Ruth A. Wooden

Ruth A. Wooden Chair of Civic Ventures "is President and CEO of Public Agenda, a nonpartisan opinion research organization helping Americans explore and understand critical issues. Before joining Public Agenda, she was Executive Vice President and Senior Counselor at Porter Novelli, an international public relations firm known for its expertise in social marketing and health care. Prior to Porter Novelli, Wooden ran her own communications consulting firm and was President and former board member of the National Parenting Association (NPA), a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization founded to spark a parent's movement to make parenting a higher priority in private lives and on the public agenda. For 11 years before joining NPA, she was President of the Advertising Council, Inc., an organization that yearly mobilizes more than $1 billion of advertising space and time, the creative services of major advertising agencies, and financial support from hundreds of corporations. Wooden led the Advertising Council into important new strategic areas, playing an instrumental role in the 1995 development of "Commitment 2000," the organization's 10-year initiative to build support for family issues. She also was a key player in developing and executing "Kids These Days: What Americans Really Think About the Next Generation," a multi-year study that tracks American attitudes toward children and parents. After leaving the Ad Council and prior to joining NPA, Wooden worked on the Presidential campaign of Senator Bill Bradley, serving as coordinator of the Crystal Team, a group of volunteer advertising professionals who created Senator Bradley's advertising. She received a B.A. from the University of Minnesota and an Honorary Doctorate from Northeastern University.“


 * Director, Partnership for a Drug-Free America
 * Trustee, Demos: A Network for Ideas & Action
 * Advisory Board, Future of American Democracy Foundation
 * Advisory Board, The Transition Network