Welcome to the Bill of Rights Institute's Staff Page.
Interim Director: Tony Woodlief
(email)
Tony currently serves as the Director of the Institute and has responsibility for overall leadership, financial viability, and management of the Institute. Tony formerly served on the Institute's Board of Directors.
Senior Advisor: Victoria Hughes
(email)
Victoria founded the Institute in 1999, with the mission to educate students about the power and importance of the Bill of Rights. As Senior Advisor, Victoria provides guidance for the Institute's programs, development, and external relationships.
Prior to joining the Institute, Victoria served in senior executive roles in several national non-profit and public policy organizations. Victoria also served as Director of the Office of Program Development in the United States Information Agency, as a community representative for the March of Dimes. Prior to to this, Ms. Hughes taught for seven years in Cincinnati, Boston, and Washington, DC. Victoria earned her degree in Education from the University of Dayton.
Chief Operating Officer: Linda Cornish
(email)
Linda Cornish is the Chief Operating Officer for the Bill of Rights Institute. Linda joined BRI in March 2010, and is responsible for overall operations and growth for the institute.
Previously, Linda was Vice President of Member Development at the Greater Memphis Chamber and Management Consultant at Arthur Andersen and Hitachi Consulting. Linda holds a Master of Business Administration degree from the University of California at Los Angeles and a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from the University of California at Riverside.
Office Manager: Elizabeth Kailey
(email)
Elizabeth Kailey is the Secretary of the Board and the Office Manager at the Bill of Rights Institute. She is responsible for maintaining Institutional knowledge, monitoring financial operations, and employee relations. Elizabeth attended James Madison University and obtained her Bachelor of Music with an Emphasis in Music Education (2004). She is a member of the Washington, DC Army National Guard in the 257 Army Band, The Band of the Nation’s Capitol. Elizabeth is a native of Arlington, Virginia.
Manager of Database & Business Process: Susan Hodges
(email)
Susan Hodges is Manager of Database & Business Process at the Bill of Rights Institute. She is the subject matter expert for the Institute’s database and associated business processes, reporting, and measurements. She manages the overall IT infrastructure support for BRI. Susan received her Bachelor’s Degree in History (2005) from the University of Richmond.
Manager of Communications and Branding: Rachel Gillespie
(email)
Rachel joined the Bill of Rights Institute in June of 2008. She is responsible for the writing, designing, and distributing marketing and media materials. Rachel graduated from Grove City College in May of 2008 with a B.A. in Communication Studies and completed the Charles G. Koch Charitable Foundation Associates Program in May of 2009.
New Media Associate: Lisa Lewis
(email)
Lisa is a participant in the Charles G. Koch Charitable Foundation Associate Program and comes to the Institute to assist with online content management for the Institute's family of websites. She will support the website redesign team and engaging student alumni. She graduated cum laude from Barnard College in New York with a degree in Economics in 2010. Lisa is a native of the Boulder, Colorado area.
Development Department
Director of Donor Outreach: Judi Pitsiokos
(email)
Judi is responsible for maintaining and cultivating relationships with major donors, corporations, and institutions on behalf of the Institute. Judi has also served as the Director of Development for FOCUS (Friends of Choice in Urban Schools). Before coming to Virginia, Judi spent four years as the Executive Director of the Boys & Girls Club of Suffolk County, New York. Prior to her time working in nonprofits, she worked in corporate and commercial real estate law as a partner at Pitsiokos & Pitsiokos law firm in Riverhead, New York for eight years. She is a proud graduate of Northwestern Law School.
Director of Institutional Relations: Goran Vucinic
(email)
Goran grew up in Chicago before attending and graduating with a B.A. in Political Science from George Washington University. Before joining the staff of the Institute, Goran worked with several other not-for-profit organizations including an internship with the American Iron and Steel Institute in 2004 and as a research associate at The Washington Center.
