Speakers

Ralph Richard Banks is the Jackson Eli Reynolds Professor of Law at Stanford Law School, the co-founder and Faculty Director of the Stanford Center for Racial Justice, and Professor, by courtesy, at the School of Education. A native of Cleveland, Ohio and a graduate of Stanford University and Harvard Law School, Banks has been a member of the Stanford faculty since 1998. Prior to joining the law school, he practiced law at O’Melveny & Myers, was the Reginald F. Lewis Fellow at Harvard Law School and clerked for a federal judge, the Honorable Barrington D. Parker, Jr.. Professor Banks teaches and writes about family law, employment discrimination law and race and the law. He is the author of Is Marriage for White People? How the African American Marriage Decline Affects Everyone. At Stanford, he is affiliated with the Michelle R. Clayman Institute for Gender Research, the Center for Comparative Studies in Race and the Ethnicity, the Stanford Center for Opportunity Policy in Education and the Center for the Study of Poverty and Inequality. His writings have appeared in a wide range of popular and scholarly publications, including the Stanford Law Review, the Yale Law Journal, The New York Times and the Los Angeles Times. He has been interviewed and quoted by numerous print and broadcast media, including ABC News/Nightline, National Public Radio, The New York Times and the Los Angeles Times, among others.

Cliff Barber has over two decades of experience in management consulting and fund management. He is a former partner at a London-based boutique alternative asset management company with hedge fund, private equity and wealth management products. He is currently a partner at Chicago Rises, a new impact investing fund that seeks to make investments in business assets with high growth potential to deliver competitive returns to investors and to meaningfully address Chicago’s gun violence challenge. He comes to his current work at Chicago Rises with a keen understanding of local Chicago communities and challenges; he most recently led the Archdiocese of Chicago’s Renew My Church initiative as Chief Strategy Officer, but also has deep knowledge of impact investing having helped develop the vision for a recently closed $29 million impact fund for a syndicate of minority-owned CDFIs from across the nation. Cliff has an MBA for Harvard Business School, a General Course degree in economics from the London School of Economics and a BSc in economics from Grinnell College.

Katharine Birbalsingh is the founder and headmistress of Michaela Community School, a free school established in 2014 in Wembley Park, London. Michaela is known for its tough-love behaviour systems, knowledge curriculum and teaching of kindness and gratitude. Katharine read Philosophy and Modern Languages at the University of Oxford and has always taught in inner London. She is the author of several books including The Power of Culture (2020), Singleholic, (2009) and To Miss with Love (2011), and editor of Battle Hymn of the Tiger Teachers: The Michaela Way (2016). She also hosts a blog, To Miss with Love, where she writes about the education system. She has made numerous appearances on television and radio and has written for several UK publications. Katharine served as Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) from 2020-2023. In 2017 she was included by Anthony Seldon in his list of the 20 most influential figures in British education.

Charles Blain is the President of Urban Reform and Urban Reform Institute. Originally from New Jersey, Charles attended Fairleigh Dickinson University where he studied Political Science with a concentration on American Political Studies. He relocated to Texas to join Texans for Greg Abbott for Gov. Abbott’s first run for governor in 2014. Following that, and seeing an opportunity to make a difference in Houston, Charles joined Empower Texans, launching and managing their first Houston operation. While focusing on Houston and Harris County government, he noticed a void left in urban policy and politics by those right-of-center. To fill that void, he launched Urban Reform in 2019, and in 2020, Urban Reform partnered with the Center for Opportunity Urbanism to create Urban Reform Institute. Through Urban Reform and Urban Reform institute, Charles has focused on free market solutions to urban issues and creating opportunity for all in America’s metropolitan areas. Charles has been published in the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, the Houston Chronicle, the Hill, Wired, and other publications. He is a Fox 26 Houston (KRIV) regular political commentator and weekly panelist on Sunday talk show, What’s Your Point. He is also a regular guest speaking about local issues on I Heart Radio’s Pursuit of Happiness, The Michael Berry Show, and Houston’s Morning News w/ Jimmy Barrett & Shara Fryer. He lives in Houston and enjoys volunteering with Prison Entrepreneurship Program where he serves on the Houston Advisory Board.

Raj Chetty is the William A. Ackman Professor of Economics at Harvard University and the Director of Opportunity Insights, which uses big data to study the science of economic opportunity: How can we give children from all backgrounds better chances of succeeding? Chetty’s work has been widely cited in academia, media outlets, and policy discussions in the United States and beyond.

