Our Centers for Ethics:

The Institute’s trainers, speakers, and consultants

---

Our national faculty of trainers and our panel of speakers and consultants includes these distinguished individuals:

• Michael Josephson – Ethicist, speaker, author, consultant, radio commentator. Read more »
• David C. Beard – Business ethicist, speaker, trainer, HR consultant. Read more »
• Grant Cunningham – Educator, speaker, trainer, investigator. Read more »
• Carla Miller – Ethicist, speaker, instructor, innovator. Read more »
• Chuck Schmidt – Teacher, youth leader, speaker. Read more »
• Harold Slemmer, Ed.D. – Educator, trainer, executive director. Read more »
• Gary Smit – Character educator, speaker, consultant. Read more »
• Larry V. Smith, Ph.D. – Mediator, consultant, instructor, ethicist. Read more »
• Mark J. Wittenberg – Speaker, consultant, policing instructor. Read more »

See list of clients and partners »
Call 800-711-2670 to schedule a speech or consulting services

---

Michael Josephson
Ethicist, speaker, author, consultant, radio commentator

Michael Josephson is one of the nation’s most sought-after and quoted ethicists. Founder and president of Josephson Institute, he has conducted more than 1,000 programs for more than 100,000 leaders across nearly every spectrum of society.

The youngest person ever to be awarded tenure at a major law school (age 28), he taught law for almost 20 years, then founded a publishing company and a national chain of bar-exam preparation courses. After selling his businesses, in 1987 he established the nonprofit Josephson Institute, from which he takes no salary or other reimbursement. All fees and honoraria from his services support the Institute and its mission.

In 1992 he hosted an invitational conference in Aspen, Colorado, that formed a framework for character development called the Six Pillars of Character. The following year he founded CHARACTER COUNTS!, the nation’s most widely used character-education program. Through thousands of organizations and schools, CHARACTER COUNTS! reaches millions of young people every year.

In 1999 he organized a conference of sports leaders that produced the Arizona Sports Summit Accord, from which he launched the Pursuing Victory With Honor sportsmanship campaign. Virtually every athletic organization in the country has endorsed this sportsmanship initiative.

Speaking. Mr. Josephson’s expertise, engaging presentation style, and commitment to enhancing the ethical climate of society has motivated audiences from the government, business, journalism, law, education, sports, law enforcement, military, and nonprofit communities.

Consulting. Mr. Josephson presents numerous ethics workshops each year and consults with the nation’s most prestigious corporations and institutions.

Media. In addition to being profiled in most of the country's major newspapers and magazines, Mr. Josephson is an award-winning radio commentator. His daily broadcasts on ethics and character are aired on such radio stations as KNX-1070 (the largest news station in Los Angeles) and the American Forces Network. He also publishes a weekly e-newsletter of his commentaries that reaches nearly 80,000 subscribers.

• Read commentaries »
• Subscribe to newsletter »

top of page  |  keynote speeches  |   customized programs

---

David C. Beard
Business ethicist, speaker, trainer, HR consultant

David C. Beard’s motivating, emotional, and informative presentations enlivened by gut-wrenching life experiences have inspired thousands of educators, academics, government staffers, corporate executives, and military audiences.

During his 25-year career at Northrop Grumman, a major defense contractor, Mr. Beard served as director of human resources as well as the Sector Ethics Program. In the latter role, he has delivered ethics and leadership presentations and training workshops to more than 15,000 employees nationwide.

A former Marine pilot, test pilot, and astronaut nominee, Mr. Beard draws on his many years of military experience as well as his expertise in management development, employee relations, workforce diversity, community relations, and values-based ethics implementation.

Speaking. Mr. Beard’s inspiring keynote addresses, with their thought-provoking message of hope, glory, and character, routinely trigger standing ovations and off-the-scale ratings from the many diverse audiences he addresses. Some of the organizations he has spoken to include:

• Anchorage Rotary Club
• Arrowhead Credit Union
• Association of Government Marketing Assistance Specialists
• Marine Harrier Squadron
• Northrop Grumman
• U.S. Navy Test Pilot School

top of page  |  keynote speeches  |   customized programs

---

Grant Cunningham
Educator, speaker, trainer, investigator

Grant Cunningham’s engaging, interactive training style has proven effective with students as well as adults. His expertise spans a variety of professional disciplines, from education to community service to law enforcement to public safety.

The Institute is proud to include a speaker who is versed in so many disciplines. A former peace officer and trainer with the California Public Safety Leadership and Ethics Training Program, Mr. Cunningham currently is a lieutenant with the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office where he supervises fraud, elder-fraud, and child-abduction investigation units.

For the past 23 years, Mr. Cunningham has worked with schools, law-enforcement agencies, and community organizations using advanced concepts of student-centered and adult-learning techniques.

Speaking. Mr. Cunningham’s experience across multiple disciplines enables him to address the needs of diverse audiences.

top of page  |  keynote speeches  |   customized programs

---

Carla Miller
Ethicist, speaker, instructor, innovator

Carla Miller is a world-renowned ethics expert who consults with cities and states across the country and governments around the globe. She has helped jump-start or rewrite ethics codes from Florida to Iraq, becoming one of the field’s most notable trainers.

As chair of the Jacksonville Ethics Commission in Florida, Dr. Miller led an initiative to transform the city’s ethics code into one of the most innovative in the country and trained more than 7,000 city employees. She has since broadened her scope by revitalizing government-ethics programs across the U.S., Canada, Europe, Australia, and the Middle East.

