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Board Member Bios
Chairman Ernest A. Taylor is President of Beech Hill Group, Inc. an executive search firm. Taylor is a graduate of the University of Tennessee, earned his MBA at Georgia State University and attended Harvardís Seminar for Directors. Following his early banking career, Taylor became an entrepreneur, starting his own executive search firm. Over the next twenty years, he was involved in the sale of the company four times.
Taylor serves on the board of the Georgia Charter Educational Foundation. He and his wife, Jan, Co-chair the Atlanta Committee for the Heritage Foundation. He has served on the Advisory Board to the Business School at the University of Tennessee and is a past member of the Board of Trustees of Georgia State University Foundation.
In 1995, Ernest co-founded Awakening, an annual weekend gathering to promote conservative thought and principles through discussion and fellowship. In January 2010, Awakening will celebrate its fifteenth anniversary having hosted hundreds of participants from across the country gathering to discuss the issues facing our country.
Ernest and his wife, Jan, have four children and four grandchildren. They reside in Newnan, Georgia.
Kenneth A. Cutshaw serves as the Executive Vice President and Chief Legal Officer of Cajun Operating Company, a private company based in Atlanta, Georgia. Cajun owns the Restaurant Brand, Churchís Chicken. He is President of its UK operations, manages the legal affairs and is responsible for global expansion of the Brand.
He was formerly a partner with Holland & Knight, LLP where his law practice focused on global business transactions.
Mr. Cutshaw serves as Honorary Consul for India in the U.S. and lectures and publishes on U.S. and global business and legal issues.
Cutshaw is also Chairman of the American Council of Young Political Leaders, a non-profit organization that supports political exchanges among countries. Cutshaw serves or has served on numerous civic and professional organizations including the Council on Foreign Relations; the World Trade Center Atlanta; and the China Research Center. He is a Co-founder and Dean of Georgian American University in Tbilisi, Georgia.
Mr. Cutshaw received a Master of Laws international studies degree from American University, a J.D. in business law from The University of Tennessee, and a B.A. in public administration from The University of Tennessee.
Mr. Cutshaw and his wife, Diane, have three children and reside in Atlanta, Georgia.
Dr. Whit Ayres is the President of Ayres, McHenry, & Associates, Inc., a national public opinion and public affairs research firm located in Alexandria, Virginia, that provides research and strategic advice for corporations, associations, and Republican candidates for public office. Roll Call, a widely-read newspaper on Capitol Hill, called the firm "one of the best in the nation," and the company was selected by the Republican National Committee to conduct its post-election national survey in 2000.
The firm provided polling for Georgia Senator Paul Coverdell's upset of Wyche Fowler in 1992 and Tennessee Senator Bill Frist's upset of Jim Sasser in 1994. Other political clients include U.S. Senators Lamar Alexander of Tennessee, Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, and Jeff Sessions of Alabama, Governor Bob Riley of Alabama, former Senator Strom Thurmond of South Carolina, former South Carolina Governors David Beasley and Carroll Campbell, and the 1996 Lamar Alexander for President campaign. Corporate clients include the Boy Scouts of America, the American Council of Life Insurers, Georgia-Pacific Corporation, Home Depot, America's Health Insurance Plans, AT&T, the Business Council of Alabama, and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
Ayres' comments and analysis appear periodically in The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Los Angeles Times, USA Today, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, ABC Nightly News, NBC News, the Today show, CNN's Inside Politics and Crossfire, National Public Radio, C-SPAN, and numerous regional newspapers.
Before establishing the firm, Ayres served as Senior Executive Assistant for Budget and Policy to Governor Carroll Campbell in South Carolina. He has also served as a tenured member of the political science faculty at the University of South Carolina.
Ayres graduated cum laude from Davidson College in Davidson, North Carolina, with a major in political science. He received an M.A. and Ph.D. in political science from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
He is an active private pilot, flying his Beechcraft Baron throughout the southeast, and he is a member of the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association. He is married to Rebecca I. Ayres, M.D., a pediatric radiologist and they have a daughter, Catherine.
Ann C. Dorsey has been in the corporate communications and external affairs consulting business since 1991.
