State Policy Network Announces Three New Board Members
State Policy Network announced the addition of three new board members at the beginning of the year. Lawson Bader, John Hood, and Karen Buchwald Wright joined the board effective January 1, 2017.
“Our new board members bring an extraordinary level of expertise in business, policy, and nonprofit management as well as devotion to SPN’s mission,” says SPN Board Chairman Carl Helstrom. “We are fortunate to have them.”
Lawson Bader is president and CEO of DonorsTrust and Donors Capital Fund. Previously, he served as president of the Competitive Enterprise Institute. While there, Mr. Bader expanded CEI’s litigation and communication efforts aimed at reducing executive branch overreach. Before joining CEI, Mr. Bader spent sixteen years as vice president of the Mercatus Center at George Mason University. His portfolio included developing economic education programs and retreats for Capitol Hill and state-based policymakers, managing the government accountability and regulatory studies programs, and general strategy and fundraising. He is a former columnist with Human Events, and also serves on the boards of the Atlas Network and Oakseed International. Mr. Bader earned a BA in political science from Wheaton College and an MA in public policy from The Johns Hopkins University.
John Hood is president of the John William Pope Foundation, a Raleigh-based grant maker that supports public policy organizations, educational institutions, arts and cultural programs, and humanitarian relief in North Carolina and beyond. Hood is also chairman of the board at the John Locke Foundation, a North Carolina think tank. In addition to authoring seven books, he writes and comments frequently for state and national media outlets, including National Review, The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, Readers’ Digest, The New Republic, Military History, and Reason. Hood received his degree in journalism from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he founded The Carolina Critic, a magazine that was eventually published on six university campuses. Hood currently serves on the UNC-Chapel Hill Board of Visitors and as chairman of the Carolina Liberty Foundation.
Karen Buchwald Wright is chief executive officer and president of Ariel Corporation—the world’s leading manufacturer of separable reciprocating natural gas compressors. Ms. Wright supports numerous philanthropic projects, schools, colleges, universities, and national charities as well as serves on the boards of several professional and service organizations. Ms. Wright is Chairman of the Community Foundation of Knox County and Mount Vernon and of the Ariel Foundation. She serves on the National Manufacturing Association Board, the American Petroleum Institute Board, and the National Petroleum Council, the Advisory Committee to the Mount Vernon Ladies Association, and served as the vice chairman of the Manufacturing Advisory Council to the President at its inception under Secretary of Commerce Don Evans in 2005. Ms. Wright attended St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minnesota, earning a BA in ethology.
After four years of service on the SPN Board of Directors, John Jackson stepped down effective December 2016.
“During John Jackson’s tenure, he helped State Policy Network achieve a higher level of excellence and impact. We are grateful for his service and continued commitment to our work,” says SPN President Tracie Sharp. “Our new board members join with leaders charting an aggressive course to accelerate this network’s effectiveness.”
