Board of Visitors

The Political Science Department Board of Visitors Board volunteers its time to help the Department increase career, internship, and other opportunities for students; promote the Department's image and identity; and support development and outreach. The Board's members, who serve three-year terms, are alumni and Department friends who have excelled in a wide variety of careers and pursuits.

Members of the Board of Visitors

Former members

David Adamany (1963 MS Political Science, 1967 Ph.D. Political Science)

David Adamany is Chancellor and Laura Carnell Professor of Law and Political Science at Temple University. He previously served as president at Temple and at Wayne State University in Detroit. Adamany served as Wisconsin Secretary of Revenue and in other state government positions in Wisconsin and Michigan. He is a Wisconsin native and holds an M.S. and Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin Madison.

Robert Barnett (1968 BA English/History)

Robert Barnett is a senior partner with the Washington, D.C., law firm Williams & Connolly LLP. He represents major corporations and individuals in litigation matters, corporate work, contracts, crisis management, transactions, government relations, and media relations. He has served as debate adviser for eight Democratic presidential and vice presidential campaigns, including Walter Mondale, Geraldine Ferraro, Michael Dukakis, Bill Clinton, John Edwards, Joe Lieberman and Hillary Clinton. During his almost 30 years of practice, he has represented clients before almost every executive department and administrative agency in Washington, D.C. He represents hundreds of authors, including Barack Obama, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, James Patterson, Daniel Silva, Dick Cheney, and Hillary Clinton. He also represents televisions news correspondents, including Brian Williams, Lesley Stahl, Sam Donaldson, and his wife, Rita Braver of CBS News. He earned a bachelors degree in English and History from the University of Wisconsin, Madison.

Ron Bonjean (1993 BA Political Science)

Ron Bonjean is the first person to serve as the lead spokesman in both the United States House of Representatives and the United States Senate. Before leaving Capitol Hill to start the full service public affairs firms of Singer Bonjean Strategies and The Bonjean Company, Ron was chief of staff to the Senate Republican Conference under Senator Jon Kyl. Previously he was a top strategist and adviser for House Republicans as director of communications to then-Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert. He also served as press secretary to Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott and director of public affairs under U.S. Secretaries of Commerce Don Evans and Carlos Gutierrez.

Rita Braver (1970 BA Political Science)

As a national correspondent for CBS News Sunday Morning, Rita Braver reports on everything from arts to national politics to foreign policy. Prior to that, Braver worked for CBS News as Chief White House correspondent during the Clinton administration. At Sunday Morning she has filed stories on Doomsday Scenarios, the Rise of the Blogosphere, Dr. Jill Biden and Attorney General Eric Holder. She has also reported a series of personality profiles on designers including Giorgio Armani, Business leaders such Barry Diller, and entertainment like Smokey Robinson, Harrison Ford, and Annette Benning. Her honors include five Emmy Awards, a star award from American Women in Radio and Television, and Mother of the Year from the National Mothers' Day Committee. She holds a bachelors degree in political science from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She is married to attorney Robert Barnett, also a Wisconsin Grad.

Stephen F. Brenton (1975 BA Political Science)

Steve joined the Wisconsin Hospital Association in January 2002 and serves as the Association's president/CEO. Steve worked for WHA earlier in his career, serving as the Association's Senior Vice President for Government Relations before departing for Charleston, West Virginia in 1988 to become president of the West Virginia Hospital Association. In 1992, Steve returned to the Midwest and served as president of the Iowa Hospital Association until his return to Madison in 2002. Steve's professional background focuses heavily on federal and state government relations and advocacy. He currently serves as a board member of the Wisconsin Collaborative for Healthcare Quality, the Wisconsin Health Information Organization, SmokeFree Wisconsin and the UW Population Health Institute Advisory Board. He is also active on a number of committees of the American Hospital Association. Steve is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin, Madison (Political Science - 1975).

Edward B. Cohen (Career/Internship Committee Chair) (1971 BA Political Science)

Edward B. Cohen is vice president for government and industry relations for Honda North America. Prior to joining Honda, he served as deputy solicitor for the U.S. Department of the Interior; a partner at Davis Wright Tremaine; deputy special assistant to President Jimmy Carter; and counsel for the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce. He received his bachelor's degree in political science from the University of Wisconsin, Madison and a law degree from Georgetown University.