Chetty received his PhD from Harvard University in 2003 and is one of the youngest tenured professors in Harvard’s history. He has received numerous awards for his research, including a MacArthur “Genius” Fellowship, the John Bates Clark medal, given to the economist under 40 whose work is judged to have made the most significant contribution to the field, and Harvard’s George Ledlie prize, awarded for research that made the most valuable contribution to science, or in any way for the benefit of mankind.

Robert Doar is the president of the American Enterprise Institute.

Mr. Doar became AEI’s 12th president in July 2019, leading one of the nation’s oldest and most respected public policy think tanks. Since becoming president of AEI, Mr. Doar has recruited dozens of leading scholars and fellows across multiple issue areas and launched a new research division focused on Social, Cultural, and Constitutional Studies.

By supporting the extensive work of AEI scholars in areas including foreign and defense policy, education, the reform of key institutions, the US economy, and in opportunity and mobility studies, Mr. Doar has helped to solidify AEI’s position as a leading voice on the major issues facing the United States.

Roland G. Fryer, Jr., a John A. Paulson Fellow at the Manhattan Institute, is Professor of Economics at Harvard University, an entrepreneur, and co-founder of Equal Opportunity Ventures—an early-stage venture fund that invests in businesses that can be commercially successful and (measurably) increase economic mobility in America.

Professor Fryer was awarded a MacArthur “Genius” Fellowship and the John Bates Clark Medal—given by the American Economic Association to the best American economist under age 40. He is also a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, a recipient of the Calvó-Armengol Prize, the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers, and a member of the 2009 Time 100 (list of most influential people in the world). At age 30, he became the youngest African-American to receive tenure at Harvard. In addition to his scholarly work, Fryer has been published in the New York Times.

Michael Hartney is a Hoover Fellow at Stanford University’s Hoover Institution, an associate professor in the department of political science at Boston College, and a non-resident Senior Fellow at the Manhattan Institute for Policy Research. He is also a research affiliate at Harvard University’s Program on Education Policy and Governance (PEPG), and, in 2020-21, a W. Glenn Campbell and Rita Ricardo-Campbell Hoover National Fellow. Hartney’s scholarly expertise is in American politics and public policy with a focus on state and local government, interest groups, and K-12 education policy. His academic research has been published in journals such as the American Political Science Review and the American Journal of Political Science and received media coverage in the Economist, New York Times, Washington Post, and Wall Street Journal. Hartney’s first book, How Policies Make Interest Groups: Governments, Unions, and American Education was published by the University of Chicago Press in 2022. Before embarking on his academic career, Hartney worked as a policy analyst for the National Governors Association (NGA) Center for Best Practices. Hartney earned his Ph.D. from the University of Notre Dame and his bachelor’s degree from Vanderbilt University.

Coleman Hughes is a writer, podcaster and opinion columnist who specialises in issues related to race, public policy and applied ethics. Coleman’s writing has been featured in the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, National Review, Quillette, The City Journal and The Spectator. He appeared on Forbes‘ 30 Under 30 list in 2021.

Eric L. Johnson is the 60th mayor of Dallas, Texas. First elected in June 2019, he was reelected in May 2023 with 98.7 percent of the vote, breaking a 114-year-old record for the highest vote percentage garnered by a mayoral candidate facing any opposition in Dallas history. Prior to becoming mayor, Johnson served as a member of the Texas House of Representatives, where he represented the city of Dallas from April 2010 to June 2019. During his tenure in the Texas Legislature, Johnson served on several legislative committees, including Appropriations, Ways and Means, Higher Education, and Natural Resources. He also served as chairman of the Dallas Area Legislative Delegation. In addition to his service as mayor of Dallas, Johnson is also a partner with the international law firm Locke Lord LLP.

Johnson was born in Dallas and attended Dallas Independent School District schools through first grade before earning a scholarship to Greenhill School through the Boys and Girls Clubs of Greater Dallas. He attended Harvard College, where he graduated cum laude with a degree in history. Johnson also holds a law degree from the University of Pennsylvania Law School and a master’s degree in public affairs from the School of Public and International Affairs at Princeton University. He is an alumnus of Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government’s Senior Executives in State and Local Government program and is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations.

Mayor Johnson lives in Dallas with his wife, Nikki, their three children, William, George, and Lela, and their dog, Penny. He is a member of the Mountain View Church of Christ.

