Joseph Capizzi, Ph.D.

Expertise: Social Ethics, Moral Theology, Law and Religion

Joseph Capizzi, Ph.D. in Theology, is the Executive Director of the Institute for Human Ecology and an Ordinary Professor of Moral Theology at The Catholic University of America. He has published widely on just war theory, bioethics, the history of moral theology, and political liberalism. Dr. Capizzi worked as a research fellow at the VADM James B. Stockdale Center for Ethical Leadership at the U.S. Naval Academy from 2013 to 2014.

Stephen P. Higgins, J.D.

For more than two decades, Stephen Higgins devoted his life to public service. As a Legislative Director and Chief Counsel in the United States Senate, he was a legislative, legal, and policy strategist. Stephen worked with Members of Congress, congressional staff, executive branch officials, interest groups, think tanks, and constituents to build bipartisan coalitions and negotiate complex legislation. On a daily basis, he served as a liaison to Senate and House offices, the White House, advocacy groups, and other stakeholders.

Jeanne Marie Leo

Mrs. Leo is an Institutional Coordinator with the IHE. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy and Theology from The Catholic University of America, where she served first-year women as a Student Minister and worked as a writer in the Office of the University President.

Mrs. Leo grew up in Silver Spring, Maryland, and lives in Arlington with her husband and two daughters.

William L. Saunders, J.D.

Of Counsel | Americans United for Life | Chair of Religious Liberties Group, The Federalist Society | President, The Fellowship of Catholic Scholars

Expertise: Bioethics, Religious Liberty, Human Rights

Bill Saunders, J.D., is a graduate of the Harvard Law School who has been involved in issues of public policy, law and ethics for thirty years. A regular columnist for the National Catholic Bioethics Quarterly, Mr. Saunders has written widely on these topics, as well as on Catholic social teaching. He has given lectures in law schools and colleges throughout the United States and the world. He is the Director of the Program in Human Rights for the Institute for Human Ecology.

Emmett McGroarty, J.D.

Expertise: Education Policy, Federalism Issues

Emmett McGroarty, J.D., is the Director of Research and Planning at the Institute for Human Ecology. He studies public policies that undermine the constitutional structure and the principle of subsidiarity. He is the co-author of Deconstructing the Administrative State: The Fight for Liberty. He is also co-author ofControlling Education from the Top: Why Common Core Is Bad for America, Pioneer Institute, No. 87 (May 2012); and Cogs in the Machine: Big Data, Common Core, and National Testing, Pioneer Institute, No. 114 (May 2014). Mr. McGroarty is Co-Founder of truthinamericaneducation.com, a nationwide network of individuals and organizations that sheds light on the Common Core system and the collection of private data on children and their families. His published works have appeared in, among others, Breitbart, Christian Post, Crisis, Daily Caller, The Federalist, FoxNews.com, New York Post, Public Discourse, The Hill, Townhall, USA Today, and The Washington Times. He has testified before state and federal committees and commissions. Mr. McGroarty received an A.B. from Georgetown University and a J.D. from Fordham School of Law.

Suzanne Beecher, J.D.

Suzanne Beecher, J.D., serves as the Director of Student Programs at the Institute for Human Ecology. Prior to joining the Institute, Suzanne was an associate at a nonprofit organization focusing on First Amendment litigation and an analyst at the Office for Civil Rights at the United States Department of Health and Human Services. Originally from Chicago, Suzanne received a law degree from the University of Notre Dame, where she was a fellow at the de Nicola Center for Ethics and Culture and an assistant rector in one of the university’s residence halls. Suzanne studied economics and political science as an undergraduate at Baylor University and participated in a semester at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland.

John Henry Hobgood

John Henry Hobgood is the Administrative Assistant for the IHE. He holds a B.A. from the University of Notre Dame, where he studied in the Program of Liberal Studies. His interests include the history of political thought (especially early-modern) and normative questions surrounding religion and politics. He lives in Washington, D.C.

Beatriz Lopez-Bonetti

Mrs. Lopez Bonetti is a Research Associate in the Busch School of Business and a media fellow with the IHE. Previously she was the Director of Public Relations for the Busch School of Business. She specializes in marketing research and has conducted qualitative and quantitative tests and statistical analysis to identify product appeal, customer content preference and consumer behavior for use in company product and market strategy development.  She has directed and executed marketing research, strategic planning, budgeting and monetary goals for a start-up organization which led to the development of breakthrough technology seeking protection of families from harmful media. Mrs. Lopez Bonetti managed relationships with national membership organizations including family, religious and civic groups using the collected market data to execute integrated communications and outreach plans to ensure strategic communications with their audiences. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from the Universidad Tecnológica del Centro in Venezuela and a Master of Science in Marketing from Johns Hopkins University. Mr. Lopez lives in Maryland with her husband, and five young children.