Richard A. Davies (1979 BA Political Science/Economics)

Mr. Davies is the Managing Director, Defined Contributions for Russell Investments. Mr. Davies is responsible for the overall leadership and strategic direction of Russell's U.S. institutional defined contribution business. He joined Russell in 2011 from AllianceBernstein where, over a 15-year career, he led the company's institutional defined contribution, retail retirement and college savings businesses as well as served as head of global marketing and product management, and led several business lines and distribution channels for the company's mutual funds group. Mr. Davies joined Alliance in 1995 from First Chicago Corporation, where he served as President of retail investment services and as a Managing Director of First Chicago Investment Management Company. Prior to joining First Chicago in 1989, he was a strategy consultant and manager with The Boston Consulting Group. He worked in brand management for Procter & Gamble before graduate school.
Mr. Davies received a BA in Economics, with Honors, from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and his MBA from the Harvard Business School. He serves on the University of Wisconsin Madison Advisory Committee of the Economics Department. Mr. Davies serves on the Executive Committee and chairs the Investment Policy Committee for the Defined Contribution Institutional Investment Association. He also serves as the Manhattan Borough President for the Greater New York Councils, Boy Scouts of America.

George C. Edwards III (1970 MA Political Science, 1973 Ph.D. Political Science)

George C. Edwards III is University Distinguished Professor of Political Science at Texas A&M University and holds the Jordan Chair in Presidential Studies. A leading scholar of the presidency, he has written or edited 25 books on American politics. Professor Edwards has served as president of the Presidency Research Section of the American Political Science Association, which has named its annual Dissertation Prize in his honor and awarded him its Career Service Award.
He has held visiting appointments at Oxford, Sciences-Po, Paris, University of London, Peking University, Hebrew University in Jerusalem, and West Point. He has also advised leaders in a number of other countries and frequently comments on politics in the national press. Mr. Edwards received his BA from Stetson University, his MA and PhD in political science from the University of Wisconsin, Madison.

Jeffrey Gershman (1970 BA Political Science, JD 1973 Law)

Jeffrey is a shareholder with the law firm Stone, Leyton & Gershman. His practice areas include: real estate, general business and tax law. Jeffrey is a member of the Bar Association of Metropolitan St. Louis, the Missouri Bar, the District of Columbia Bar and the American Bar Association.. He attended the University of Wisconsin Madison where he received his B.A. with Distinction, 1970; and J.D. 1973.

Gayle Haller (1979 BS Political Science)

Gayle Haller is a consultant for the National Executive Service Corp. After earning her master's of business administration from the University of Chicago, she spent her career with Motorola in a variety of marketing management roles. She led data product and network product marketing for the launch of the Nextel cellular phone and directed the marketing effort for a line of next generation cellular phones. After moving to New York, she remained with the company as a consultant. She received a bachelor's degree in political science from the University of Wisconsin, Madison.
She is also President of The Community Fund, a non-profit organization that provides grants and technical support to non-profit agencies serving residents of Bronxville, Eastchester and Tuckahoe, NY .

Eliot S. Jubelirer (1971 BA Political Science)

Eliot S. Jubelirer is a partner in the San Francisco office of Schiff Hardin LLP where his practice focuses on complex commercial, product liability, and legal malpractice litigation. He has tried numerous jury trials, court trials, and arbitrations to verdict. He is an adviser on a national level on toxic tort issues for clients involved in mass tort litigation and is a nationally recognized speaker on toxic torts, occupational lung injuries, and asbestos litigation. Before joining Schiff Hardin, he was a founding partner in the San Francisco litigation firm of Morgenstein & Jubelirer where he practiced for 25 years until the firm combined with Schiff in 2007. Eliot earned a bachelor's degree in political science in 1971 from the University of Wisconsin, Madison and a law degree in 1974 from the University of California, Berkeley.

