Wednesday, June 28, 2017
4:15pm to 5:30pm
Goodman Center
A conversation amongst policy makers, scholars, and practitioners on the meaning of public interest and the role of government, from local to national and back. This closing session is meant to inspire and give attendees concrete action steps to move their work forward.
Barbara McCormack (moderator) Barbara McCormack is the Newseum’s vice president/education. Part of the founding staff when the Newseum opened in 1997, McCormack has since held many leadership positions, including coordinator of Newseum’s NewsCapade with Al Neuharth.
McCormack established the education department when the Newseum moved to Pennsylvania Avenue, and leads the team responsible for extending and enriching the museum experience for learners of all ages. Since 2008, McCormack has grown the staff from two to 12, added 75 volunteers, served 5,100 students in one day, and now reaches over 12 million students each year through on-site and online programming and resources. Her department has been recognized by peers such as the Smithsonian Institution and by leading teaching organizations such as the National Council for the Social Studies, Education Commission of the States and the Journalism Education Association. McCormack is a former middle and high school teacher who was awarded an Outstanding New Teacher in Virginia award in 1995. She has been a noted speaker and committee leader at numerous educational organizations. She currently serves on the executive committee of the Student Youth Foundation’s board of trustees. |
 Claire Beach, For over the past 40 years I have worked with teens and media literacy issues. I have witnessed the transformation they experience when their critical thinking skills are awakened and they start to understand the impact the media has on their lives. I am so proud of the work we have done in partnership with legislators in WA State to insure all our students will have access to media literacy and digital citizenship education. |
 Michelle Ciulla Lipkin is the Executive Director of the National Association for Media Literacy Education. As Executive Director, Michelle has helped NAMLE grow to be the preeminent media literacy education association in the U.S. She launched the first ever Media Literacy Week in the U.S., developed strategic partnerships with media companies such as Participant Media, Nickelodeon, and Twitter, and restructured both the governance and membership of the organization. She has also overseen three national conferences and done countless appearances at conferences and in the media regarding the importance of media literacy education.
Michelle began her career in children’s television production, in various roles on both corporate and production teams. She earned both her undergraduate and graduate degrees from New York University. Michelle focused her grad work on children and television where she caught the “media literacy bug”. After graduate school, Michelle worked as a facilitator for The LAMP (Learning about Multimedia Project) teaching media literacy and production classes for Pre-Kindergarten to 5th grade students. Michelle also serves on: |
 Jeff M. Poulin joined the arts education team at Americans for the Arts in 2013. He works to empower local, state and federal advocates to advance policies supportive of arts education through communications, field education, and strategic partnerships.
Before arriving in D.C., Jeff worked for several nonprofit and commercial organizations in the US and abroad focused primarily in production and programming, audience development, research and policy. Notably, he was a chief advisor on the implementation of the first national Arts in Education Charter under the directions of the Ministers of Arts and Education in the Republic of Ireland. Jeff frequently speaks at a number of nonprofit organizations and universities. Jeff hails from Portland, Maine and holds a Master of Arts degree in Arts Management and Cultural Policy from University College Dublin and a Bachelor of Science degree in Entertainment Business from Oklahoma City University. |
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JR Starrett oversees the multi state program for Common Sense Kids Action, the advocacy arm of Common Sense Media. In this capacity JR works with a team of internal and external stakeholders to identify and introduce state based legislation that will positively impact kids. JR was recognized as a Rising Star by Campaigns and Elections magazine in 2014. He currently lives in San Francisco with his wife Morgan and son Henry. JR is a frequent contributor to Campaigns and Elections Magazine, contributing to the Campaign Insider column.