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Oct. 22, 2020 Speakers
Keynote speaker:
Dr. Melissa Deckman
Melissa Deckman is the Louis L. Goldstein Professor of Public Affairs and chair of the Political Science Department at Washington College. She also chairs the board and is an Affiliated Scholar of the Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI). Dr. Deckman’s areas of specialty include gender, religion and political behavior. She is the author of Tea Party Women: Mama Grizzlies, Grassroots Leaders, and the Changing Face of the American Right (NYU Press, 2016). Her best-selling textbook, Women and Politics (Rowman & Littlefield, 2019), written with Julie Dolan and Michele Swers, is in its 4th edition. Her most recent work focuses on how gender impacts the political engagement of Generation Z and Americans’ views about civility in politics.
SENATOR MARY BETH CAROZZA
Mary Beth Carozza of Ocean City, Maryland currently is a member of the Maryland State Senate elected in November, 2018 representing District 38 which includes Worcester, Wicomico and Somerset counties on Maryland’s Eastern Shore.
Raised in Ocean City, Maryland, I grew up on the Shore working with my parents and siblings in our family’s business, “Beefy’s” on 17th Street in Ocean City. The building still stands today. There I learned the value of hard work. I attended Ocean City Elementary School, Berlin Middle School, and am a 1979 graduate of Stephen Decatur High School, where I played on the tennis team and competed in tournaments in Salisbury and throughout the Eastern Shore.
After high school, I went on to graduate from The Catholic University of America with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Philosophy and a Master of Arts Degree in American Government, while also completing the Harvard Senior Managers Government summer program. I am the proud daughter of Mary Pat and Tony Carozza, long-time local community and church leaders, who currently reside in Ocean Pines, and am the proud aunt of four nephews and three nieces. Today, I continue that family tradition as an active and long-time member of St. Mary Star of the Sea Parish in Ocean City where I am a fifth-grade Sunday school teacher.
MARY BETH’S YEARS OF PUBLIC SERVICE
Mary Beth has dedicated her life to public service, excelling in senior leadership positions at the state and federal level. Her depth of experience includes holding key communications and management positions for members of the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate, including Chief of Staff to Congressman Dave Hobson of Ohio. Mary Beth served in the Administration of President George W. Bush where she worked with distinction under the leadership of Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld as Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Legislative Affairs. While working at the Pentagon on 9/11, Mary Beth scrambled with others to keep communications open with Capitol Hill and the rest of the world. For her efforts on a day that changed America and in recognition for her service at the Pentagon, Mary Beth was awarded the Secretary of Defense Medal for Outstanding Public Service.
In 2003, she was asked to serve as Deputy Chief of Staff in the Office of Maryland Governor Bob Ehrlich. While there she worked to advance the critical priorities of local Shore officials, business and community leaders. Following her work in the Ehrlich Administration, Mary Beth served as Deputy Staff Director of the U.S. Senate Homeland Security Committee and Chief of Staff to Congressman Steve Stivers.
In 2014, Mary Beth was elected by a large majority to Maryland District 38C which covers northern Worcester County and the Eastern part of Wicomico County. After a single term, she was encouraged to take on the challenge of running as Senator of Maryland District 38. She was elected to the Maryland State Senate on November 6, 2018 and sworn into office on January 9, 2019. She currently serves on the Senate Education, Health, and Environmental Affairs Committee, the Women’s Caucus, and the Veterans Caucus.
In March 2019, Senator Carozza was recognized by The Daily Record as one of “Maryland’s Top 100 Women” for 2019. This honor is given to women for their professional achievement, community leadership, and mentoring. Throughout Senator Carozza’s public service, she has strived to build people and communities up and looks forward to continuing to do so.
In April 2020, Senator Carozza was recognized by the Maryland Municipal League as a Municipal Super Star. Carozza is one of eight lawmakers to receive this award for going above and beyond on behalf of municipal government during the 441st session of the Maryland General Assembly. Senator Carozza has prioritized working with local mayors and town council members on shared priorities to advance the Shore way of life.
Ferrier Stillman
Ferrier Stillman represents clients in complex family law cases throughout Maryland. The issues in these cases include valuations of businesses, professional practices and retirement plans, other aspects of property division, custody disputes, and alimony and child support. She has tried numerous cases and negotiated and drafted sophisticated marital settlement, premarital, and post-marital agreements. She also handles grandparents’ and other third party visitation/custody cases, same sex family law cases, mediation, and appeals to Maryland’s appellate courts. Ms. Stillman received the Leadership In Law Award, has been named one of Maryland’s Top 100 Women by The Daily Record and is in the Top 100 Women Circle of Excellence, and has been recognized as a Maryland Super Lawyer. She graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Vassar College and is an alumna of The University of Pennsylvania Law School.
Dr. Ida E. Jones
Dr. Ida E. Jones is the first University Archivist hired at Morgan State University. She is the author of four books. Her recent book Baltimore City Rights Leader Victorine Q. Adams, the Power of the Ballot which won the 2019 AAHGS’s International biography book award. In spring 2020 her blog post “Mary McLeod Bethune, True Democracy and the Fight for Universal Suffrage” appeared on the Women’s Suffrage Centennial Commission website.
Her dedication to archives garnered her Emory University’s inaugural Carter G. Woodson Research Fellowship. In 2020 she was awarded two grants, an IMLS Museum Grant for African American History and Culture, and the Library of America Lift Every Voice: Why African American Poetry Matters. She is involved in a variety of professional organizations. In 2019 she was appointed to the Board of National Collaborative for Women’s History Sites.
Dr. Jones is currently co-vice president of Baltimore City Historical Society and managing editor of the Gaslight BCHS’s newsletter. She has appeared on CSPAN, National Public Radio, BBC radio and in numerous printed publications.
Dr. Jones is a consummate scholar who believes deeply in the words of Mrs. Mary McLeod Bethune who stated, “power must walk hand in hand with humility and the intellect must have a soul.
Moderator: Sloane Brown
Sloane Brown’s media career covers the gamut: TV anchor/reporter, radio disc jockey/news director; beginning in Monterey/Carmel, California, then Salt Lake City.
She came to Baltimore in 1983 as a news anchor for WMAR TV. She worked as news director for Lite 102 Radio from 1989 to 1995, TV host on MPT TV in the early 90’s, and arts/entertainment reporter and film critic for Fox45 and WJLA TV from 1994 to 1998.
From 1999 to 2020, Sloane was the society and style reporter for The Baltimore Sun, www.baltimoresun.com/scene.
In 2016, Sloane launched Baltimore Snap – www.baltimoresnap.com – to further explore the city’s social scene. When COVID-19 disrupted the flow of in-person get-togethers, Snap turned its focus on virtual events and supporting locally-owned retailers in its “BaltimoreBcause” initiative with Mindgrub.
In June 2020, Sloane began a new partnership with The Daily Record, hosting the “Off The Record” virtual interview series which features leaders in Maryland’s business, government and nonprofit communities.
