~Peggy Conlon to serve as board member of Tallahassee-based non-profit~
TALLAHASSEE, FL – Retired President and Chief Executive Officer of the Advertising Council Peggy Conlon is joining the Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy’s Board of Directors. Conlon will begin her three-year term on the Board immediately.
“Peggy Conlon retired as the President and CEO of the Ad Council just last month, and we’re elated that without pause, she will be joining us to amplify our message. Her expertise will enable us to strategize community efforts that expand the discussion on how low literacy impacts the lives of 36-million American families,” said Honorary Chair Doro Bush Koch.
Ms. Conlon served The Advertising Council as President and CEO from 1999 until her retirement in December of 2014. The Ad Council mobilizes more than $1.6 billion of advertising time and space annually to the creative services of more than 50 major advertising agencies and related financial support from hundreds of corporations.
During her tenure at the Ad Council, the organization tripled the work done on behalf of premier government and non-profit organizations, including the American Red Cross, Big Brothers Big Sisters, United Way of America, the American Heart Association, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, among others. She has worked closely with Presidents Clinton, Bush and Obama on issues ranging from homeland security, obesity prevention, and high school dropout prevention.
Ms. Conlon serves on the Board of Trustees of the United Way Worldwide and served for six years on the United Way of America board. Ms. Conlon was appointed by former President George Bush and First Lady Barbara Bush to lead the national media initiative for C-Change, formerly the National Dialogue on Cancer and served on its Board of Directors for six years. Ms. Conlon was also a member of the World Economic Forum’s Media, Entertainment and Information Global Agenda Council for six years.
Prior to joining the Ad Council, Ms. Conlon was Vice President, Group Publisher of the Broadcasting & Cable Group for Cahners Business Information. She was Group Publisher for the Electronics Division of CMP publications. Her experience has also included work at advertising agencies and as a corporate advertising director.
Ms. Conlon earned her B.A. in communications from the California State University at Fullerton and her M.A. from the Annenberg School of Communications at the University of Southern California. She was awarded the New York Women in Communications Matrix Award for Advertising in 2002, and she was named “2005 Advertising Woman of the Year” by Advertising Women of New York (AWNY).
The Barbara Bush Foundation is the nation’s leading advocate for family literacy. The goals of the Foundation are simple: we want children to start school ready to excel and help parents improve their literacy skills. To learn more about the Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy’s commitment to promote family literacy in homes across America, please visit www.helpthemread.org or join the conversation on Facebook or Twitter (@BarbaraBushFdt).
