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Harry Harding
Professor, George Washington University

Harry Harding is University Professor of International Affairs at the George Washington University. In 2005-07, he was Director of Research and Analysis at Eurasia Group, a political risk research and consulting firm headquartered in New York.  He remains a Counselor to Eurasia Group and Chair of its China Task Force, and also serves as a Visiting Fellow in the Center on U.S.-China Relations at the Asia Society.

Dr. Harding served as Dean of GW’s Elliott School of International Affairs, and Professor of International Affairs and Political Science, from January 1995 to July 2005.  He has served on the faculties of Swarthmore College (1970-71) and Stanford University (1971-83), was a Senior Fellow in the Foreign Policy Studies Program at the Brookings Institution (1983-94), and was Dean of the Elliott School of International Affairs at The George Washington University (1995-2005).  A specialist on Asia, his major publications include The India-China Relationship: What the United States Needs to Know (co-edited with Francine Frankel, 2004); A Fragile Relationship: The United States and China Since 1972 (1992), Sino-American Relations, 1945-1955: A Joint Reassessment of a Critical Debate (co-edited with Yuan Ming, 1989), China's Second Revolution: Reform After Mao (1987), China’s Foreign Relations in the 1980s (editor, 1984), and Organizing China: The Problem of Bureaucracy, 1949-1976 (1981).   Dr. Harding received his B.A. in public and international affairs from Princeton, and his M.A. and Ph.D. in political science from Stanford.

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Mr. Gene Wilhoit
Executive Director, Council of Chief State School Officers

Currently executive director of the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO), Gene Wilhoit began his career as a social studies teacher in Ohio and Indiana. He served as a program director in the Indiana Department of Education, an administrator in Kanawha County West Virginia, and a special assistant in the U.S. Department of Education before becoming executive director of the National Association of State Boards of Education (NASBE) from 1986–1993.  From 1994-2006, Gene served as director of the Arkansas Department of Education and as deputy commissioner and commissioner of the Kentucky Department of Education. In those positions, he shepherded finance reform, led equity initiatives, designed and implemented assessment and accountability systems, advanced nationally recognized preschool and technology programs, and reorganized state agencies to focus on service and support.Gene holds degrees from Georgetown College and Indiana University.  He is a member of numerous education organizations, has served on national and state commissions, and has written and spoken on a host of education issues.  He and his wife, Rebecca Campbell Wilhoit, have three children, Christopher, Kara and Jason.

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Honorable Erik Paulsen
State Representative, Minnesota

Representative Erik Paulsen has served in the Minnesota House of Representatives since 1994. He represents the city of Eden Prairie, which is located in Hennepin County.

Paulsen has served in several leadership roles during his tenure of public service, including four years as the Minnesota House Majority Leader. He currently serves on the Ways and Means, Taxes, Commerce and Rules committees.

Paulsen’s legislative agenda parallels the initiatives that make Minnesota a great place to live, work and raise a family: a strong economic climate for job growth, a fairly-funded and accountable education system, a well-preserved environment, safe communities, and tax reform for taxpayers and businesses.

As a State Representative, Paulsen has authored key laws that have enhanced and preserved Minnesota’s well-reputed quality of life including: education equity funding, Wildlife Management Area acquisition, a DNA database for all felony arrests, a Chinese Mandarin curriculum program for Minnesota’s schools, and the Gift of Life income tax credit for organ donors.

For his legislative accomplishments and leadership, Paulsen was honored as an Aspen Institute Rodel Fellow in Public Leadership. He also was selected as a Fellow for the German Marshall Memorial Fellowship program as well as the Young Leaders Forum by the National Committee on U.S. – China Relations. Paulsen has been recognized by the Taxpayers League of Minnesota, National Federation of Independent Business, Minnesota Retailers Association, and is a recipient of the Wildlife Heritage Award.

Paulsen brings 14 years of diverse business experience to the State Capitol. He is currently employed in project management with a Fortune 100 company. He also has in-depth political experience having served as Congressman Jim Ramstad’s legislative assistant in Washington, D.C. and state director.

Paulsen received his BA degree in Mathematics from St. Olaf College. He serves on the Minneapolis Institute of Arts Board of Trustees and is a board member of both the “A Better Chance Foundation” as well as for the “Habitat for Technology” organization. He is also a volunteer for the Learning Exchange, an organization that assists people with disabilities.

Paulsen lives in Eden Prairie with his wife Kelly and their four daughters.

