John Scudder is a public school teacher and writer who is an Arizona native. He writes a weekly column for the Scottsdale Republic and frequently contributes editorials to other newspapers on subjects ranging from education to religious freedom. He also works to reinvigorate our schools with a stronger commitment to critical thinking. His editorials are available at http://www.azsmart.org and http://www.arizonarepublic.com.

Also speaking was Lance Huffman, an English teacher from Tolleson, AZ, who is president of the Tolleson teachers' union. He addressed issues facing high schools, such as religion in schools, critical thinking, etc. And John Scudder addressed the issues from an elementary/middle-school perspective. We were fortunate in having both these gentlemen address our group!

Many members have been requesting an "Open Discussion," in which our members take the floor. In the past, these have been among our most popular meetings. What's on your mind? Bush? Iraq? Church/State issues? The economy? Local issues? Read any good and relevant books that you wish to share? This is your chance to speak up!

Charles "Chuck" Terrey was born and grew up in Michigan City, IN. He served overseas as an electronic technician with the US Coast Guard during the Korean War (1951-54). Later, he earned a BS degree in electrical engineering at Purdue University (1958). Since then, he has worked in quality assurance, and manufacturing engineering for electronics and computer manufacturers in California and Arizona before joining Hypercom in 1995. He has several inventions to his credit, including a circuit board analyzer. Because of his concern for pollution and US foreign oil dependency, Terrey is also an active member and a director of the Phoenix-based American Hydrogen Association. He points out that internal combustion engines provide the major motive force for transportation of people, goods, and farming and heavy construction. Noting the dangers of hydrocarbon fuels to people's health and the nation's economy, Terrey says that by changing the fuel from hydrocarbons to hydrogen, the internal combustion engine is transformed into an air cleaning machine.

Dick Kovacic is currently a graduate student and a teaching assistant in the Religious Studies Department at Arizona State University, researching Jack Kerouac and American Buddhism in the 1950's. He received his undergraduate degree from ASU, also in Religious Studies, in 1998, twenty-four years after first beginning college. He spent five years in the 1970's studying chemistry, mathematics, and psychology at a Midwest university before quitting school for lack of interest. After moving to Arizona in 1980, he began a twenty-year career in retail, which he recently left. In 1992, he decided to return to school part-time with the plan of someday finishing his undergraduate degree. His curiosity about world religions led him to ASU's Religious Studies Department. Mr. Kovacic writes: "Religion is not a narrow, isolated segment of individual and social life, but a collection of beliefs/values/behaviors that deeply informs personal and public life. As a student in the department, I became interested in the ways that people in the modern world are creating religions that speak directly to their needs, their wants, and their fears. Specifically, I am interested in the ongoing construction of an American understanding of Buddhism."

Aron Talenfeld became a self-avowed vegetarian at age four and has been an atheist since his Bar Mitzvah. He has long concerned himself with the questions of "How?" and "Why?" He was graduated from Arcadia High School in 2002 and is currently a sophomore at the University of Arizona in Tucson. Aron is spending the 2003-2004 academic year studying Spanish at the University of Puerto Rico, Rio Piedras.

Bill Straus is Regional Director of the Anti-Defamation League and a native Phoenician. After graduating from the University of Iowa in 1971, he spent the rest of the ‘70s in the horseracing industry, where he got his first taste of radio, hosting several racing programs and serving as a liaison between the tracks and radio stations. In 1980, he entered the radio field as a salesman for KTAR in Phoenix, later, a National and General Sales Manager in San Diego. In October of 1992, he was invited to try his hand at hosting an overnight talk show. “Straus’ Place” was born, and continued until March, 2002 when he assumed the position of Regional Director of the Anti-Defamation League. He is a past member of the Board of Directors of the Easter Seal Society of Arizona and the Hugh O’Brian Youth Leadership Foundation and is on the Board of Directors for the Boys & Girls Clubs of Metropolitan Phoenix and the 100 Club. He has also served on the steering committee for the Interfaith Action Coalition of Arizona. Bill has two children, Jenni, 29, and Charlie, 24.

Dr. Randel Hanson received his B.A, with Honors, from the University of Minnesota in 1986 in the area of Scandinavian Studies. He also attended the Univ. of Trondheim in Norway, and the University of Copenhagen in Denmark. He received his Ph. D. in 1998 in American Studies at the University of Minnesota. He is Assistant Professor, School of Justice Studies at ASU, as well as a Member of the Advisory Board on American Indian Studies. He writes: "My research agenda explores relationships between changing political economy and environmental conflicts. I write primarily on how post Cold War globalization processes and neo liberal policies set the stage for contemporary community-based conflicts over production and distribution of environmental toxins, particularly as they relate to American Indian communities. "

Sheila Kirsch is the volunteer coordinator at the Arizona Science Center and has been with the Science Center for the past two years. She received her Masters degree in elementary education from Buffalo State College. She will complete a Master's certificate in Museum Studies in August 2003. She is currently completing an internship with the Desert Botanical Gardens and is also researching the sustainability of volunteer programs in museums in the Valley. She was drawn to the Science Center as a place to explore an integrated approach to science education. Sheila spoke about the Arizona Science Center and the appeal of its programs to an adult audience -- specifically Adults Night Out, special event weekends, and a variety of traveling exhibitions, including "Inventions at Play," "Liberty Bell 7" and "Dragon Bones."