Edwin Meese is a prominent leader, thinker, and elder statesman in the Conservative Movement and America. He served as Governor Reagan's executive assistant and chief of staff in California from 1969 through 1974. He then served as the 75th U.S. attorney general and later held the position of counsellor to the President-the senior position on the White House staff-where he functioned as Reagan's chief policy advisor. As attorney general and counsellor, Meese was a member of Reagan's Cabinet and the National Security Council. Today, he is the Ronald Reagan distinguished fellow emeritus at the Heritage Foundation. He also serves as the co-chairman of the Reagan Ranch Board of Governors.

Ron Robinson served as Young America's Foundation's president for 43 years, before retiring in 2021.  

During his leadership, Time magazine wrote that Young America's "Foundation-run by a former Reagan Administration advisor, Ron Robinson, is now the nation's largest advocacy group devoted to student politics." Time referred to Robinson as one of the "seasoned generals of the right" who is leading the "diverse and well-funded" generation of conservatives who are "winning battles on campus."  

He received a bachelor of arts degree in political science at Canisius College and a juris doctor degree at The Catholic University of America. Mr. Robinson served as executive director of Young Americans for Freedom (1977-79), president of the United States Youth Council (1983-85), and president of the International Youth Year Commission (1983-84). He was an advisor to the US Department of Education during the Reagan administration.  

He is also co-author of Funding Fathers: The Unsung Heroes of the Conservative Movement.  

Mr. Robinson has served as a trustee of the Philadelphia Society and is the vice-president of the Free Speech Defense and Education Fund. He is also a director of Citizens United and the Citizens United Foundation, the American Conservative Union, the Government Accountability Institute, and the National Center for Public Policy.


Mr. Robinson served as a trustee of the Philadelphia Society, is currently a trustee of The Phillips Foundation, a director of Citizens United and the Citizens United Foundation, a director of the American Conservative Union, and he is the vice-president of the Free Speech Defense and Education Fund.

Michelle Easton is the president of the Clare Boothe Luce Center for Conservative Women, an organization she founded in 1993 as the Clare Boothe Luce Policy Institute, which puts forward conservative women role models who promote traditional family values and prepares young women for conservative leadership. The Center for Conservative Women also produces an annual calendar and hosts campus lectures, conferences, seminars, and summits featuring and honoring rising conservative women leaders. Prior to founding CBL, Ms. Easton received Presidential appointments from both Presidents Reagan and George H. W. Bush with Senate confirmation for her position at the U.S. Department of Education, serving the full 12 years of their administrations. During the Reagan Administration, she also served as Private Voluntary Liaison of the Agency for International Development's Africa Bureau and as the first director of President Reagan's new Missing Children's Program at the U.S. Department of Justice. In 1994, Virginia Governor George Allen appointed Ms. Easton to the State Board of Education, whose members later elected her president of the Board. She led the Board to create nationally acclaimed academic standards, tests, and a rigorous new system of accountability for both students and schools. Prior to her government service, Ms. Easton worked five years for Young Americans for Freedom and two years for National Right to Work, putting herself through law school at night to graduate from American University's Washington School of Law in 1980. She received a BA in development psychology from Briarcliff College in New York where she briefly taught elementary school before moving to Washington, D.C., in 1973. Ms. Easton travels widely to promote conservative principles and speaks at conferences, meetings, and campus events. She has been interviewed on hundreds of talk radio programs and television programs, including C-SPAN. She lives in Reston, Virginia, with her husband, Ron Robinson, and they have three grown sons and three grandchildren.

Eric Hoplin is president and CEO of the National Association of Wholesaler-Distributors (NAW), representing 30,000 companies that account for one-third of the American economy, by supplying businesses with the products they need to serve their customers in nearly every sector of commerce.
A seasoned executive and communicator who has worked at the highest levels of government and business, Mr. Hoplin was previously the head of external relations for Wells Fargo, where he led a team focused on improving the company's reputation and advancing pro-growth policy objectives in concert with third-party organizations across the political spectrum. Before joining Wells Fargo, he served as the executive director at the Financial Services Roundtable (now BPI), a trade association representing the CEOs of the nation's largest financial services companies. Prior to that, Mr. Hoplin worked in management consulting at Booz Allen Hamilton where he helped senior leaders across the government solve their most vexing challenges. Earlier in his career, he worked in politics, supporting many congressional, gubernatorial, and Presidential campaigns.
Mr. Hoplin is a leader in the charitable community, where he serves on the Boards of the Trust for the National Mall and the Reagan Ranch. He's a prolific fundraiser, having raised millions of dollars for charitable organizations, NGOs, and public officials.
A Minnesota native, Mr. Hoplin holds a Master of International Affairs degree from Columbia University, an MBA from Augsburg College, a BA in political science and communications from St. Olaf College, and a certificate in Change Management from Georgetown University McDonough School of Business. He lives outside of Washington, DC, with his wife, Nicole, and their three boys.