Amed Khan (1991 BA Political Science)

Amed Khan is the President of Paradigm Global Group Inc., a private investment firm, and serves as senior advisor to the Clinton-Giustra Sustainable Growth Initiative. His career includes many positions in the federal government including Special Assistant to the Director of the U.S. Peace Corps. He served as Chief Operating Officer and Director of Administration for the 1997 Presidential Inaugural Committee and managed planning for the Democratic National Convention and Presidential Debates as Deputy Chief Operating Officer of the Clinton/Gore '96 campaign. He also worked for the International Rescue Committee (IRC) in Tanzania where he was Chief Administrator/Logistician for Rwandan and Burundian refugee camps. He holds a bachelors degree in Political Science from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Tracey Klein (1990 BA Political Science)

Tracey L. Klein is a shareholder in the firm, Reinhart Boerner Van Deurens' Health Care Practice. Ms. Klein has served as general counsel to acute care hospitals, multiprovider health care systems, multispecialty clinics, managed care companies and health insurance companies for more than 20 years. She has experience in regional and national transactions involving health care providers and insurance companies including the formation of joint operating entities, hospital affiliations and mergers, the formation of physician group practices and the formation and reorganization of insurance companies. Ms. Klein has significant experience in the area of corporate governance. Ms. Klein routinely provides legal support and counsel to health system Boards of Directors, as well as the compensation, governance and nominating committees. Ms. Klein conducts frequent educational sessions on D&O coverage, audit committee and accounting issues, as well as on the requirements imposed on publicly traded companies by the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. Ms. Klein attended the 2003 Kellogg School of Management Program on "Strategies for Improving Directors' Effectiveness."

Laura Lake (1967 BA Political Science)

A former Ford Foundation program officer in Resources and the Environment, and UCLA faculty member, she is an environmental professional, community advocate, author, and expert on public involvement in policy implementation. Laura is president of Lake & Lake Consulting, Inc., which provides strategic research for communities challenging inappropriate development and working with developers who want to make their projects compatible with communities. She is frequently quoted in the LA Times as a leading voice for effectively battling the City Hall bureaucracy and has testified at every level of government: Congress, Sacramento and City Hall. Recently Laura lead the successful campaign to stop the sale of Los Angeles municipal garages.

Kathy N. Lefco (1971 BA Political Science)

A law librarian since 1975, Kathy Lefco served for more than fifteen years as firmwide director of library services at Chicago-based Winston & Strawn LLP, retiring in 2010. Previous positions include senior legal reference librarian at Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP in New York City, assistant librarian at Kaye Scholer LLP, also in Manhattan, as well as reader services librarian at the Wisconsin State Law Library in Madison. In addition to serving on the Board of Visitors, Kathy was invited to join the Thomson West Advisory Board, a committee of leaders in the librarian community who provide information on West products and services from the law firm perspective. She received her bachelor's degree in political science at the University of Wisconsin - Madison and her master of arts in library science at the University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee.

Jeffrey Lyons (1978 BS Political Science)

Formerly the president of Charles Schwab's $400 billion asset management business, Jeffrey Lyons now focuses his energy on community involvement and board service. Jeff worked for 22 years at Schwab in a variety of marketing, strategy and general management jobs and served on their Executive Committee. He received his bachelor's degree in political science from the University of Wisconsin, Madison and his masters in business administration from the University of California-Berkeley.

Laura Miller (1980 BA Political Science / Journalism)

Among her accomplishments as Mayor of Dallas from 2002 to 2007, Laura Miller formed a statewide coalition of elected officials to oppose the construction of 18 old-technology coal plants in Texas - an effort memorialized in an award-winning Robert Redford documentary entitled "Fighting Goliath." Her environmental leadership as Mayor led to her current position as Director of Projects, Texas, for Seattle-based Summit Power Group, which is developing the world's first clean-coal IGCC power plant with 90 percent carbon capture in West Texas. Before being elected Mayor, Laura served three-and-a-half years on the Dallas City Council and worked for 18 years prior to that as an award-winning newspaper columnist and investigative reporter in Dallas, Miami and New York. She won a Distinguished Service Award from the UW-Madison Journalism School in 2003. She received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science and Journalism in 1980, when she was named one of America's Top Ten College Women by Glamour magazine.