Richard A. Johnson, Ed.D. is the Director of the Texas Public Policy Foundation’s Booker T. Washington Initiative, which examines the effects of public policy on African American communities. Previously, Regent Johnson served as Chief of Staff in both municipal and state governments. As Chief of Staff for a Houston City Council member, he played a significant role in drafting and navigating policies related to public safety, public works, and housing and community development. During the 85th and 86th Texas Legislatures, he served as a Chief of Staff and a Senior Policy Analyst for a House member and worked on education, public safety, healthcare, and workforce development legislation. As an educator for more than 20 years, Regent Johnson has extensive experience in teaching and research. He worked as a Research Assistant at the University of Texas Mental Science Institute, studying the efficacy of counseling and pharmacological therapy on cocaine and heroin addicts. He began counseling inner-city adolescent males and founded an academy for troubled boys which provided education, discipline, and residential substance abuse treatment. Regent Johnson was the President of the Louisiana Prison Chapel Foundation for nearly two decades, building more than 20 churches inside prison walls. In addition, Regent Johnson served as the co-founder and second president of 100 Black Men Metropolitan Houston, Vice President of Development for 100 Black Men San Antonio, and Co-chair of the Education Committee of the NAACP Houston. Regent Johnson served in the U.S. Army after college, obtaining the rank of Sergeant. A Texas native, Regent Johnson has an Ed.D. in Education Administration and a M.A. in Clinical Psychology from Texas Southern University. He received a B.A. in History and Government from Wiley College.

Marshall Kosloff is a media fellow at Hudson Institute, where he hosts the Arsenal of Democracy podcast. He also co-hosts The Realignment podcast. Previously, he was a researcher at PBS’s Firing Line with Margaret Hoover and participated in the Public Interest Fellowship. He earned his bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Oregon.

Rafael Mangual is the Nick Ohnell Fellow at the Manhattan Institute, a contributing editor of City Journal, and a member of the Council on Criminal Justice. His first book, Criminal (In)Justice, was released in July 2022. He has authored and coauthored a number of MI reports and op-eds on issues ranging from urban crime and jail violence to broader matters of criminal and civil justice reform. His work has been featured and mentioned in a wide array of publications, including the Wall Street Journal, The Atlantic, New York Post, The New York Times, The Washington Post, Philadelphia Inquirer and City Journal. Mangual also regularly appears on Fox News and has made a number of national and local television and radio appearances on outlets such as C-SPAN and Bloomberg Radio. In 2020, he was appointed to serve a four-year term as a member of the New York State Advisory Committee of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights. Prior to joining MI in 2015, Rafael worked in corporate communications for the International Trademark Association. He holds a B.A. in corporate communications from the City University of New York’s Baruch College and a J.D. from DePaul University.

Frances “Franne” McNeal is the President of Significant Business Results LLC where she helps clients achieve significant business results: increased sales, improved cash flow, reduced expenses and greater margins. Her testimonials include over 300 LinkedIn recommendations that speak to people, process, performance and profits, and she has impacted over 13,000 entrepreneurs. She is a Minority Business Advocate, a Small Business Influencer, coach, author, radio and TV host, and serves as an Adjunct Faculty member with the City University of New York (CUNY) and the State University of New York. (SUNY). As a breast cancer survivor and stroke survivor, Franne provides motivational keynotes to leaders who feel temporarily “infected with frustration” and “paralyzed by fear”, so they can “focus their energy for action and achieve significant business results.” Franne McNeal earned her Doctorate in Business Administration from Temple University, an MBA from Eastern University, and a Bachelor’s degree from Princeton University.

Renu Mukherjee is a Paulson Policy Analyst at the Manhattan Institute. She is also a PhD student in American politics at Boston College where her dissertation will focus on affirmative action. At MI, her work will touch on a range of issues including education, affirmative action, public interest groups, and political and policy attitudes among racial and ethnic minorities in the United States – particularly Asian Americans. Mukherjee’s recent contributions to City Journal include an analysis of Justice Lewis Powell’s opinion in the 1978 Bakke case on affirmative action and how it should inform the current affirmative action cases addressing evidence of discrimination against Asian American applicants to Harvard and the University of North Carolina. She has also written pieces with Professor Michael Hartney examining the electoral consequences of prolonged schools closures during the pandemic and the role that Asian American voters played in the recall of former San Francisco District Attorney Chesa Boudin. Mukherjee has been published in the Wall Street Journal, New York Times, New York Post, and The Hill.

