AARP today welcomed new members and officers to its all-volunteer Board of Directors, including the organization's newest Board Chair, Joan Ruff, and President, Eric Schneidewind, the Board member who serves as AARP's principal volunteer spokesperson. Along with four other officers, they will serve until June of 2018.

The all-volunteer, Board of Directors is the governing body of AARP. The Board provides strategic direction, sets policy and provides governance oversight for AARP. Directors' responsibilities include approving AARP's strategic plan, approving the budget and monitoring AARP's finances.

Joan Ruff, J.D., (Board Chair) has worked as an executive, human resources consultant and attorney. After more than 10 years as a tax attorney, she joined William M. Mercer Inc., where she consulted on employee benefits and compensation. She then held executive management positions at Zurich Financial Services and H&R Block. Her leadership on numerous nonprofit boards and committees includes service as Secretary/Treasurer of the Mid-Continent Council of Girl Scouts and chair of the Mid-Continent Girl Scouts' Human Resources and Capital Campaign committees. She has also contributed her expertise to Habitat for Humanity and the Kansas City Red Cross. She resides in Mission Woods, Kansas, where she serves on the Mission Woods City Council.

As Board Chair, Ruff serves as the presiding official of the Board of Directors as it directs the affairs and funds of AARP. The Board Chair also serves as chair of the Governance and Compensation Committees.

Libby Sartain, MBA (Vice Chair) is an independent advisor, working with companies on human resource issues. With more than 30 years of experience in human resources, she is also an author and frequent speaker, using her HR leadership and management experience at companies in technology, transportation and manufacturing. She led human resources at Yahoo! and at Southwest Airlines during transformative periods. Both companies were among Fortune magazine's "Best Places to Work" during her tenure. She is the former board chair of the Society for Human Resource Management and is on the board of Manpower Group. She resides in Bastrop, Texas.

As Board Vice Chair, Sartain provides leadership in membership and member services matters, and serves as chair of the Member and Social Impact Committee.

Jewell D. Hoover, (Secretary/Treasurer), is a retired senior official with the United States Treasury Department. She worked for 28 years as a bank regulator and was a senior spokeswoman for the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency. She serves on the board of Fifth Third Bank, Foundation for the Carolinas, American Association for Bank Directors and the University of North Carolina's Center for Banking and Finance. She resides in Charlotte, North Carolina.

As Secretary/Treasurer, Hoover provides leadership in financial, fiscal and audit matters and assures that the Board exercises its responsibility in directing the funds of AARP. She serves as chair of the Audit and Finance Committee.

Eric Schneidewind, J.D., (President) is a retired attorney who is currently of counsel to the Varnum LLP law firm, where he specializes in energy law. As a public servant, he was chair of the Michigan Public Service Commission, deputy director of policy and consumer protection for the Michigan Insurance Bureau and attorney for the Michigan State Housing Authority. His volunteer roles include service as state president of AARP Michigan, secretary for the Great Lakes Renewable Energy Association and more than 20 years of volunteering at homeless shelters. He holds a B.A. from the University of California at Berkeley and earned his law degree from the University of Michigan Law School at Ann Arbor. He resides in Lansing, Mich.

As President, Schneidewind is the member of the AARP Board who serves as the association's principal volunteer spokesperson, articulating the positions and views of AARP to its members, volunteers and the public.

Catherine Alicia Georges, EdD, RN, FAAN, (President-elect) is professor and chair of the Department of Nursing at Lehman College and the Graduate Center of the City University of New York. She is president of the National Black Nurses Foundation. Previously, she was a staff nurse, team leader, supervisor and district manager for the Visiting Nurse Service of New York. She serves on the Board of the Black Women's Health Study and RAIN Inc. She earned her undergraduate degree from the Seton Hall University College of Nursing, her M.A. in Nursing from New York University and a doctoral degree in educational leadership and policy studies at the University of Vermont. She resides in Bronx, N.Y.

