For Immediate Release
May 15 , 2006
Contact: Judith Platt
Ph: 202-220-4551
Email: jplatt@publishers.org
Jay Diskey to Head AAP School Division
May 15, 2006, Washington, DC: Jay Diskey, a communications and public policy professional with extensive experience in the field of education, has been named Executive Director of the School Division of the Association of American Publishers (AAP). Mr. Diskey, who will take over his new responsibilities on June 5, replaces Stephen Driesler, who retired in March. Mr. Diskey will be headquartered in the AAP Washington office.
A native of Fort Wayne, Indiana, Mr. Diskey holds a B.A. in philosophy and a master’s degree in journalism from Indiana University. Before joining AAP, he headed Diskey & Associates, his own public relations and public affairs consultancy specializing in policy areas of education and workforce development. Prior to that, he served as Communications Director for the House Committee on Education and the Workforce and for Committee Chairman Congressman Bill Goodling (R-PA), and as Vice President of the education practice at Hager Sharp Inc., a Washington-based public relations firm. He was the communications planner and press aide to U.S. Secretary of Education Lamar Alexander, having been Alexander’s communications officer when he was President of the University of Tennessee. Mr. Diskey also has experience as a working journalist, at the Knoxville News-Sentinel and the Evansville Press.
Julie McGee, President and CEO of Harcourt Achieve, Professional & Trade and Chair of the School Division Executive Committee, noted that the Search Committee had interviewed a number of highly qualified candidates. “At the end of this process we are convinced that Jay brings a special set of qualifications and understanding and will prove to be a strong advocate for educational publishers at the national and state level.”
About AAP:
The Association of American Publishers is the national trade association of the U.S. book publishing industry. AAP’s members include most of the major commercial book publishers in the United States as well as smaller and non-profit publishers, university presses, and scholarly societies.
The AAP School Division is concerned with publishing for the elementary and secondary school (K-12) market. The division works to enhance the role of instructional materials in the education process, to maintain categorical funding for instructional materials and increase the funds available for the purchase of these materials, to simplify and rationalize the process of state adoptions for instructional materials, and to generally improve the climate in which educational publishers do business. The division serves as a bridge between the publishing industry and the educational community, promoting the cause of education at the national and state level.
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