Board of Advisors
Kelly Johnston retired from the Campbell Soup Company in October 2018 after a 16-year career as Vice President-Government Affairs. Previously, Kelly spent nearly 25 years in Washington, D.C., in several leadership positions within the executive and legislative branches of the federal government, political campaigns, and the trade association world.
He was the 28th Secretary of the U.S. Senate (1995-97), the chamber’s chief legislative, financial and administrative officer. The Oklahoma native holds a B.A. degree from the University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma. He and his wife, Adrienne, live in northern VA. They have two sons.
Scott Widmeyer has a 30-year record in providing strategic counsel to scores of decision-makers, from presidents to governors to chief executive officers to union leaders. From working as a newspaper reporter in the 1970s to running major media operations for national campaigns, Widmeyer knows how to get results for his clients. His track record of successes in education, health care, politics, campaign finance, technology, trade, and other public policy matters illustrate his impact as a “change agent” in things that matter most to America.
He founded Widmeyer Communications in 1988, building on a career in newspaper reporting and serving in major communications positions for five highly respected leaders — former President Jimmy Carter, former Vice President Walter Mondale, U.S. Senator Jay Rockefeller, the late Congresswoman Geraldine Ferraro and the late American Federation of Teachers president Albert Shanker. He currently serves on the Boards of the New York City Leadership Academy, the Education Writers Association, the Contemporary American Theater Festival and the George Washington University National Council for Media and Public Affairs. He received many awards such as a David Rockefeller Fellow, The P. I. Reed Achievement Award, “Distinguished West Virginian Award,” and his firm received the 2012 Diversity Distinction in PR Award from the Council of PR Firms. He also was the longest-serving board chair of the Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund, as well as serving on the board of GLAAD.
David Adler is a pioneering entrepreneur in the media, marketing, and event industry, currently serving as the Chairman and Founder of BizBash. Founded in 2000, BizBash sought to transform the event industry by emphasizing its role in organizational and societal structures. The company quickly became the largest B-to-B media company in its sector before being sold to British media conglomerate Tarsus in December 2019. Notably, during the critical aftermath of 9/11, Adler organized the Convention, Exhibitions, Meeting, and Event Coalition to aid New York City’s recovery. With the participation of over 300 companies, this initiative was lauded as a model for community crisis management.
Adler‘s extensive background includes a myriad of leadership roles and innovative initiatives. He previously served as V.P. of Corporate Communications for media giants Macmillan Inc. and Primedia, where he was responsible for a broad range of functions including investor relations, public relations, and events. At the age of 21, he founded Washington Dossier, a society magazine that covered the human aspect of power and politics in Washington, D.C., and later sold it after a successful 15-year run. Throughout his career, Adler has been passionate about problem-solving and leadership, even working as a consultant for the U.S. State Department to lead key initiatives.
Adler relocated back to Washington, D.C., in 2020 and has remained highly active in the professional and nonprofit landscape. He’s currently involved with organizations such as SISO (Society of Independent Show Organizers), the Fine Arts Committee of the State Department, The Federal City Council, and ENVENTU. Additionally, he has served on numerous boards including NYC & Company, The Magazines Publishers Association, and more. Currently, Adler is penning a book titled “Collaboration Artists, Experience Creators, Conveners, and Connectors,” due for publication in January 2023. He is also a partner in Adler Entertainment Trust, a venture that focuses on creating content based on the works of his father, novelist Warren Adler.
Evelyn Fields served as the director of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Officers Corp and was director of NOAA’s Office of Marine and Aviation Operations from 1999 through 2003. She was the first woman and the first African American to head the NOAA Corps. Earlier in her career Fields was given command of the research vessel NOAAS McArthur, becoming the first woman and first African American to command a NOAA ship and the first woman to command any ship in the uniformed services. She has been the recipient of the Congressional Black Caucus’s Ralph M. Metcalfe Health, Education and Science Award and the Department of Commerce Gold Medal for Leadership and has been named one of the top fifty minority women in science by the National Technical Association.
Matthew J. Kushin, Ph.D. (@mjkushin), Stubblefield Institute Senior Faculty Fellow, is an associate professor in the Department of Communication at Shepherd University. He’s an award-winning educator and scholar. At Shepherd University, he developed, launched, and is the coordinator of the Strategic Communication concentration, which focuses on the intersection of public relations and social media. He has a combined 14 years of university-level teaching experience and has taught undergraduate courses in Social Media, Politics & Social Media, Public Relations Principles, Persuasion and Message Design, Strategic Campaigns, Communication Theories, Communication Research Methods, Applied Communication Research, Communication & New Media, Writing Across Platforms, Introduction to Mass Communication, Public Speaking, and New Communication Technology.
Kushin’s research program focuses on the political and civic utility of online media, including social media, online news, and messaging apps. He has also conducted research in social media pedagogy. His work has been published in such peer-reviewed journals as Mass Communication & Society, the Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, New Media & Society, the International Journal of Public Opinion Research, and the Journal of Public Relations Education.
A leading voice in social media education, Kushin is the author of Teach Social Media: A Plan for Creating a Course Your Students Will Love and also writes Social Media Syllabus (MattKushin.com), a popular blog and resource for social media educators.