As President-elect, Georges provides leadership at key national events and meetings, especially by representing AARP President Eric Schneidewind when he is not available. Georges, who is chair of the AARP National Policy Council, will automatically become AARP President in June 2018.

New Directors

In March, the AARP Board of Directors elected the following individuals to serve two-year terms on the Board, beginning at the close of the Board's meeting on June 3, 2016.

Robert "Bob" Blancato is chair of the American Society on Aging and a board member of the National Council on Aging, positions that reflect his 30 years of deep experience in the field of aging and in public service. Professionally, he is president of Matz, Blancato and Associates, a public and government relations firm. Also, he is executive director of the National Association of Nutrition and Aging Services Programs and the national coordinator of the Elder Justice Coalition. He served as volunteer State President of AARP Virginia and as president of the National Committee for the Prevention of Elder Abuse. Blancato spent 17 years on the staff of the U.S. House Select Committee on Aging and has participated in four White House Conferences on Aging, including as the Executive Director of the 1995 White House Conference on Aging. He resides in Virginia.

Joseph "Joe" Coughlin is the founder and director of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology AgeLab. Based in MIT's Center for Transportation & Logistics, he teaches in MIT's Sloan School of Management'sAdvanced Management Program and in the Department of Urban Studies and Planning. Author of over 150 publications, Coughlin's research explores how demographic change, technology and social trends converge to drive future innovations in business and government. He is a Behavioral Sciences Fellow at the Gerontological Society of America and a Fellow of Switzerland's World Demographics and Ageing Forum. Coughlin publishes the online publication Disruptive Demographics on BigThink.com and is a regular contributor to MarketWatch. He is a graduate of the State University of New York at Oswego, Brown University and Boston University. He resides in Massachusetts and can be followed on Twitter @josephcoughlin.

Martha Dally

is a senior executive focused on meeting the needs of consumers 50-plus through marketplace innovation and outstanding customer service. She heads her own firm, Dally Consulting. She retired as senior vice president of customer development for Sara Lee Corporation. During her 30 years there, she also worked as chief customer officer, senior vice president of business development and executive vice president of personal products. Until recently, she served as Board Chair of AARP Services, Inc. She has also devoted more than 20 years to the board of American Woodmark Corporation. Dally earned an undergraduate degree from the University of North Carolina and has pursued graduate studies at the Wharton School of Business and Emory University. She resides in Dallas, Texas.

David "Dave" Walker is a senior strategic advisor for the global public sector practice at PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC). He has significant government transformation, financial restructuring, retirement security, and citizen engagement experience. Dave received presidential appointments from Reagan, Bush (41) and Clinton and was confirmed unanimously by the U.S. Senate each time. He has served as head of three federal agencies, including as Comptroller General of the United States and as head of the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) for almost 10-years. He previously served as Assistant Secretary of Labor for the now Employee Benefit Security Administration and as acting head of the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation. Dave served as one of two part-time public trustees for the Social Security and Medicare trust funds from 1990 to 1995 during which time he was a Partner and Global Managing Director of Arthur Andersen's Human Capital Services Practice. His primary residence is inConnecticut and his secondary residence is in Virginia.

For more information about the AARP Board of Directors, please visit http://www.aarp.org/about-aarp/board-of-directors.

About AARP

AARP is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization, with a membership of more than 38 million that helps people turn their goals and dreams into 'Real Possibilities' by changing the way America defines aging. With staffed offices in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands, AARP works to strengthen communities and promote the issues that matter most to families such as healthcare security, financial security and personal fulfillment. AARP also advocates for individuals in the marketplace by selecting products and services of high quality and value to carry the AARP name. As a trusted source for news and information, AARP produces the world's largest circulation magazine, AARP The Magazine and AARP Bulletin. AARP does not endorse candidates for public office or make contributions to political campaigns or candidates. To learn more, visit www.aarp.org or follow @aarp and our CEO @JoAnn_Jenkins on Twitter.