Puriefoy

November 1, 2007

On Thursday, Nov. 1, President of the Public Education Network Wendy Puriefoy, a 1971 graduate of William Smith College, will speak at 7:30 p.m. in the Geneva Room.

A national expert on school reform and civil society, Puriefoy is a passionate and effective advocate for education equity for disadvantaged children. She has been president of PEN, the nation’s largest network of community-based school reform organizations, since its founding in 1991. A member of many national boards and committees, she also chairs The White House Project, which seeks to foster the entry of women into positions of leadership, including the U.S. Presidency.

Puriefoy was the first student elected to the Colleges’ Board of Trustees, who returned to serve for two years starting in 1992. She is a founding member of the Advisory Board of The Fisher Center and received the Alumnae Achievement Award in 2000. Currently she serves as a member of the William Smith Centennial Honorary Committee.

In addition to her bachelor’s degree, she holds three master of arts degrees from Boston University in African American studies, American studies and American colonial history.

This information is accurate for the time period that this person(s) spoke at Hobart and William Smith.