William D. Petasnick (1968 BA Political Science)

William D. Petasnick is President and CEO of Froedtert Memorial Lutheran Hospital and the Froedtert & Community Health System, Milwaukee, WI, and is the Immediate Past Chair of the American Hospital Association (AHA) Board of Trustees. He has served on a number of AHA committees and was the 2003 chair of the Council of Teaching Hospitals. Prior to joining Froedtert, he was deputy director and chief operating officer, University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics; director of operations/chief operating officer, University of North Carolina Hospital; and senior associate director, University of Wisconsin Hospitals and Clinics. He received the Distinguished Service Award from the Wisconsin Hospital Association in 2005, the Rotary Club of Milwaukee Person of the Year Award in 2006, and the 2009 Badger of the Year award from the Milwaukee chapter of the Wisconsin Alumni Association. He earned a BA in Political Science from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1968 and an MHA from the University of Minnesota.

Ronald Rose (1970 BA Political Science)

Ronald Rose manages his own real estate portfolio and is a former consultant with LoopLender, an affiliated commercial mortgage brokerage firm of LoopNet Inc. This follows a 30-year career in commercial real estate with Metropolitan Life, The Federal Home Loan Bank, John Hancock Real Estate Financial Services and LoopNet Inc. Mr. Rose is also the former chair of the Political Science Visitors Board and is currently a trustee for the University of San Francisco. Additionally, Mr. Rose serves on three additional committees at the University of San Francisco: The Regional Council, the McCarthy Center for Social Justice and Common Good, and the Dean's Circle at the School of Business and Professional Studies. In addition, he co-produces new works with the Magic Theater in San Francisco and is participating in extending the regional outreach programs of BuildOn. He holds an undergraduate degree in political science from the University of Wisconsin, Madison, a masters degree in government from the University of Arizona, a masters degree in city planning from San Diego State University and a masters degree in finance from the University of San Francisco.

David Schaefer (1971 BA Political Science)

David is the Managing Partner of the law firm Brenner Saltzman & Wallman LLP and chair of the firm's Litigation Practice Group. David joined the firm in 1980 and became a principal in 1982. Prior to joining the firm, David practiced in Boston at Foley, Hoag & Eliot. He also served for a number of years as counsel to the United States Senate Governmental Affairs Committee chaired by Senator Abraham Ribicoff and on the Senator's personal staff. David received his B.A. (1971) from the University of Wisconsin at Madison and his J.D. (1973) from New York University School of Law, where he was chosen the outstanding graduate of his law school class and was elected to the Order of the Coif.

John M. Stanoch (1980 BA Political Science)

John Stanoch is a Senior Judge in the Minnesota State Court system and also works as a private mediator. He is the former President of Qwest Communications for Minnesota and North Dakota, and has also served as Minnesota's Chief Deputy Attorney General and as a Hennepin County (Minneapolis) District Court Judge. He is actively involved in a wide range of civic and community groups in the Twin Cities and holds a bachelors degree in political science from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Judith Hicks Stiehm (1957 BA East Asian Studies)

Judith Hicks Stiehm is professor of political science at Florida International University where she served as provost and academic vice president for four years. Judith recently served as Distinguished Visiting Professor at the U.S. Air Force Academy. She has taught at the University of Wisconsin, University of California at Los Angeles, and the University of Southern California and has been a visiting professor at the U.S. Army Peacekeeping Institute and at the Strategic Studies Institute at Carlisle Barracks. She earned a bachelor's degree in East Asian Studies at the University of Wisconsin, Madison a master's degree at Temple University in American History, and a Ph.D. in political theory from Columbia University. She is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, and holds the U.S. Army Distinguished Civilian Service Medal. She has authored numerous books on gender and military issues. Her most recent book is "Champions for Peace: Women Winners of the Nobel Peace Prize." She was awarded the Frank Goodnow Award by the American Political Science Association in 2009.

David Tabacoff (1971 BA Political Science, 1974 MA Political Science)

David Tabacoff is the senior executive producer for The O'Reilly Factor with Bill O'Reilly at the Fox News Channel. Prior to his time at Fox, he worked for many years at ABC News in a variety of positions including executive producer of 20/20 Downtown, senior broadcast producer of 20/20, and senior producer of Nightline. He has an undergraduate degree in political science from the University of Wisconsin, Madison, a masters degree in political science from Rutgers University where he was a fellow at the Eagleton Institute of Politics, and a law degree from Fordham Law School. He also was a Fulbright Scholar studying political science at Auckland University in New Zealand.

