Josette Ayers
Lorena, TX

Josette Ayres is President of PPS-Waco. Mrs. Ayres serves as member of the Waco Independent School District’s Advanced Academic Advisory Council, NCLB Parent Advisory Council, School Health Advisory Council, and the Student Safety Council. She has served as the PTA President at Hillcrest Elementary PDS and as a Parent Representative for the Campus Decision Making Committee at Hillcrest PDS and Tennyson Middle School. A native of Albany, Georgia, she is a graduate of the Dougherty County Public Schools and Spelman College. Mrs. Ayres and her husband, Sherman, are the proud parents of two daughters; Morgan, a graduate of Spelman College and the Lorena public schools, and Kennedy a rising Waco High School student.

Anne Buffington
Starkville, MS

Anne Cherry Buffington and her husband, Rex, are active members of the PPS-Starkville (MS) chapter. They are the parents of two children, John Gavin, a junior at Starkville High School and Catherine a 8th grader at Armstrong Middle School. Anne has served as the PTA president at Sudduth Elementary School, as well as an officer in the PTA at Ward Stewart Elementary and Armstrong Middle School. A graduate of Mississippi State University, where she has taught courses in public speaking, and public relations, Buffington served as US Senator Thad Cochran’s education advisor for the Committee on Labor and Human Resources, as well as Deputy Press Secretary. She has worked as news director at WOKK/WALT radio and as a reporter and anchor for WTOK-TV, both in Meridian, MS. From 2003 to 2008, Buffington served as a member of the Starkville School District’s Board of Trustees and was elected President for two years.

Steve Calloway
Columbia, MO

Steve Calloway is a founding member of the PPS-Columbia (MO) chapter. He has served as board member, vice-president, president, and currently serves as advisory board chair. He has been active in the public schools as a member of the Health Services Advisory Council, the Long-Range Facilities Planning Committee, and co-chairing the Achievement Gap Task Force. In 2006 he was elected to the Board of Education and served one term, including a year as board vice-president. A graduate of the St. Louis College of Pharmacy, Steve has worked at University of Missouri Health Care since 1978 in a variety of roles from staff pharmacist to manager. He is involved in numerous professional organizations and advocacy issues at the local, state and national level and recently served on the MO-HITECH advisory board. Steve and his wife, Iris, have two college-educated adult children, both successful K-12 graduates of Columbia Public Schools.

Alicia Edgar
Seattle, WA

Alicia Edgar is co-founder of the PPS chapter, Community & Parents for Public Schools of Seattle where she served for five years as a board member and past president. She received her Masters in Public Administration from the University of Washington with a focus on non-profit management. Her experience includes 13 years at the University of Washington where she was a development director and major gifts officer. In addition to her work with PPS, Alicia serves on numerous non-profit boards in the Seattle area, works as a fundraising and special events consultant, and is an active amateur musician. She and her husband are the parents of a son who attends middle school in Seattle Public Schools.

Arnold F. Fege
Washington D.C.

Arnold F. Fege is Director of Public Engagement and Advocacy for the Public Education Network (PEN), and is co-author of the PEN Guide on NCLB Parental and Community Involvement. He has over 30 years of public education and child advocacy experience and has experience as a public school teacher, principal, assistant superintendent, and desegregation director. As a staff person for Senator Robert F. Kennedy, he helped draft provisions in the original ESEA legislation and was present when President Lyndon Johnson signed the measure into law in March 1965 and has been involved in each reauthorization of ESEA. Fege is the recipient of numerous awards including the 1983 Roosevelt Center Congressional Child Advocacy Award, the 1998 National PTA President’s Recognition for Outstanding Child Advocacy, and the 2000 Nelson Mandela Award for International Education Leadership and Social Justice.

Violeta García
San Francisco, CA

Violeta is an active member of the PPS-San Francisco chapter. She is a former Mexico City journalist. She is the mother of two children. She has worked for seven years as the Parent Liaison at San Francisco public schools where she helps Spanish speaking families and works to bridge the cultural and economic gaps between the Anglo, Chinese and Latino parents in the school community. As a recognized advocate for immigrant families, Violeta has participated at the district level in the Bilingual Community Council and the Parent Advisory Committee and works to organize families in their school communities through the English Learner Advisory Committees.

Craig Gill
Jackson, MS

Craig Gill is the Vice President of the board for PPS-Jackson (MS). He and his wife, Liz, have been involved in the public school system and in PPS since moving to Jackson in 1998. They have three children in Jackson Public Schools. Craig is the Editor-in-Chief and Assistant Director of the University Press of Mississippi, a not-for-profit scholarly publisher affiliated with the eight state universities of Mississippi.

Anne Henderson
Washington, D.C.

