Governor Matt Blunt's 2006 Math and Science Summit
April 25, 2006
Capitol Plaza Hotel, 415 McCarty Street, Jefferson City, Missouri
Speakers' Biographies
William H. Schmidt received his undergraduate degree in mathematics from Concordia College in River Forrest, Illinois and his Ph.D. from the University of Chicago in psychometrics and applied statistics. He carries the title of University Distinguished Professor at Michigan State University and is currently co director of the Education Policy Center, co director of the US China Center for Research and co director of the NSF PROM/SE project. Previously he served as National Research Coordinator and Executive Director of the US National Center which oversaw participation of the United States in the IEA sponsored Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMMS). Dr. Schmidt has published in numerous journals including the Journal of the American Statistical Association, Journal of Educational Statistics, and the Journal of Educational Measurement. He has co-authored seven books including Why Schools Matter. His current writing and research concerns issues of academic content in K-12 schooling, assessment theory and the effects of curriculum on academic achievement. He is also concerned with educational policy related to mathematics, science and testing in general. He was awarded the Honorary Doctorate Degree at Concordia University in 1997 and received the 1998 Willard Jacobson Lectureship from the New York Academy of Sciences.John N. Yochelson has served as president of Building Engineering and Science Talent (BEST) since its establishment in 2001. BEST is a san Diego-based national public-private partnership launched to follow up the recommendations of the Congressional Commission on the Advancement of Woman and Minorities in Science, Engineering, and Technology. Mr. Yochelson served from 1995-2001 as president of the Washington DC-based Council on Competitiveness, a non-partisan forum of corporate chief executives, university presidents and labor leaders known for its work on strengthening the foundations of the U.S. economy. He led the Council's widely recognized national initiatives on innovation and was awarded the NASA Public Service medal for leadership in technology, education and workforce development. Previously, he was president of the Edmond de Rothschild Foundation and a senior vice president at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). Before his work at CSIS, he spent three years at the Department of State. He was a research fellow at the Center for International Affairs at Harvard University and at the Brookings Institution. He has been a consultant to the Joint Economic Committee of the U.S. Congress and a collaborator of the late Jean Monnet. President George H.W. Bush appointed Mr. Yochelson to the President's Export Council in 1990, and he also served as a member of the Department of State's Advisory committee on International Investment. He is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations. He served as an armor officer with U.S. forces in Europe. Mr. Yochelson holds an M.P.A. degree from the Woodrow Wilson School of Princeton University and a B.A. from Yale.
Dr. Eugene Hickok is senior policy director at Dutko Worldwide leading the expansion of their education practice. Dr. Hickok is a former professor of political science and law. He began his education service as a member of a local school board. In 1995, then Pennsylvania Governor Tom Ridge named him the state's Secretary of Education. He held that post for six years and earned a national reputation as a reformer, embracing charter schools, school choice, higher standards for students and teachers, expansive use of technology, and competition. In 2001, Gene joined the George W. Bush Administration as Under Secretary of Education. He became Depute Secretary in 2003. He was an architect of the No Child Left Behind Act, and responsible for implementation of that law. He also oversaw strategic planning and policy development in the offices of special education, vocational and adult education, postsecondary education, and educational innovation and improvement.