Joyce Aboussie
CEO of Aboussie & Associates

Joyce Aboussie is the CEO of Aboussie & Associates, a strategic consulting firm dedicated to bringing a campaign mentality to a corporate world. Aboussie is also President of Telephone Contact Inc., one of Missouri’s largest voter contact, research and telemarketing firms. Clients have included numerous senate and house candidates, county office holders, mayors, county executives, governors, members of Congress and presidential candidates.  

Leslie Bradshaw
President & Director of Operations, JESS3
JESS3

Since graduating Phi Beta Kappa from the University of Chicago in 2004, Leslie has been working with social technologies to develop and execute award-winning strategies for Fortune 500 companies, non-profits, high-profile individuals and advocacy groups. For the last three years, Leslie has served as the President and Director of Operations of JESS3 (a creative agency that specializes in social media-driven design, development and data visualization), while also leading a variety of trade group, media and technology accounts as the Director of Engagement for New Media Strategies.

Bringing the NMS and JESS3 teams together, Leslie she has helped produce dozens of critically-acclaimed projects including the Webby-nominated C-SPAN Debate Hub (and the C-SPAN Convention Hubs for the DNC and RNC, National Journal’s 3121, Tropicana’s An Orange America, Save the Children's Mission Pneumonia, the NMS Twitter Directory and the Ad Council's My Ad Council.

Leslie's background also includes growing up on a farm, helping found her family's vineyard (Bradshaw Vineyards and serving as both the Director of New Media as well as a senior writer and producer for the McLaughlin Group TV show. As was the case when she lived on her family’s farm, Leslie enjoys long days of meaningful work with talented people.

Valorie Burton
Life Coach
Inspire Inc.

A personal and executive coach who has served hundreds of clients in 40 states and seven countries, Valorie Burton is the author of five books on personal development, including How Did I Get So Busy?, Listen to Your Life, and What’s Really Holding You Back? Her mission is inspiring people to live more fulfilling lives and experience their potential – at work and home. She often helps readers and audiences get unstuck, be more productive, and live with balance, purpose and authenticity. Her Life Coach 911 blog appears on Essence.com and she is co-host of the Emmy award-winning show Aspiring Women. She has also appeared in and on CNN, the LA Times, Oprah Magazine, Essence, Real Simple, Woman’s Day and others. Success Magazine named her book Why Not You? 28 Days to Authentic Confidence one of the “Top 25 must-read success books” and Leadership Excellence named her one of the top 100 thought leaders in the field of personal development.

Organizations such as American Airlines, BlueCross BlueShield, the Environmental Protection Agency, FDIC and “O” The Oprah Magazine have hired her as a speaker. Her e-newsletter inspires more than 27,000 subscribers each week. Ms. Burton has a master’s degree in Applied Positive Psychology from the University of Pennsylvania, a master’s degree in journalism from Florida A&M University and a BA from Florida State University.

Maxine Clark is one of the true innovators in the retail industry. In 1997, she founded Build-A-Bear Workshop. Today there are more than 400 Build-A-Bear Workshop stores worldwide, including company-owned stores in the U.S., Puerto Rico, Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland and France, and franchise stores in Europe, Asia, Australia and Africa. In 2008, Maxine was named one of The 25 Most Influential People in Retailing by Chain Store Age; in 2006, she was inducted into the Junior Achievement National Business Hall of Fame and received the 2006 Luminary Award for Entrepreneurial Achievement from the Committee of 200. Maxine was named one of the Wonder Women of Toys by Playthings magazine and Women in Toys, and was also one of the National Finalists in Retail for the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year 2004. Build-A-Bear Workshop® was named to the 2009 FORTUNE Best Companies to Work For® list.

Maxine is a member of the Board of Directors of The J.C. Penney Company, Inc., and serves on the Board of Trustees of Washington University in St. Louis. She is Chair of Teach For America St. Louis and a member of the Teach For America National Board. She is a member of the KETC Channel 9 PBS Board of Directors. She is also a member of the Committee of 200. Maxine is a graduate of the University of Georgia, and holds an Honorary Doctor of Laws degree from St. Louis University. In 2006, she published her first book, The Bear Necessities of Business: Building a Company with Heart.

