Panel Bios

Brady Anderson:

Brady Anderson was the Communications Officer and an Officer of the Deck onboard a US Navy Destroyer during the Vietnam War. 

He had his own law practice before becoming an Assistant Attorney General and assistant to the Governor of Arkansas.  

He and his wife Betty promoted the use of minority languages and bilingual education while living in Tanzania, Kenya and Ethiopia. 

During President Bill Clinton's first term, Brady was the US Ambassador to Tanzania and during Clinton's second term he was the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development USAID in Washington.

Barbara Fowler:

During her thirty-year career with Prudential, Fowler served as both a Field and Home Office leader. She  was in charge of Sales and Management Training and Development for Prudential International Insurance where she worked extensively with the Asian, European and South American operations.  Prior to that, she served as Chief Marketing Officer Poland and was the first Chief Marketing Officer, responsible for the start-up of marketing operations in Prudential Seguros, Argentina.

Barbara received her Bachelor of Arts Degree in Business Administration from Wittenberg University in Ohio, her Law Degree from Wake Forest School of Law in North Carolina and her Master’s Degree in Taxation from New York University School of Law in New York. She holds both a Chartered Life Underwriter and Chartered Financial Consultant designation. 

Tom Martin:

Tom Martin served as the chief communications officer for two global companies: FedEx and ITT Corporation. At FedEx he helped launch the FedEx brand that has become a global icon. Since 2007 he has served as Executive in Residence in the Department of Communication at the College of Charleston. In 2016 he launched the Martin Scholars program, an experiential learning program for graduating seniors. In 2023 he founded the Martin Center for Mentorship in Communication at the college. The Center will teach, research, facilitate and inspire mentorship at the College of Charleston and beyond.

 Bill Sage:

After graduating from the University of Michigan Undergraduate and Law Schools and practicing law in Seattle for several years, Bill was active in politics, managing a Seattle Mayor’s campaign, and House and Senate campaigns in Michigan.  He eventually became a Congressional Chief of Staff in Washington.  After managing various multi-state construction projects, his career took a ninety degree turn into soccer, where he was a founder of two professional leagues, including Major League Soccer.  He was COO of the US Soccer Federation, and eventually launched US Club Soccer, a program to foster the development of talented youth soccer players on track for a professional career.  Bill moved the company to Charleston in 2006 where he and wife Amy made the wise choice to reside in I’On, where they’ve lived for 17 years.

Ben Tennille:

Ben is an experienced litigator and trial judge.  He was a partner in a large Greensboro. N. C. law firm where he tried cases involving commercial and corporate disputes, labor law, patent litigation and taxation.  He then served as Associate General Counsel and Assistant Secretary at Burlington Industries, managing Burlington’s litigation worldwide. 

Ben left Burlington in 1996 and accepted the challenge of establishing the North Carolina Business Court, the first state-wide specialized court for complex business cases in the U.S.  He retired as Chief Judge of the Business Court in 2011.  Ben has been a mediator and arbitrator, an adjunct professor at Wake Forest School of Law, and a member of the original managing board of P.R.I.M.E. Finance, a nonprofit in The Hague established to arbitrate derivative disputes worldwide.  He is a proud former Marine.  Marty and Ben cofounded and managed H.O.P.E. of Winston Salem, a nonprofit that feeds children at risk of hunger in Forsyth County.