 Julie
Andrews Edwards
General Session I (Wednesday, April 26)
Known the world over, Julie Andrews Edwards has enchanted generations with
her unforgettable characters, including Mary Poppins and Maria von Trapp
in The Sound of Music. Julie Andrews, the face and voice of musical
theatre and film, has performed on stage, screen, and television for over
50 years in some of the most beloved productions of all time. Recently,
she has garnered a new generation of fans with her role as Queen Clarisse
of Genovia in The Princess Diaries and her work on Shrek 2.
Throughout her life, Andrews has also dedicated her talents to literary
efforts. She wrote her first children’s book called Mandy in 1971.
She and her daughter, Emma Walton Hamilton, have just completed a series
of children’s books, including The Great American Mousical. Andrews
is also completing her biography and has launched her own imprint
entitled, “The Julie Andrews Collection.” A longtime advocate for children
and literacy, Andrews works with UNICEF and Save the Children.
 Marlee
Matlin
General Session II
(Thursday, April 27)
Marlee Matlin garnered worldwide attention and an Academy Award for her
film debut in Children of a Lesser God. She has appeared in 15
movies and numerous television series, including Reasonable Doubts,
Picket Fences, and The West Wing. Although rendered deaf at the
age of 18 months, Matlin has never wavered from her love of performing.
Her critically-acclaimed work has helped raise awareness about the talents
and contributions of people with different abilities. She is also
pioneering ground as an executive producer. In 2002, she published a novel
for children called Deaf Child Crossing and has just completed
Nobody’s Perfect (with Doug Cooney). Matlin currently serves as a
spokesperson for The American Red Cross and works with many charities,
including Easter Seals, The Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric Aids Foundation,
and VSA Arts.
Kay Bailey Hutchison
Most Texans recognize the name of
Kay Bailey Hutchison from her many years in the political and legislative
arena as a state representative and state treasurer and as the first woman
to represent Texas in the U.S. Senate. However, she is also a New York
Times best-selling author. Her novel, American Heroines: The Spirited
Women Who Shaped our Country, celebrates the accomplishments of
pioneering women and those who continue to shape our nation. Hutchison
links her own journey from a small town in Texas to Washington DC with the
struggles and triumphs of courageous women from the early frontier to
today’s corporate boardroom.
Maria Hinojosa
Award-winning journalist and
author Maria Hinojosa is senior correspondent for NOW, a PBS national news
program, and the network’s managing editor for Latino USA. Hispanic
Business Magazine has named Hinojosa one of the 100 most influential
Latinos in the United States, and Working Mother Magazine included
her among their “25 most influential working mothers in America.” Her
latest book, Raising Raul: Adventures Raising Myself and My Son, is
an inspiring memoir on raising a child in a multicultural
society.
R. Anthony Reese
Tony Reese specializes in copyright, intellectual property, and cyberspace
components of intellectual property. A professor at the Law School at The
University of Texas, Reese has built an impressive career analyzing the
effects of the digital world on copyright and other aspects of
intellectual property rights. His works include Internet Commerce
(with Margaret Jane Radin and John Rothchild) and Copyright, Patent,
Trademark and Related State Doctrines (with Paul Goldstein). He has
also written about liability of technology developers for copyright
infringement by technology users, copyright’s first-sale doctrine, and the
public display right in copyright law.
Larry Lessig
Larry Lessig is a Professor of Law at Stanford Law School and founder of
the school’s Center for Internet and Society. Prior to joining the
Stanford faculty, he was the Berkman Professor of Law at Harvard Law
School and a professor at the University of Chicago. Lessig represented
website operator Eric Eldred in the ground-breaking case Eldred v.
Ashcroft, a challenge to the 1998 Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act.
He has won numerous awards, including the Free Software Foundation’s
Freedom Award and was named one of Scientific American’s Top 50
Visionaries for arguing “against interpretations of copyright that could
stifle innovation and discourse online.” He is the author of Free
Culture (2004), The Future of Ideas (2001) and Code and
Other Laws of Cyberspace (1999).
Kinky Friedman
Kinky Friedman is running for governor of Texas. His slogan for the 2006
campaign is: “How Hard Can It Be?” Friedman’s platform includes outlawing
cat declawing. In addition, “we’ll have the Texas peace corps, which is
not an oxymoron,” he says. “And remember, I’m a Jew. I’ll hire good
people.” This philosophy and humor characterize the creative works of one
of the most unique personalities in Texas. In addition to his musical work
with the band, Texas Jewboys, Friedman is also the author of numerous
mysteries and other works, including Kinky Friedman’s Guide to Texas
Etiquette and the novel, Kill Two Birds & Get Stoned. He lives
with a ranch full of animals and a used Smith Corona typewriter in the
Texas Hill Country.
Arnold Garcia, Jr.
Arnold Garcia, Jr., is the editorial page editor of the Austin
American-Statesman. His perspective helps shape opinion and discourse on
statewide issues and policy. He began his newspaper career in October 1968
as a general assignments reporter for the San Angelo Standard-Times.
Drafted in 1969, he served two years in the U.S. Army and then resumed his
career. In 1974, he joined the Statesman, where he covered state agencies,
the prison system, and the Austin school district as a reporter. He was
appointed an assistant city editor in 1977 and has also been assignments
editor and metro editor. Immediately before becoming editorial page editor
in 1991, he wrote a column on local politics. He served as a Pulitzer
Prize juror in 2002 and chaired a Pulitzer Prize jury in 2003.
Barry W. Lynn
The Reverend Barry W. Lynn, an ordained minister in the United Church of
Christ, is the executive director of American United for Separation of
Church and State. Before accepting the post at Americans United, Lynn held
a variety of positions related to religious liberty concerns. From 1984 to
1991, he was legislative counsel for the Washington office of the American
Civil Liberties Union, where he frequently worked on church-state issues.
He has appeared on radio broadcasts and television to debate and discuss
First Amendment issues, including The MacNeil-Lehrer News Hour, NBC’s
Today Show, Nightline, Meet the Press, and CNN’s Crossfire. Lynn is the
co-author of The Right to Religious Liberty: The Basic ACLU Guide to
Religious Rights. He writes frequently on First Amendment issues,
appearing in such publications as USA Today, The Los Angeles Times,
and The Wall Street Journal.
Pamela Schiller
Pamela Schiller is an expert in child development. An educator for over 15
years and a leading researcher in the area of childhood learning, Pamela
Schiller has created a variety of resources designed to help all educators
and parents better understand the complex nature of children’s growth and
to provide tools to help children grow emotionally and intellectually
strong. She is the author of numerous works, including instructional
materials and children’s books. Her publications include Early
Impressions Infant Curriculum, Brain Builders for Preschoolers, and
Starting With Stories: Engaging Multiple Intelligences Through Children’s
Books.
Ralph Russell
Dr. Ralph Russell is director of institutional support with the Commission
of Colleges, Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. Cited as an
“extraordinary librarian, facilitator, and synthesizer,” Russell served as
university librarian at Georgia State University from 1975-1997. As a
member of the Steering Committee for the Galileo Project, he wrote and
lectured widely on the Project and its “vision for one statewide library.”
In 1996 ACRL named him the Academic/Research Librarian of the Year. He has
also received the Rothrock Award for leadership in the library field from
the Southeastern Library Association earned the Nix-Jones Award for
distinguished service from the Georgia Library Association. He served for
many years on OCLC User’s Council and Board of Trustees and has been
active in SOLINET, the Southeastern Library Association, the Georgia
Library Association and several committees of ALA.
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