A pioneer in integrating marketing communications and community affairs for sports teams, businesses and non-profits, Allison Hawk Collinger brings an innovative approach to strategic communications, emerging media, community issues and non-profit management. From rebranding GO! St. Louis to creating the Coro Connected Women Speaker Series to helping secure approval on the Edward Jones Dome, Collinger's impact on the regional landscape is significant. Collinger is known for empowering her clients and finding cutting-edge solutions as she creates programs to meet their needs. In 2009, she introduced a popular Social Media workshop series, and has trained and counseled individuals from a range of St. Louis organizations to leverage these new tools. Prior to forming her own company in 2007, she served as an executive with the St. Louis Rams and Rams Foundation as well as Fleishman-Hillard, Inc.

Claire Gaudiani, PhD, is a highly quotable champion of American generosity who appears regularly in the national media. Gaudiani authored The Greater Good, the recently completed Generosity Rules!, a guide to personal generosity, and the forthcoming Women Social Entrepreneurs.

She is currently professor of Philanthropy at New York University. Gaudiani served for 13 years as President of Connecticut College. She is a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, a Director of The Henry Luce Foundation, MBIA Inc. and The National Council for Economic Education. She is the recipient of ten honorary doctorates and of the Rosso Medal for distinguished service to philanthropy.

She and her husband, David Burnett, have two children and three grandchildren.

As one of television’s premier journalists, Charlayne Hunter-Gault has made a success of challenging convention with her fresh insights on issues both close to home and of global impact.

As CNN’s former Johannesburg Bureau Chief and Correspondent, Hunter-Gault introduced viewers to the people of the diverse continent of Africa, a country she once called “one of the greatest challenges that we in the media face.” She spent 20 years at PBS, as National Correspondent for The News Hour with Jim Lehrer, where she also anchored the award-winning newsmagazine on human rights, Rights and Wrongs.

Hunter-Gault is the author of New News Out of Africa: What Africa Means to Me and In My Place, a memoir of her role in the civil rights movement as the first black woman admitted to the University of Georgia.

Hunter-Gault began her career as the first African American reporter for The New Yorker. A writer known for her “people-centered” journalism, she went on to serve as the Harlem Bureau Chief for The New York Times and has written articles for Essence, Ms., Life, and O, The Oprah Magazine.

The recipient of numerous honors, including two Emmy Awards and two Peabody Awards, she writes with the highest standards of objectivity and truth on topics ranging from the life of a 12-year old heroin addict to the invasion of Grenada, and the impact of apartheid in South Africa.

Kate came to United Way in June of 2007. The first person in her position, Kate has moved United Way to the forefront of nonprofits using social media in the region. She is responsible for all electronic communications from United Way, including e-newsletters, social media and the Web site.
 
She was named to the 2009 class of the St. Louis Business Journal’s 30 Under 30 and received the Rookie of the Year award from the Community Service Public Relations Council in 2008. In her free time, she is working with The Luminary, a nonprofit arts center in the Tower Grove neighborhood, to start a program to offer dance classes to underprivileged youth. Kate graduated magna cum laude from the School of Journalism at the University of Missouri in 2005.

With nearly 20 years of industry experience, Elizabeth is a Financial Advisor with Wells Fargo Advisors, an Accredited Asset Management Specialist (AAMS), and is currently completing her coursework for her Certified Divorce Financial Analyst (CDFA) designation. Elizabeth focuses on families, foundations, and women who are in the process of, or who are recently divorced. She understands that clients seek confidence in the investment process and works from her client's perspective to set and execute appropriate investment strategies and legacy planning. Elizabeth works as her clients personal "CFO" and strives to deliver service beyond expectations.

Elizabeth is an active member of the St. Louis community sitting on the boards of both Urban Future and the Missouri Baptist Medical Center Foundation. She is also an active volunteer within the Wells Fargo Advisors Community Affairs events department. She and her husband, Bill, have boy-girl twins currently in law school and graduate school.