Margaret “Macke” Raymond has served as founder and director of the Center for Research on Education Outcomes (CREDO) at Stanford University since its inception in 1999. The CREDO team conducts rigorous and independent analysis and evaluation of promising programs that aim to improve outcomes for students in US K-12 public schools. Macke has steered the group to be a well-regarded source of impartial insight into the performance and workings of charter schools, city reform strategies and national reform programs. CREDO’s studies and reports are relied upon by the US Department of Education, governors, state chief school officers, state legislators, the courts, other policy makers and the media. She is a regular source for local and national media, including the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, the Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times and the Denver Post. Macke’s deep belief in building capacity for improved analysis of programs and policy has found its place through service on advisory boards, technical resource groups and peer review panels. She was selected as a Pahara-Aspen Education Fellow in recognition of her leadership in US education policy.

Jason Riley is a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute, a columnist for the Wall Street Journal, and a commentator for Fox News. His much-anticipated book, Maverick: A Biography of Thomas Sowell, is now available. He is a recipient of the 2018 Bradley Prize. After joining the Journal in 1994, he was named a senior editorial writer in 2000 and a member of the editorial board in 2005. Riley writes opinion pieces on politics, economics, education, immigration, and race. He also speaks frequently on ABC, NBC, CNN, PBS, and NPR.

Riley is the author of several other books, including Let Them In: The Case for Open Borders (2008), which argues for a more free-market-oriented US immigration policy; Please Stop Helping Us: How Liberals Make It Harder for Blacks to Succeed (2014), which discusses the track record of government efforts to help the black underclass; and False Black Power? (2017), an assessment of why black political success has not translated into more economic success. He has also worked for USA Today and the Buffalo News. Riley holds a BA in English from The State University of New York at Buffalo.​

Ian Rowe is a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and the founder of Vertex Partnership Academies, a new International Baccalaureate high school in the Bronx. In addition to serving 10 years as CEO of Public Prep, he held leadership positions at Teach for America, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the White House, and MTV, where he earned two Public Service Emmys. With his recent book Agency, Ian seeks to inspire young people of all races to build strong families, overcome the victimhood narrative, and become masters of their own destiny. Ian is Chairman of the Board of Spence-Chapin. He earned an MBA from Harvard Business School, a Bachelor of Science degree from Cornell University’s College of Engineering and his high school diploma from Brooklyn Tech as part of a K-12 NYC public education. Mr. Rowe is a recipient of many honors, including the Harvard Business School Bert King Service Award and most recently the George A. Sutherland Award.

Reihan Salam is the fifth president of the Manhattan Institute, a research and advocacy organization that advances opportunity, individual liberty, and the rule of law in America and its great cities.

Before joining MI in 2019, Mr. Salam served as the executive editor of National Review. Mr. Salam previously worked for the New York Times Op-Ed page and NBC News. He was a 2010 Bernard L. Schwarz Fellow at the New America Foundation and a 2015 Pritzker Fellow at the University of Chicago, and in 2017, the World Economic Forum named him a Young Global Leader.

Mr. Salam is the author of Melting Pot or Civil War? (Sentinel, 2018), which makes the case for a skills-based immigration policy. In Grand New Party (Doubleday, 2008), co-authored with Ross Douthat, he offered a vision for an ambitious center-right program to address the growing gap between the Republican Party and its working-class voters.

Mr. Salam is a contributing writer at The Atlantic, a contributing editor at National Affairs and National Review, and a political commentator for CNN. He is a life member of the Council on Foreign Relations and serves on the Public Scholars Advisory Committee at the Moynihan Center at The City College of New York and the Advisory Council for The Public Interest Fellowship.

With over 15 years of experience in developing strategic activities, Enisha Shropshire has proven results in the successful implementation of programs and organizational strategic plans. Most recently, Enisha served as Director of Board and External Affairs at Texas 2036, a public policy nonprofit that uses data to drive forward-thinking change for Texas. There, she was responsible for building and maintaining Texas 2036’s board of directors and ensuring diversity across several demographic measures – ethnicity, geography, industry, age, and gender. She was also charged with building and maintaining relationships with community, civic, and business leaders across the entire state of Texas. Enisha has managed projects for heads of state from various countries and numerous notable organizations such as the George W. Bush Institute, the Clinton Foundation, The Rockefeller Foundation, The Wall Street Journal, and many others. A Dallas native, she is deeply involved in various community organizations that advance outcomes for underserved populations. Enisha is a past president of the Mayor’s Star Council and currently serves on the board of directors as chair of the strategic planning committee. She also serves on the boards of the Trust for Public Land, the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, and ScholarShot, an organization that helps at-risk students complete vocational, associate, or undergraduate degrees. Additionally, she is on the Community Advisory Board of KERA. Nationally, she was selected to become a member of the American Enterprise Institute’s Leadership Network, a policy education and professional development program. Enisha is a 2020 recipient of the Dallas Business Journal’s 40 Under 40 Award which celebrates up-and-comers and influencers in the North Texas community.