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Robert A. Davis Jr.
Director, Confucius Institute (Chicago)

Robert Davis was born in Chicago’s south side and graduated from Northern Illinois History, where he studied Chinese art history, Chinese philosophy and Chinese language. In 1997 Robert moved to Xi’an in central China where he lived for two years and taught English to adult scientists and researchers at the Xi’an International Studies University. During this stay in China, Robert traveled extensively throughout the region and developed a keen interest in contemporary Chinese culture, especially the education system. In 1999 Robert returned to Chicago and became the first Asian world languages program coordinator for Chicago Public Schools (CPS). He now serves as the Director of the Confucius Institute in Chicago and the CPS Chicago’s Chinese Connection Program. In 2002 he was awarded a full scholarship from the Chinese government to study Chinese language and culture at Peking University. He has lead 9 education cultural immersion programs to China, with over 100 teachers and administrators having participated. In October 2004 Robert accompanied Mayor Richard M. Daley to Shanghai and Shenyang, China as his education representative, and facilitated in the signing of an Agreement of Cooperation between the Chicago Public Schools and the Chinese Ministry of Education. In May 2006 he returned to China with Mayor Daley to expand collaboration between Chicago and China, which included meetings with Minister of Education, Zhou Ji. He is a frequent lecturer on the subject of Chinese language education development in the United States, and has spoken at the Asia Society in New York, The First World Conference on the Teaching of Chinese as a Foreign Language (Beijing), The Institute on International Education (Washington DC), the University of Chicago and the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (several occasions). In October 2007 Robert participated in the Asia 21 Summit in Singapore which brought together the Asia Society elected top 200 leaders under 40 in the world to discuss issues facing Asian nations and the greater world. Robert is an avid supporter of language education and an advocate for an increase in International education programs in America’s public schools.

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Vishakha N. Desai
President, Asia Society

Vishakha N. Desai is President and CEO of Asia Society, a global educational organization dedicated to deepening connections among the peoples of Asia and the United States. She sets the directions for the Society's diverse set of programs—in the areas of policy, business, arts, culture and education—throughout the Society's network of centers in the U.S. and in Asia. She is a frequent speaker and commentator in the media, addressing cultural, social, educational, business, and policy trends and their implications for the U.S.-Asia relationship and Asian regional ties.

Appointed President in 2004, Dr. Desai conceptualized and presided over the organization's fiftieth anniversary celebrations in 2006, marked by high-profile activities and expansive fundraising initiatives. As a result of these efforts, the Society is expanding the scope and scale of its activities, particularly in Asia, including a new India Centre in Mumbai (formerly Bombay), which opened in 2006, and planned multi-million-dollar physical facilities in Hong Kong and Houston.

Prior to her appointment as President, Dr. Desai served as Asia Society’s Senior Vice President and Director of the Museum and Cultural Programs. In this position, she managed the Society’s $40 million renovation of its New York City headquarters. As Museum Director, Dr. Desai built an international reputation for introducing contemporary Asian art to a broad audience and using it to illuminate historical trends and their influence on the development of society. A scholar of classical Indian art, she has published numerous catalogues and scholarly articles and is widely recognized for conceiving innovative exhibitions of traditional Asian art within strong cultural contexts. She was also at the forefront of the Society’s integration of Asian American issues into its public programming.

Prior to joining the Asia Society in 1990, Dr. Desai was a curator at The Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. She also taught at the University of Massachusetts, Boston University, Columbia University, and Williams College.

Dr. Desai holds a B.A. in political science from Bombay University and an M.A. and Ph.D. in Asian Art History from the University of Michigan. The recipient of numerous grants and fellowships, Dr. Desai was awarded an honorary doctorate from Susquehanna University in 1996. She was also awarded the Asian American of the Year Award by the University of Massachusetts, and by Asian Americans for Equality, and is a recipient of the National Institute of Social Sciences Gold Medal.

Dr. Desai serves on the boards of The Brookings Institution, Citizens Committee for New York City, Asian University for Women, and the New York City Advisory Commission for Cultural Affairs. She served as the President of the Association of Art Museum Directors (AAMD) in 1998-99, and was on the Board from 1995-2000. She has also served on the Boards of the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, LEAP (Leadership Education for Asian Pacifics), the South Asian Council of the Association of Asian Studies, the College Art Association, ArtTable, and the Massachusetts Foundation for the Humanities.