Anne Henderson is senior consultant for community organizing and engagement for the Annenberg Institute for School Reform. Since 1981, she has steadily tracked the research on how engaging families can improve student achievement, particularly among students in diverse and low-income communities. She has also studied effective practice to involve families in their children’s education, both at home and in school improvement. Her most recent book is Beyond the Bake Sale: The Essential Guide to Family-School Partnerships, written with Karen Mapp, Vivian Johnson, and Don Davies. A native of Trenton, New Jersey, Anne graduated from Oberlin College, and received a Master’s Degree in politics from Eagleton Institute at Rutgers University. She and her husband, Basil, live in Washington, DC.

Debra Jennings
Newark, NJ

Debra Jennings is Executive Co-Director of the Region 1 Parent Technical Assistance Center in Newark, New Jersey. Debra’s foray into public education advocacy began with her deep concern for African-American parents to be empowered with the information and skills to help their children achieve academic excellence. Debra serves on a number of state and national level boards and committees, including the advisory boards of the National Dropout Prevention Center at Clemson University, the Data Accountability Center, and the National Center for Response to Instruction. She is the mother of two young women, one of whom received special education services and the other who participated in a Title I Basic Skills program. Debra attended Chicago Public Schools and is a graduate of Northwestern University with a degree in Economics. She currently lives with her husband, Major, in Montclair, New Jersey, where she is a former member of the local board of education.

Tanya St. Julien
San Francisco, CA

Tanya St. Julien is a curriculum and program consultant specializing in parent engagement in schools. She has worked with PPS-San Francisco and the New York City Department of Education. Her other work includes projects to close the achievement gap and improve opportunities for students to attend college. She is a graduate of Boston University and the Harvard Graduate School of Education.

Susie Kaeser | Cleveland, OH

After working for more than thirty years in education advocacy, Susan “Susie” Kaeser is now a volunteer in the Cleveland Heights (OH) schools.  She formerly served as Executive Director of the Citizen’s Council for Ohio Schools and Reaching Heights, the Cleveland Heights-University Heights Public School Foundation.  She is a graduate of Grinnell College, and received Master’s Degrees in Anthropology and Urban Planning from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.  Susie and her husband, Jerry, have two children and live in Cleveland Heights, Ohio.

Pamela Percival | Syracuse, NY

Pamela Percival is a founding member and past president of the PPS-Syracuse chapter. She currently serves on the Board of Directors and chairs the chapter’s Political Action Committee. She is a psychologist in private practice and worked for many years as Chief Psychologist at St. Joseph’s Hospital Health Center, also in Syracuse. She and her husband, Richard O’Neill, are parents of two sons who graduated from the Syracuse City School District.

Brewster Rhoads
Distinguished Trustee
Cincinnati, OH

Brewster Rhoads is a co-founder of the Cincinnati Parents for Public Schools chapter. He served as National PPS Board President from 1999 to 2001. Rhoads is the SW Ohio Regional Director for Ohio Governor Ted Strickland and has spent the past 30 years as a consultant for political candidates and ballot issues. He is married to Ann Lugbill, and they have two daughters (Elisabeth and Caroline) who both graduated from Cincinnati Public Schools.

Neal Robinson
Distinguished Trustee
Jackson, MS

Neal Robinson is an active member of the PPS-Jackson (MS) chapter. He graduated with a Bachelors Degree in Business Administration from Jackson State University and currently works with the US Department of Commerce. Formerly the Managing General Partner of an independent express freight contractor. He also is the founder of an entrepreneurial education project for middle and high school students and conducts marketing seminars/training for the Mississippi Department of Transportation’s rural transit system. He was a sales representative for 9 years with Warner Lambert, a fortune 500 company. He has experience in medical education, public relations, and volunteer recruitment with the American Cancer Society and Hinds County Health Department.

Ann Rosewater| Atlanta, GA

Ann Rosewater has worked for advocacy groups, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and at the congressional staff level to advance opportunity for low-income children and families.  She is the author of many publications including, most recently, “Addressing Domestic Violence, Child Safety and Well-Being: Collaborative Strategies for California Families.”  She is a graduate of Wellesley College and earned her Master’s Degree from Columbia University.  She lives in Atlanta.

Doug Wells
President
Portland, OR

Doug Wells is President of the PPS National Board of Directors. He is currently a board member and formerly served as President of the PPS-Portland chapter. His other education involvement includes chairing the Portland citizen's budget review committee and as a member of the Mayor's education cabinet. Doug and his wife, Neeley, have a daughter in the 5th grade in the Portland Public Schools. They are actively involved in Stand for Children. He works as Chief Operating Office and Chief Financial Officer of the Oregon Ballet Theatre.