She served as Director of Corporate Communications for Luster National and Director of Communication for MetLifeís Institutional Disability Division. She also served as Director of Government Relations and External Affairs for Beaulieu Group, LLC from 1995 to 2002. She was active in local, state and national politics from 1994 to 2005.
Dorsey is a founding board member of Awakening Inc.,, a former member of the Board of Governors of the Georgia Public Policy Foundation and a former member of the Georgia Public Telecommunications Commission.
Ann is a resident of Atlanta, Georgia.
R. Todd Gardenhire is a Senior Vice President - Wealth Management with Morgan Stanley Smith Barney in Chattanooga, Tennessee and has been in the investment and financial consulting business since 1976.
Gardenhire was recently appointed by President Bush to Chair the Pension Benefit Guarantee Corporation's Advisory Committee until February, 2010. He was appointed for a full three year term representing the Employer. He is one of only three persons to serve on both the Department of Laborís ERISA Advisory Council and the PBGC's Advisory Committee and the only person to chair both.
Gardenhire has previously served as a member of the ERISA Advisory Council for the U.S. Department of Labor where he served as Chair in 2005. He served as a representative of the Investment Counseling industry from 1985-1988 and served as the representative of Employers from 2002-2005. For his work as Chair of the Working Group in 2003, for which the Default Option in 401(k) resulted, he was nominated by the readers of 'Defined Contribution News' as Washington Impact Player of the Year.
Todd is also a Director of Bethel Bible Village, a home for children of incarcerated parents.
Todd has three children and he lives in Chattanooga, Tennessee.
Mr. Gardenhire's service as a member of the Board of Directors of Awakening is a personal activity and is not part of his business duties.
Rebecca Hagelin is the President and CEO of Rebecca Hagelin Communications and Marketing, LLC. Her company specializes in talk radio ad buys, comprehensive communications, public relations and marketing services, as well as education on the media industry.
Hagelin is also the Executive Vice President of Mpower Media and the Senior Communications Fellow at The Heritage Foundation. She writes a weekly column for The Washington Times and a column for Townhall.com, PatriotPost.US and other websites and national newspapers.
She is the author of two books, Home Invasion: Protecting Your Family in a Culture That's Gone Stark Raving Mad, and 30 Ways in 30 Days to Save Your Family which became a best seller in 2009.
Hagelin served as Heritage's Vice President of Communications and Marketing from 2002-2008 where she expanded the organization's communications, public relations and marketing practices.
Hagelin is a 1983 cum laude graduate of Troy University, where she received Bachelor of Science degrees in Broadcast/Journalism and Social Sciences. Rebecca and her husband, Andy, reside in Arlington, Va., with their two sons and a daughter.
Wade F. Horn, Ph.D., is a director in the public sector practice of Deloitte Consulting, LLP, focusing on helping state governments develop and implement effective and efficient health and human services. Previously, Dr. Horn served for six years as the Assistant Secretary for Children and Families within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. In this position, Dr. Horn oversaw an annual budget of over $46 billion and 68 federal programs aimed at improving the well-being of children and helping families achieve self-sufficiency.
From 1994 to 2001, Dr. Horn was President of the National Fatherhood Initiative and from 1989-1993, Dr. Horn was the Commissioner for Children, Youth and Families, and Chief of the Children's Bureau within the United States Department of Health and Human Services. Dr. Horn also served as a Presidential appointee to the National Commission on Children from 1990-1993, a member of the National Commission on Childhood Disability from 1994-1995, a member of the U.S. Advisory Board on Welfare Indicators from 1996-1997, and a member of the U.S. Advisory Board on Kinship Care from 1998-1999.
Dr. Horn has written numerous articles relevant to children and family issues, and is the co-author of several books. He is also the lead editor of The Fatherhood Movement: A Call To Action. Dr. Horn has also frequently been featured on television and radio as a child development expert and commentator.
Dr. Horn received his Ph.D. in clinical child psychology from Southern Illinois University in 1981. He lives in Gaithersburg, Maryland, with his wife and two daughters.