Director of Donor Engagement: Matthew Hauck
(email)
Matt is a proud native of the Buckeye State and attended The Ohio State University, graduating in 2005 with a B.S. in Business. He recently joined BRI in June of 2008. Working with the Development team, Matt helps to build and strengthen the Institute’s relationship with its funders. Prior to his work at BRI, Matt was a recruiter for the State of Ohio and worked in Development at The Buckeye Institute.
Manager of Development: Emily Rose
(email)
Emily works with the Development team to build and strengthen the Institute’s relationship with its funders. Emily completed the Charles G. Koch Charitable Foundation Associate Program in May of 2010.
Development Associate: Greg Ayers
(email)
Greg joins the Institute as part of the Koch Associate Program and supports the Development team with donor engagement, communication, and events. Greg graduated from Wheaton College in 2009 with a degree in Political Science and a minor in English.
Educational Programs Department
Vice President of Education Programs : Jason Ross, Ph.D.
(email)
Jason Ross designed the curriculum for and directs the Constitutional Academy, a college-level introduction into America’s Founding principles which is geared toward advanced high school students. In addition, he directs the series of academic seminars for high school teachers that the Bill of Rights Institute co-sponsors with Liberty Fund. He has also served as Project Director for the Bill of Rights Institute’s NEH Landmarks of American History and Culture Workshop at Mount Vernon, and as director of the Being an American Essay Contest. Jason earned his Ph.D. in political theory from the Department of Government at Georgetown University in 2008, and he earned a Masters Degree in Public Policy from Pepperdine University in 2001. He is the recipient of numerous academic awards and fellowships, including the Richard M. Weaver Fellowship sponsored by the Intercollegiate Studies Institute, the Humane Studies Fellowship sponsored by the Institute for Humane Studies, and the Civitas Fellowship sponsored by the Center for Public Justice. He has published reviews and essays in The Review of Politics, The Journal of Religion and Society, and The University Bookman. He also serves as an adjunct professor of history at Pepperdine University’s Washington DC campus.
Senior Director of Instructional Design: Veronica Burchard
(email)
Veronica Burchard writes and edits instructional materials, creates Internet content, and leads teacher and scholar teams to develop lessons. Since joining the Institute in 2004, Veronica served as editor and chief instructional designer of all the Institute’s instructional materials, including Founding Principles: Individual Liberty; Presidents and the Constitution, Volumes I and II; Property Rights In America; Supreme Court DBQ: Exploring the Cases that Changed History; The Bill of Rights and You: Rights and Responsibilities; Faces of Freedom in American History; and The Bill of Rights for Real Life. She has presented nationally and is a frequent contributor to professional social studies publications. Prior to joining the Institute, Veronica spent seven years in the classroom in Fairfax County, Virginia and Alachua County, Florida, and served as a contributor to BRI instructional materials. Veronica received her Master’s (1996) and Bachelor’s (1994) Degrees in English from the University of Florida.
Director of Professional Development: Gennie
Burleson Westbrook
(email)
Since joining The Bill of Rights Institute in 2007, Gennie Westbrook has conducted 100 constitutional seminars for teachers around the nation and has participated in several curriculum design projects. Prior to that time, Gennie spent 32 years as a teacher of U.S. History, AP U.S. History, We the People advanced U.S. Government, World History, Geography, Sociology, and other social studies courses at Calhoun High School in Port Lavaca, Texas. She also often served as a presenter at Texas Law-Related Education conventions and workshops. Gennie is a 2000 Madison Fellow, and received her MA in Political Science from Virginia Tech’s online program in 2003. Gennie received her MA in Education with certification in Guidance and Counseling from the University of Houston-Victoria, and her B.S. in Education with composite Social Studies certification from Texas State University in San Marcos.