Dr. Miller is a former federal prosecutor for Florida; the founder and president of City Ethics, an organization devoted to establishing national government-ethics programs; and an officer of the Council on Governmental Ethics Laws. She is universally in demand as a speaker on local, state, national, and international government-ethics issues.

Speaking. Dr. Miller’s landmark achievements, creative strategies, and global consulting and speaking experience have made her a pioneer in changing the landscape of ethical decision making in the public-service sector. Some of the organizations she has spoken to include:

• American Society for Public Administrators
• Council on Governmental Ethics Laws
• Ethics Officer Association of America
• Internatiional Institute for Public Ethics
• International Municipal Lawyers Association
• National Association of Counties

top of page  |  keynote speeches  |   customized programs

---

Chuck Schmidt
Teacher, youth leader, speaker

Chuck Schmidt is assistant executive director of the Arizona Interscholastic Association (AIA) and is responsible for the AIA Academy’s Pursuing Victory With Honor initiative.

He began his career coaching baseball at the college level and became a high school teacher, head baseball coach, and administrator. He is a member of the Arizona Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association and serves on the board of directors of the Phoenix Metropolitan Boys and Girls Clubs.

Speaking. Chuck speaks on character education in sports around the country. A passionate speaker, he confessed he wished he had known about PVWH when he was coaching. “It would have helped me focus more on what I should have,” he told us. “Part of coaching should be teachable moments. Sports is fleeting, but learning is for life.”

top of page  |  keynote speeches  |   customized programs

---

Harold Slemmer, Ed.D.
Educator, trainer, executive director

Dr. Harold Slemmer has been executive director of the Arizona Interscholastic Association since 1999 and has stood at the forefront of the PVWH initiative in Arizona since its implementation.

He has coached a variety of sports and was an assistant principal before becoming the inaugural principal of Mountain Pointe High School. Since 1992, he has been a part-time instructor for Northern Arizona University and Arizona State University, teaching graduate courses in educational leadership.

Over the years, Dr. Slemmer has received certifications in professional training and accumulated many honors as a student-athlete, coach, and administrator including the North Central Accreditation Circle of Excellence Award and the National Football Federation Distinguished Arizonan Award. In addition, he served on Governor Jane Hull’s Commission on Character Education.

Speaking. Dr. Slemmer has made presentations in over a dozen states on a variety of educational topics, but his dedication to Arizona sportsmanship predominates: “PVWH has evolved from a character-education program to one that embraces a healthy sport experience as the defining feature of interscholastic athletics.”

top of page  |  keynote speeches  |   customized programs

---

Gary Smit
Character educator, speaker, consultant

Gary Smit is one of the Institute’s most popular, experienced, and versatile speakers. A former superintendent, principal, and teacher, Gary conducts three-day workshops, one-day customized seminars, and conference keynote speeches.

Dr. Smit knows education. He was superintendent for 25 years in Illinois and Wisconsin, and has been an elementary school teacher and principal. He has been with CHARACTER COUNTS! since 1997.

Dr. Smit presents three-day Character Development Seminars, one-day awareness programs, and one-day Living Up to the Public Trust workshops for school superintendents and board of education members. He also teaches CC! to the Child and Youth Services staff of the U.S. Army. In between Institute commitments, Dr. Smit speaks at numerous local, state, and national conferences on the subject of character education.

Speaking. Dr. Smit’s educational background, lively style, and homespun stories have enlightened and engaged audiences across the country.

top of page  |  keynote speeches  |   customized programs

---

Larry V. Smith, Ph.D.
Mediator, consultant, instructor, ethicist

Dr. Larry Smith is a multi-jurisdictional mediator and arbitrator for the superior court system and in private practice and a former consultant to the Department of Justice for school safety.

He has taught at both the elementary and secondary level and is a former instructor in ethical decision making at UCLA’s Institute of Public Policy. An ex-Marine and Vietnam veteran, Dr. Smith competed in the U.S. Olympic trials as a middleweight boxer.

He has coached high school football and basketball and in the Southern California NCAA Division I summer basketball league. A resident of Galveston Island, Texas, he currently directs a nonprofit organization that trains schools and communities in conflict resolution and character education.

Speaking. A spellbinding and moving educator, his lessons speak to the heart and are laced with truisms, anecdotes, and common sense. “PVWH is what your grandmother told you,” he’s fond of saying. “It’s your responsibility to pass it on to kids in your charge.”

top of page  |  keynote speeches  |   customized programs

---

Mark J. Wittenberg
Speaker, consultant, trainer, policing instructor

Mark J. Wittenberg is among the nation’s most experienced and respected peace officer trainers, facilitators, and consultants with more than 27 years in policing and 11 years in management. He is also a featured speaker at numerous police conferences.

Few individuals are more qualified to honor the badge. An innovative trainer, developer, and communicator, Mr. Wittenberg has conducted leadership training in all levels of policing. He has been a facilitator for the Tucson Police Department, the Ventura County Sheriff’s Department, and the CA POST Supervisory Leadership Institute. From 1996 to 2001 he helped develop supervisors and managers within the Santa Clara Sheriff’s Department and was an instructor at the CA POST/FTO Management Course.

For the last 15 years, Mr. Wittenberg has assisted with personal development for The Leadership Group and mentors numerous police professionals.

Speaking. Mr. Wittenberg’s extensive experience in the policing profession – from training peace officers and senior management to conducting needs assessments and audits of department operations – has made him one of the most valuable communicators in the country.

top of page  |  keynote speeches  |   customized programs  |  clients