General Charles C. Krulak served 35 years in the U.S. Marine Corps. His last position was as 31st Commandant of the Marine Corps and as a member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. He completed two tours of duty in Vietnam and then held a variety of command and staff positions. These included deputy director of the White House Military Office, Commanding General, Marine Corps Combat Development Command, Commanding General, 6th Marine Expeditionary Brigade during Desert Storm, and Commanding General of Marine Forces Pacific.
During his military service, General Krulak was awarded numerous medals and decorations including the Defense Distinguished Service Medal, the Silver Star Medal, the Bronze Star Medal with Combat "V" and two gold stars, and the Purple Heart with gold star.
Upon his retirement from the Marine Corps, General Krulak joined MBNA America Bank as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of MBNA Europe Bank, Ltd. After four years in this position, he returned to the U.S. and served as Vice Chairman, MBNA America Bank, as Head of Corporate Development, Mergers and Acquisitions. General Krulak retired from MBNA in June, 2005.
General Krulak currently sits on the Board of Directors for Freeport McMoRan Copper & Gold, Union Pacific Railroad, and is a Director for Aston Villa Football Club, United Kingdom, CEO Forum and Officer Christian Fellowship.
General Krulak is a graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy and has a Masterís Degree in labor relations from George Washington University.
Robert E. Moffit Ph.D. is the Director of the Center for Health Policy Studies at the Heritage Foundation in Washington, D.C, where he has held management posts since 1991.
Moffit has over 30 years experience in Washington, working on Capitol Hill, the Executive Branch and the private sector. Moffit served in the Reagan Administration as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Legislation at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Prior to that appointment, he served as an assistant Director of the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, with responsibilities for both federal and congressional relations.
Moffit has received numerous public service awards and is a frequent guest commentator on television, including the major Networks, as well as The News Hour with Jim Lehrer, Fox News, CNBC, and CNN. Moffit has also published in professional journals such as Health Affairs and the Harvard Health Policy Review, as well as columns in newspapers around the country and abroad, including The Wall Street Journal and The Irish Independent.
Bob and his wife, Barbara, have four children and reside in Severna Park, Maryland.
Rusty Paul is Director of Government Affairs & Public Policy for the Atlanta law firm Arnall Golden Gregory having brought the public policy arm of his firm, iSquared Communications, Inc., inside this Top Ten Atlanta law firm last year.
A former Georgia State Senator representing the northern metropolitan suburbs of Atlanta, Paul worked as the Bush Administration's assistant secretary for congressional & intergovernmental relations and acting assistant secretary of community planning and development under HUD Secretary Jack Kemp.
Upon returning to Atlanta, Paul was elected chairman of the Georgia Republican Party in 1995, where he served two terms and grew the contribution base from 4,000 to 45,000 donors. Under his leadership, the Georgia GOP became one of the nation's most technologically advanced parties, resulting in RNC Chairman Jim Nicholson selecting him as Chairman of the State Chairman's Advisory Board. He recently completed a four-year term on the Sandy Springs city council and decided not to seek re-election.
Rusty is the father of five children and he and his wife, Jan, reside in the Sandy Springs suburb of Atlanta.
Jan Price Taylor earned her Bachelor of Science degree cum laude with a major in education from the University of Tennessee. Upon completion of her degree she followed two generations of women who pursued the teaching profession and taught in the Dekalb County, Georgia gifted program.
Leaving education to help parent a family of four children, Jan immersed herself in family, church and community projects, including serving as president of the Junior League and the Historic Park Commission of Newnan, Georgia.
Jan was instrumental in the reorganization of the Georgia M Day Christmas program, which benefits the mentally handicapped and played a major role in the development of the Newnan Crisis Pregnancy Center, where she also served as an emergency counselor for three years.
Jan has lobbied on the behalf of children and family at United Nations and was the committee co-chair for Christian evangelism for Honduras Outreach Incorporated, an organization that aids the Honduran people in all aspects of life. Jan, and her husband, Ernest, also Co-chair the Atlanta Committee of the Heritage Foundation. She is currently a Vice-President with Beech Hill Group, Incorporated.
Jan and her husband, Ernest, have four children and three granddaughters and a grandson, and reside in Newnan, Georgia.
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