Todd Buchholz is an economist, critically acclaimed author, and alumnus of YAF's programs. The Associated Press said Buchholz "lights up economics with a wickedly sparkling wit." The previous White House senior economic advisor, Tiger hedge fund managing director, and bestselling author gives lively and informative speeches on financial markets, entrepreneurship, and business. He frequently appears on Fox, CNBC, and the BBC, and is perhaps best known for his books, New Ideas from Dead Economists and The Price of Prosperity, which was named a must read by The Wall Street Journal. Todd and his wife Debby are also co-producers of the Broadway smash hit Jersey Boys.

Dr. Burton Folsom is Professor Emeritus and Distinguished Fellow of Hillsdale College in Hillsdale, Michigan. He is also the longest serving faculty member on Young America's Foundation's roster of speakers, addressing nearly every National Conservative Student Conference since its inception in 1979. He also taught U.S. history at the University of Nebraska, the University of Pittsburgh, Murray State University, and Northwood University. He is also the author of eleven books, including The Myth of the Robber Barons and Deal or Raw Deal? How FDR's Economic Legacy has Damaged America. He now resides in Atlanta, Georgia, and travels widely, lecturing on the history of free markets.

Anita Folsom directed the Free Market Forum at Hillsdale College for ten years, which brought together college professors from across the US to learn more about free markets and why they work so well. Anita has taught American history at Hillsdale College and also in the University of Kentucky community college system. She has served in various policy-related positions, including as county chair of the Reagan/Mitch McConnell efforts in 1984, and as Field Representative for Senator McConnell during his first term. Along with her husband, Anita co-wrote FDR Goes to War: How Expanded Executive Power, Spiraling National Debt, and Restricted Civil Liberties Shaped Wartime America (2011) and Sam Can't Count (2014).

Robert J. (Bob) Herbold, retired executive vice president and chief operating officer of Microsoft Corporation, is the managing director of The Herbold Group, LLC. Herbold also serves on the Board of Directors of Agilent Technologies and is the Co-Founder of The Herbold Foundation, which provides college scholarships to engineering, technology, physical science, and mathematics students. Herbold joined Microsoft in 1994 and in his seven years as COO, Microsoft experienced a four-fold increase in revenue and a seven-fold increase in profits. Prior to joining Microsoft, he spent 26 years at The Procter & Gamble Company, where he served as senior vice president during his last five years. Herbold is the author of three books: The Fiefdom Syndrome; The Turf Battles that Undermine Careers and Companies-and How to Overcome Them published by Random House/Doubleday, Seduced by Success; How the Best Companies Survive the 9 Traps of Winning published by McGraw Hill, and What's Holding You Back? Ten Bold Steps That Define Gutsy Leaders published by John Wiley. He currently authors a blog focused on courageous leadership at www.BobHerbold.com .

Patricia L. Herbold is a former United States Ambassador to the Republic of Singapore. Prior to her ambassadorial appointment, she was chairman of the King County, WA, Republican Party. Ambassador Herbold is a native of Cincinnati, OH, and upon graduation from college, she was a chemist at a federal government facility in Cincinnati. After receiving a JD degree, she practiced law as a prosecutor; as in-house real estate counsel with Prudential Insurance Company; as VP and general counsel at Bank One Dayton, OH, and as a commercial real estate attorney with a large law firm in Cincinnati. She also served as Mayor of the community in which she and her family lived. She moved to Bellevue, WA, with her husband in 1995. She has been active in community service and politics and continues to serve on several non-profit boards, including the Board of Governors of the Ronald Reagan Ranch in Santa Barbara, CA. Along with her husband, she co-founded The Herbold Foundation which awards scholarships to deserving high school seniors. She has received several awards and an honorary doctorate degree in international relations. In 2014, she was inducted into the Horatio Alger Association of Distinguished Americans.

Andrew Coffin is a vice president of Young America's Foundation and the director of the Reagan Ranch. Beginning his service with the Foundation in 2001, Andrew is the longest serving team member in the Santa Barbara office. Andrew has been active in every facet of the Reagan Ranch project: student outreach programs (including the launching of the annual College Conference at the Reagan Ranch), communications, development, and the completion of the Reagan Ranch Center. Formerly, Andrew was a staff assistant in the communications office of the Judiciary Committee of the U.S. House of Representatives; this office was assigned to handle receipt of the report of the Independent Counsel's investigation of President Clinton. Andrew also served for five years as a correspondent for WORLD Magazine, writing on film and culture for the national news weekly.