Peter Loge is an Associate Professor in the School of Media and Public Affairs at The George Washington University, the founding director of the Project on Ethics in Political Communication, and a strategic consultant. Loge has served in senior staff positions in the House, Senate, and Obama administration and he has led and advised a range of campaigns and organizations. His book Soccer Thinking for Management Success: Lessons for Organizations from the World’s Game debuted as a #1 new release on Amazon and his edited volume, Political Communications Ethics: Theory and Practice, was published in 2020.
William “Ben” Martz, Jr., Ph.D. is chair of the Department of Business Administration and dean of the College of Business at Shepherd University. A native of Cold Spring, Kentucky, Martz came to Shepherd from Northern Kentucky University, where he served as professor and director of the Master of Science in Business Informatics Program. During his nine years at Northern Kentucky University, he also served as chair of the Department of Business Informatics for eight years. Martz has published in refereed publications and journals, including Journal of Management Information Systems, Decision Sciences Journal of Innovative Education, Journal of Entrepreneurship Education, and Journal of Computer Information Systems. He earned a B.B.A. in marketing from the College of William & Mary, and an M.S. in management information systems and a Ph.D. in business (management information systems) from the University of Arizona.
Harriet Pearson guides companies and boards through the legal, compliance, policy, and reputational issues stemming from the intersection of business, technology, and society. Harriet’s subject matter experience is particularly extensive in cybersecurity, data governance, and privacy where she draws on years in private legal practice as well as longstanding service as IBM’s first global chief privacy officer and security counsel. Harriet maintains an active legal and consulting practice based in Washington, D.C. In January 2022 she taught a course on Cybersecurity, Business and the Law by invitation at the UCLA School of Law. She previously served for several years as an adjunct instructor at Georgetown University’s Communication, Culture & Technology graduate program, where she taught a seminar on Trust, Privacy, and Data. Harriet has been dubbed by various legal sector publications as “the First Lady of Privacy,” North America’s “Legal Innovator of the Year,” one of 500 “Leading Lawyers in America,” and a “Cybersecurity and Privacy Trailblazer.” She is top-ranked by leading law firm ratings service Chambers for privacy and data security.
Harriet graduated with honors from Princeton University and the UCLA School of Law and completed executive leadership training courses at Harvard Business School and Said Business School of Oxford University. A first-generation American born and raised in New York City, Harriet now lives with her family in the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia where, in addition to volunteering with several non-profit organizations that serve the community’s health and educational needs, she co-owns and publishes a regional news magazine, The WV Observer, and co-owns the historic Shepherdstown Opera House.
Stephanie A. Slocum-Schaffer, Ph.D. is the Stubblefield Institute Senior Faculty Fellow, Research, Retention and Recruitment, and faculty liaison and associate professor of Political Science and co-coordinator of the Gender and Women’s Studies Program at Shepherd University, where she teaches a variety of courses in American politics, women in politics, research methods, and public policy. She has also taught at Gettysburg College and The American University.
Dr. Slocum-Schaffer received a B.A., Magna Cum Laude, in International Affairs and Spanish from Bucknell University, where she was elected to the honor society of Phi Beta Kappa. She was awarded a Ph.D. in Political Science from The American University after completing a dissertation titled: “Choose or Lose? The Impact of Choice on Quality and Efficiency in American Public Education.” In 2003, she published a book, America in the Seventies: A Lesson in Limits, with Syracuse University Press. She also has published several articles and has made numerous presentations at conferences.
Rear Admiral Bill Stubblefield, Ph.D. served 37 years of uniformed service with the U.S. Navy and later with the seventh uniform service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Prior to his retirement, Rear Admiral Stubblefield was in charge of NOAA’s aircraft and ships as well as the commissioned officers. He has commanded research ships which have sailed over much of the world’s oceans, including the Arctic and Antarctica. He has a Ph. D. in geology from Texas A&M University and has authored numerous professional papers. Since retirement, he has been active on several fronts. He served on the national Board of Directors of the Military Officers Association of America and the Advisory Board for the National Sea Grant College Association. He serves on the boards of several local organizations and was president of Berkeley County Commission/Council.
Charles S. Trump IV is a West Virginia state senator representing district 15. He was a member of the West Virginia House of Delegates from 1992-2006, minority leader of the house from 1998-2006, and minority whip from 1994-1998. He was a member of the electoral college in 2000. He graduated from Princeton University in 1982 and West Virginia University College of Law in 1985. He is currently a partner of the law firm Trump and Trump. He was prosecuting attorney, Morgan County, West Virginia from 1989-1992. Charles Trump resides in Berkeley Springs, WV with his wife, Susan. They have three children.
Chelsea Wells is a senior at Shepherd University, set to graduate with the class of 2024. She is majoring in political science with a concentration in political communications. Chelsea is active across Shepherd’s campus with positions on the Debate Team, Program Board, and Student Government Association. After graduation, she hopes to attend graduate school to obtain a master’s degree in political science before entering the field of political communications.
Ashley Horst is the executive director of the Stubblefield Institute. She is an alumna of Shepherd University from which she graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Mass Communications and was captain of the speech and debate team. She also has a Master of Arts in Communications, Culture and Technology from Georgetown University. Horst brings to the Institute 15 years of experience in nonprofit marketing and fundraising, having helped build one of the leading fundraising programs in the Eastern Panhandle. She lives outside of Martinsburg with her husband and 3 daughters.