Dr. Desai is married to Robert B. Oxnam, a China scholar, who was Asia Society's President from 1981 to 1992.

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His Excellency Zhou Wenzhong
Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the People's Republic of to the United States

His Excellency Zhou Wenzhong has served as ambassador to the United States since 2005. A native of Jiangsu Province, Zhou is an experienced diplomat who has helped shape China’s relationship with the United States in various roles dating back to the 1980s. After studying in England, he joined the Department of Translation and Interpretation in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1975. In 1987, he was named consul general for the Chinese Consulate in San Francisco, and in 1990, was appointed ambassador to Barbados, Antigua and Barbuda. In 1993, Zhou served as director-general of the Department of American Affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, subsequently as consul general in Los Angeles in 1994 and Minister of the Chinese Embassy to the U.S. in 1995. Zhou was ambassador to Australia from 1998 to 2001, before returning to serve as assistant minister and then vice minister at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

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E Gordon Gee, among the most highly experienced and respected university presidents in the nation, returned to The Ohio State University after having served as Chancellor of Vanderbilt University for seven years. Prior to his tenure at Vanderbilt, he was president of Brown University (1998-2000), The Ohio State University (1990-97), the University of Colorado (1985-90), and West Virginia University (1981-85).

Born in Vernal, Utah, Gee graduated from the University of Utah with an honors degree in history and earned his J.D. and Ed.D degrees from Columbia University. He clerked under Chief Justice David T. Lewis of the U.S. 10th Circuit Court of Appeals before being named a judicial fellow and staff assistant to the U.S. Supreme Court, where he worked for Chief Justice Warren Burger on administrative and legal problems of the Court and federal judiciary. Gee returned to Utah as an associate professor and associate dean in the J. Reuben Clark Law School at Brigham Young University, eventually achieving the rank of full professor. In 1979 he was named dean of the West Virginia University Law School, and in 1981 was appointed to that university’s presidency.

Active in a number of national professional and service organizations, Gee served as a Trustee for the Harry S. Truman Scholarship Foundation and as chairman of the Kellogg Commission on the Future of State and Land Grant Universities. He is a member of the National Commission on Writing for America's Families, Schools, and Colleges, founded by the College Board to improve the teaching and learning of writing. He also serves on the NCAA Presidential Taskforce on the Future of Intercollegiate Athletics.

Gee is a member of the Board of Governors of the National Hospice Foundation, the Advisory Board of the Christopher Isherwood Foundation, and the Board of Trustees of the Christopher Columbus Fellowship Foundation, an independent Federal government agency established to “encourage and support research, study and labor designed to produce new discoveries in all fields of endeavor for the benefit of mankind.” He also is a member of the Business-Higher Education Forum.

Gee has received a number of honorary degrees, awards, and recognitions. He was a Mellon Fellow for the Aspen Institute for Humanistic Studies and a W.K. Kellogg Fellow. In 1994, he received the Distinguished Alumnus Award from the University of Utah as well as from Teachers College of Columbia University. He is the co-author of eight books and the author of numerous papers and articles on law and education.

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You Shaozhong

Minister Counselor of the Education Office of the Embassy of the People's Republic of China in the United States of America

Dr. Shaozhong You graduated from the University of International Business and Economics with a bachelor’s degree in commercial economics in Beijing, China. He earned a master's degree from the Thunderbird Graduate School of International Management in Arizona and holds a PhD of economics from Wuhan University in China. He received professional training and practice at Johnson & Johnson International and the World Bank headquarters.

Dr. You taught international business and trade strategy as an assistant professor at the University of International Business and Economics from 1983 to 1986. From 1986 to 1990, he worked as program officer and deputy director of the Projects Division at the Office of Foreign Investment and Loan, State Education Commission of the People's Republic of China. Dr. You then served as assistant director general of the Office of Foreign Investment and Loan, State Education Commission, from 1990 to 1992.  From 1992 to 1996, he served as deputy director general of the Office of Foreign Investment and Loan, State Education Commission. After years of international business and international educational investment, Dr. You started his foreign service for education diplomacy as chief consul at the consulate general of the People's Republic of China in Chicago, from 1996-2000.

Upon returning to China in 2000, he served as deputy secretary general of the Chinese Education Association for International Exchange, Ministry of Education of the People's Republic of China. He then became secretary general of the Education Association for International Exchange, Ministry of Education, from 2001 until June 2005.

