckner knows first hand the important role a teacher has in the development of America 's citizens. His background includes being a lifetime credentialed instructor with California 's community colleges, authoring a college textbook, teaching courses in business ethics, and conducting seminars throughout the state.

Immediately after graduating from Florida State University with a B.S. degree in marketing in 1967, he began a career in business that led to management and part ownership of several insurance industry companies. In 1988 Gary began consulting work in insurance and marketing, while holding seats on the board of directors of several organizations.

In 1993, he contracted as a consultant for a Washington , D.C. based association management company. Over the next year, while working on an education project, and after surveying teachers across the nation, he became convinced there was a need for the Association of American Educators.

In 1994, Gary helped found the AAE, and its support foundation, as an alternative for teachers who were disenchanted with the nation's monopolistic teacher unions. He and a group of nationally recognized and respected educators (see Advisory Board ) came together to form this new organization because they thought the two unions were leading our public school enterprise in the wrong direction.

He has also served as the executive director of the Coalition of Independent Education Associations (CIEA). The coalition represents over 250,000 teachers in 18 separate independent, nonunion associations across the nation. They are united in their belief that educators should be free from compulsory membership, and should not be forced to join or otherwise pay dues to a labor union in order to teach.