Caroline A. Morgan, MD

Dr. Morgan is an obstetrician-gynecologist with Women’s Health Care, Inc., whose offices are located at St. Luke’s Hospital. Dr. Morgan earned her medical degree from Medical College of Ohio and completed post-graduate training at Washington University, affiliated with Barnes Jewish Hospital. She is board-certified in obstetrics-gynecology.

Dr. Morgan joined Women’s Health Care, Inc. in 2006. She enjoys working with young patients and new technology.

Anika Porter

Amassing over 10,000 hours of training and teaching in the fitness industry, exhibits not only a passion for fitness but a commitment to growth as well. And, she has shared her commitment to help people develop a healthier lifestyle with women, seniors, and youth in over 5 states as well as internationally.
 
Anika Porter is a graduate of the St. Louis College of Health Careers, and has continued her fitness training through Les Mills and Mindy Mylrea Training. She is certified and trained to teach Turbo Kick, Hip Hop Hustle, Yoga, Group Exercise, Personal Training, and Spinning.  She enjoys teaching Kick boxing, Cycling, Aerobics, Women on Weights, Stretch and Flex, Step, Body Sculpting, and Boot Camp classes.  Through her dedication and love of the fitness industry Anika has inspired, mentored, and motivates several fitness instructors.
 
Prior to starting Fitness With Anika in 2008, she worked for several local gyms (The Heights Recreation Center, St. Ann Recreation Center, West County YMCA, and Santé Fitness at the Chase) where she was instrumental in designing and teaching Group Exercise classes.  In deed, her creative and motivational teaching style lead to her classes being packed to capacity.
 
Fitness with Anika can also be experienced in the corporate community, whereby she is committed to helping corporations to reduce their cost and increase their employee morale and productivity.  She has taught Group Exercise for Anheuser Busch, U.S. Postal Service, St. Louis Public Schools, Monsanto, Ameren, Wachovia, Pfizea and Wells Fargo.  In this capacity she has conducted Health Fairs, administered fitness assessments, provided fitness demos, and actively recruited employees to participate in Corporate Fitness Programs.
 
Anika has also developed a fitness program for Believers Temple Word Fellowship Church, and participated in an international missions ministry fitness walk in Sierra Leone, West Africa.  She also organized and developed a Fitness Challenge for the Minority Youth in Construction Program at Washington University.  In addition, she has volunteered for the Youth Lifeline American Free Football & Life Skills Camp as well as several fitness events locally such as, St. Louis Hooked on Health Expo, Susan Komen Breast Cancer Marathon, and Celebrate Fitness – Washington University.
 
Fitness with Anika has coordinated several “Fitness Parties” at COCA and the Height Recreation Center.  These parties are designed to motivate and inspire participants to develop a healthier lifestyle by introducing them to a variety of fitness activities. Through these events she has been able to inspire all participants, from the fitness novice to the fitness enthusiast.  Anika now tours nationally with her “Best Body Ever Tour 2010” with a goal of spreading her zeal for fitness, just as she has done in corporate arenas, internationally churches and community settings. Anika is truly Passion Personified!

Ann L. Wagner
U.S. Ambassador to the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg

Following nomination by President George W. Bush and confirmation by the U.S. Senate, Ann Wagner was sworn in as the 19th U.S. Ambassador to Luxembourg by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on August 1st, 2005, in Washington, D.C. She served as US Ambassador for four years until July, 2009.
 
Previously, Ann Wagner was Co-Chair of the Republican National Committee (RNC) for two terms and also held the position of Chair of the Missouri Republican Party for more than six years. She served for nine years as a local committeewoman in Lafayette Township, Missouri.
 
In the private sector, she held management positions at Hallmark Cards in Kansas City, Missouri, and Ralston Purina in St. Louis, Missouri.
 
A graduate of the University of Missouri-Columbia, Ambassador Wagner earned a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration, attending university on a vocal music scholarship.
 
Ambassador Wagner’s spouse, Ray Wagner, serves as Legal & Legislative Vice President at Enterprise Holdings in St. Louis.  The Wagners have three children: Raymond III, Stephen and Mary Ruth.