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Betsi Shays
Director, National Security Language Initiative

Betsi Shays spent 27 years teaching 1st - 10th graders, including two years in the Fiji Islands as a Peace Corps Volunteer with her husband, Chris.   She worked at the Peace Corps from 1998-2007, running Peace Corp's global education program for U.S. kids and teachers and then served as Director for the Center for Field Assistance and Applied Research.  The Center supports programming and training at over 70 posts around the world.

Along the way she earned a masters and masters of education degrees in educational leadership and administration at Columbia University, Teachers College.

Currently she's working at the Department of Education in the Office of Postsecondary Education as Director of President Bush's National Security Language Initiative – a joint effort among the departments of Education, State, Defense, and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence to dramatically increase the number and proficiency level of Americans speaking critical foreign languages.

The Shays have one terrific daughter, Jeramy, who finishes a four year joint program in law and environmental policy in May, 2008.

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Robert O. Slater
Director, National Security Education Program

Dr. Robert Slater joined the National Security Education Program (NSEP) in 1992 and has served as its Director since 1996.  As Director of NSEP he oversees the program’s aggressive efforts to expand opportunities for U.S. students to study in and about areas and languages of the world critical to national security.  He is also the principal architect of NSEP’s National Flagship Language Program, a major partnership between the federal government and higher education designed to graduate higher proficiency students in critical languages. Dr. Slater has also developed the concept for new federal National Language Service Corps designed to address needs for language expertise throughout the federal sector.

Prior to joining NSEP, Dr. Slater directed a series of programs for the federal government designed to improve relationships between the higher education and federal sectors on issues related to the Third World.  Dr. Slater has served as Chair of the national security community’s Foreign Language Committee and represented the federal government on numerous panels and commissions to address foreign language education issues in the U.S.

Dr. Slater earned a Doctorate in International Affairs from the School of International Service, The American University, in 1975.  He earned a B.A. in English from St. Lawrence University.  He has published numerous books and articles on international politics, specializing on issues related to globalization. 

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Laura Murray
Acting Technical Director for Area Studies and STARTALK Program Team
Center for Language and Area Studies, National Cryptologic School
U.S. Department of Defense

Dr. Laura K. Murray, a career employee of the Department of Defense, has held numerous positions in the language field, including language analysis, training, and research, and has served at several locations in the U.S. and overseas. Most recently, from January 2006 to February, 2008, she served at the Office of the Director of National Intelligence as ODNI Senior Language Officer and Director, ODNI Foreign Language Program Office. In this capacity she was responsible for launching the STARTALK program under the National Security Language Initiative in 2007. Dr. Murray was born in Washington, D.C. She earned a B.A. in Anthropology from Rice University, Houston, Texas, and a Ph.D. in Modern Chinese History from the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She has also studied at the Inter-University Program (Stanford Center) in Taipei, Taiwan, and at Northwest University, in Xi'an, China.



David Plack
Special Assistant to the Deputy Assistant Secretary, U.S. Department of State

David Plack serves as the Special Assistant to the Deputy Assistant
Secretary for Academic Programs in the U.S. Department of State's Bureau
of Educational and Cultural Affairs. His office is responsible for
academic programs sponsored by the U.S. Department of State, including
the Fulbright Program for students and scholars from the U.S. and more
than 150 countries around the world, the Gilman scholarship program for
U.S. undergraduate students studying abroad, State Department programs
under the National Security Language Initiative, English language
programs, and international student advising. David came to the U.S.
Department of State from the U.S. Agency for International Development.
He has previously held positions with the Institute of International
Education, JP Morgan, the Peace Corps, and the Organization for Security
and Cooperation in Europe. David earned his Masters degree in Public
Administration from Katholieke University in Belgium and his Bachelors
degree from North Carolina State University.

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Cynthia Ryan
Director, Discretionary Grants Division, Office of English Language Acquisition, U.S. Department of Education (ED)

As Director for Discretionary Grant Programs, Cynthia oversees monitoring, technical assistance and program planning for the Office of English Language Acquisition (OELA) discretionary grant programs:  the Foreign Language Assistance Program, the National Professional Development Program, and the Native American and Alaska Native Children in School Program. 

Before that she served as OELA Program Manager for the National Professional Development Program, responsible for planning program competitions, providing technical assistance to grantees, and advising the Director on national priorities related to the needs of teachers of English language learners. 

Before jointing the Department of Education Cynthia taught English as a second language to adults in Fairfax County, Virginia.

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