Associate Director of Professional Development: Philips Dickerson
(email)
Philips work as the Associate Director of Professional Development for the Bill of Rights Institute, giving presentations on the Bill of Rights curriculum and Founding principles to teachers attending our seminars across the nation. Before coming to the Institute, he spent 13 years as a teacher of Civics & Economics, World History, Current Affairs, British History, and other social studies courses at several diverse high schools in Florida and North Carolina. He also chaired the debate teams and worked in several extra-curricular efforts to improve education. Philips received his B.A from Washington and Lee University.
Director of Education Programs: John Croft
(email)
John Croft is the Director of Education Programs at the Bill of Rights Institute. In this capacity, he oversees three major student initiatives: the Being an American Essay Contest, the Constitutional Academy, and developing new student programs. Prior to joining the Bill of Rights Institute team, John served as Program Director for Presidential Classroom, where he organized civic education travel programs for high-achieving high school students in Washington, D.C. John holds a Master of Business Administration from George Fox University in Newberg, Oregon and Bachelor of Social Work degree from James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Virginia.
Manager of Constitutional Seminars: Marianne Scott
(email)
Marianne Scott joined the Bill of Rights Institute in January, 2007. She is responsible for all logistical details for the Institute’s professional development seminars for teachers. Marianne also oversees event planning for the Constitution Bee, a program designed for Kansas high school students, and has planned over 300 event days during her time at the Institute. Marianne received a degree in Political Studies from Gordon College, where she graduated summa cum laude in 2006.
Education Programs Coordinator : Laura Vlk
(email)
Laura Vlk joined the Bill of Rights Institute in January 2010. As the Education Programs Coordinator, she manages the Being an American Essay Contest, the Constitutional Academy, and the activities of the National Teacher Council. Laura graduated from Indiana Wesleyan University with a degree in Business Management and has interned at the American Cancer Society and the Council for National Policy.
Sales Department
Vice President of Sales: Kimberly H. Ash
(email)
As Vice President of Sales, Kimberly develops and implements the Bill of Rights Institute's sales initiatives. She leads efforts to research new products, explore partnering opportunities, and create strategies to promote the Institute's mission. Prior to joining the Institute, Kimberly worked as Marketing Manager at the Close Up Foundation for four and a half years, promoting their publications and educational travel programs. She also worked at Congressional Quarterly for almost seven years promoting their seminars, textbooks, newsletters and weekly magazines. Kimberly graduated from Dickinson College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania and earned her B.A. in English and History.
Education Marketing Specialist : Pamela Mickle
(email)
As Education Marketing Specialist, Pamela represents the Bill of Rights Institute at national, state and regional conferences for which she coordinates the exhibit booth and develops and conducts presentations. She also assists in writing professional development program proposals. For 28 years Pamela taught high school social studies through courses including Government, History and Economics including both AP and IB courses. She served as the department chair and the Gifted and Talented Resource teacher. Pamela received her M.A. in Education from the University of Colorado and her B.A. in Education from the University of Arizona.
Customer Service Coordinator: Samantha Coombs
(email)
Samantha works with the Sales team to coordinate payment, inventory, and transaction information. She worked with the Institute a member of the Koch Intern Program in summer 2010 and graduated magna cum laude from Utah State University with a degree in Political Science and a minor in History in 2009.
Academic Advisor
Academic Advisor: Todd Zywicki
Todd Zywicki, Associate Professor of Law at George Mason University Law School advises the Institute on the legal content and teaching of its educational materials. Professor Zywicki has also published academic articles on the functions of bills of rights, including an article in the North Carolina Law Review.Professor Zywicki went to George Mason University after serving on the faculty of the Mississippi College of Law.Prior to his career in legal academia, Professor Zywicki clerked for the Honorable Jerry E. Smith of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, and worked as an associate at Alston & Bird in Atlanta, Georgia. Professor Zywicki received his J.D. from the University of Virginia as a John M. Olin Scholar in Law and Economics. Professor Zywicki received a M.A. in Economics from Clemson University and his A.B. with high honors from Dartmouth College.