Delano Squires is a Research Fellow in the Richard and Helen DeVos Center for Life, Religion, and Family at The Heritage Foundation. He is also a contributor to Blaze Media who writes about faith, family, and culture as well as BlazeTV’s Fearless with Jason Whitlock podcast. Delano’s articles and essays have been published by Newsweek, The American Conservative, The Federalist, The Institute for Family Studies, Black and Married with Kids, The Root, and The Grio. Before joining The Heritage Foundation, Delano worked for the District of Columbia government for more than a decade. During that time, he provided free technology training classes for job-seekers, ex-offenders, and senior citizens. He also created digital exploration programs for K-12 students, subsidized internet service and provided free computer repair for low-income families, and ran several citywide public awareness campaigns. Delano won the 2016 State Technology Innovator Award from the National Association of State Chief Information Officers (NASCIO) for his work on converting a bookmobile into a Mobile Tech Lab that was used to bring internet access and training to D.C. public housing communities. He spent his final year in D.C. government with the Office of Gun Violence Prevention (OGVP) working with residents and local stakeholders to address violent crime in the nation’s capital. Delano grew up in New York City and earned his bachelor of science degree in Computer Engineering from the University of Pittsburgh and a graduate degree in Public Policy from The George Washington University. He resides in Maryland with his wife and their three young children.

Ruy Teixeira is a nonresident senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute (AEI), where he focuses on the transformation of party coalitions and the future of American electoral politics. Before joining AEI, he was a senior fellow at the Center for American Progress from 2003 to 2022. A political demographer and commentator, Dr. Teixeira is the author of numerous books, reports, and articles. He is the coauthor of The Emerging Democratic Majority one of his most influential books, which was selected as one of the best books of the year by the Economist. He is also the coauthor of a series of reports titled “States of Change,” which detail the impact of demographic changes on political parties, the electorate, and the nation as a whole. His most recent book is Where Have All the Democrats Gone? The Soul of the Party in the Age of Extremes. Dr. Teixeira’s broadcast appearances include CBS News, CNN, National Public Radio, MSNBC, and PBS, as well as hundreds of radio and podcast interviews. He is also often published in the popular press, including in the Atlantic, the American Prospect, National Review, the New Republic, the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, and the Washington Post. He coedits “The Liberal Patriot” blog on Substack. Dr. Teixeira holds a PhD and MS in sociology from the University of Wisconsin–Madison. His BA is from the University of Michigan.

Mene Ukueberuwa’s writing has appeared in the Wall Street Journal, The New Criterion, City Journal, and elsewhere. He holds a B.A. in government from Dartmouth College.

After spending a year as a Bartley fellow at the Wall Street Journal, Chloé Valdary developed The Theory of Enchantment, an innovative framework for compassionate antiracism that combines social emotional learning (SEL), character development, and interpersonal growth as tools for leadership development in the boardroom and beyond. Chloé has trained around the world, including in South Africa, The Netherlands, Germany, and Israel. Her clients have included high school and college students, government agencies, business teams, + many more. She has also lectured in universities across America, including Harvard and Georgetown. Her work has been covered in Psychology Today Magazine and her writings have appeared in the New York Times and the Wall St Journal.

Devon Westhill is an attorney focused on matters of constitutional and civil rights. He researches, speaks, and writes about civil rights, civil liberties, and related issues such as race relations, social change, and equal opportunity. Mr. Westhill’s writing has been published in numerous outlets including Newsweek, National Review, and The Wall Street Journal. He has spoken hundreds of times at college campuses, conferences, and on radio programs, and has appeared on cable television channels including Fox News, Newsmax, and CSPAN. Mr. Westhill has also provided expert testimony to both houses of the U.S. Congress, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights. For over a decade, he has also been sought after as an expert on organizational effectiveness. Mr. Westhill led the civil rights office at the U.S. Department of Agriculture in the Trump administration as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights. He has also worked at the U.S. Department of Labor, Federalist Society, and as a criminal trial lawyer in private practice. Mr. Westhill is a U.S. Navy veteran with degrees from UNC at Chapel Hill and the University of Florida.