Robert Trice (1971 MA Political Science, 1974 Ph.D. Political Science)

Robert Trice retired in 2011 from his position as senior vice president for strategy and business development, responsible for global strategies and new business at Lockheed Martin Corp. Before he joined Lockheed, he was vice president-international at General Dynamics Corp. Prior to that he was vice president and general manager of business development at McDonnell Douglas Aerospace. Mr. Trice holds a bachelors degree from the College of William and Mary, and a masters degree and doctorate in political science from the University of Wisconsin, Madison.

Doris Weisberg (1958 BS Psychology)

Doris Weisberg is Professor Emerita of speech-language pathology at the City College of the City University of New York, where she was director of the Speech and Hearing Center, and Speech Department chair. After her retirement, she produced television cooking shows. She was part of a team that conceived, developed, and produced the TV Food Network. She is an adjunct professor at the New York University School of Continuing and Professional Education where she develops lecture series. She holds a bachelors degree in psychology from the University of Wisconsin, Madison, and masters and doctoral degrees from Columbia University.

Mike Wittenwyler (1995 BA Political Science, 1998 JD Law)

Mike Wittenwyler is an administrative and regulatory attorney at Godfrey & Kahn, S.C. Splitting his time between Madison and Washington, D.C., Mike focuses on providing legal services for political and media consultants, lobbyists and other professionals who interact with government, public officials and cndidates. He also teaches "Political Law: Campaign Finance, Ethics & Elections" at the University of Wisconsin Law School. Prior to practicing law, Mike worked on political campaigns, in media relations and as a congressional aide. In 1998, he served as campaign manager and spokesperson for U.S. Senator Russ Feingold. In addition to his law degree, Mike holds a bachelors degree in political science - both from the University of Wisconsin, Madison.

Former Members

UW-Madison degrees indicated in parentheses.

NOTE: The Political Science Department and La Follette School of Public Affairs shared a Board of Visitors prior to November 2008.

• P. Bai Akridge
• Loise Anderson
• Martin Begun (1953 BA Political Science)
• Edwin Behrens (1960, 1961 BS/MS Chemical Engineering)
• Michael Bright (1990 MA Public Policy)
• Jay Carlson (1964 BS History)
• Bernard Cohen (Emeritus Professor of Political Science)
• Anthony Carroll (1980 MA Public Policy & Administration)
• Charles Fischbah (1960 BS Political Science & History)
• Tom Hefty (1969, 1973, BA, JD, Economics & Law)
• Charles O. Jones (Emeritus Professor of Political Science)
• Douglas Kiel (1971 BA Political Science)
• Philip Kaiser (BA 1935 Philosophy & Classics)
• Tery Lierman (1971 MA Public Policy)
• James Klauser (1961 BS Political Science, 1964 Law Degree, 1968 MA Political Science)
• Tom Loftus (1972 MA Public Policy & Administration)
• Ronald uskin (1979 MA Public Policy & Administration)
• Karl Meyer (1951 BS History)
• Robert Milbourne (1968 BA Economics, 1978 MA Public Policy)
• Theresa Mintle (1991 MA Public Policy & Administration)
• Felicia Norwood (1982 MA Political Science)
• Patti McGill Peterson (1968 MA Political Science, 1974 Ph.D. Educational Science Studies)
• Joy Picu(1951 BA Political Science)
• Phillip Schemel (1982 BA Political Science & Economics)
• John Karl Scholz
• Allan Selig (1956 BS Political Science & History)
• Lee Shapiro (1979 BS, History, Political Science)
• Joel Skornicka (1959, 1964 BS, MS Political Science)
• Lon Sprecher (1974, 1975, BA, MA Political Science, Public Policy & Administration)
• Michael Youngman (1975 BA Political Science, 1982 MA Public Policy & Administration)
• Gerald Whitburn (1968, MA Political Science)