Dick Mayo-Smith and Tom Keehn Presented with First Annual World Education Award

BOSTON, October 31, 2008: World Education, Inc. is pleased to announce the recipients of the first annual World Education Award; long-time supporters and board members, Richmond Mayo-Smith and Thomas Keehn. The Award has been established to honor and recognize those who contribute to advancing World Education's mission, in particular, supporting girls and women's education.

Gloria Steinem spoke of her long friendship with Tom Keehn, beginning in India in the mid-1950s, when she presented him with the first annual World Education Award in October 2008.

Gloria Steinem, who worked with Mr. Keehn in India, presented the award to him at World Education's annual dinner on Friday, October 24, 2008, at the Harvard Club of Boston, at a dinner for 220 guests. Joel Lamstein, World Education president, gave the award to Mr. Mayo-Smith.

Both men have been involved with World Education for many years. "I am pleased that we have created this formal award to honor people such as Dick Mayo-Smith and Tom Keehn," commented Mr. Lamstein. "Their unwavering dedication and supportive guidance has helped keep World Ed grounded in our core, grassroots values over the past five-and-a-half decades."

Mr. Keehn's relationship with World Education extends back almost 60 years, to before the organization was formally incorporated. In 1952, while working with Nelson Rockefeller, Mr. Keehn became the Rockefeller representative in India for the nonprofit American Association for Economic and Social Development. It was there, in 1954, that Mr. Keehn met, befriended, and traveled to Kashmir with Welthy Fisher, World Education's founder.

Tom Keehn was President of World Education from 1972 to 1979.

Following eight years in India, Mr. Keehn took on two short assignments with the U.S. Agency for International Development. However, he found governmental work limiting, so in 1964, he and his family returned to the United States. In New York, Mr. Keenh worked with Ms. Fisher and World Education. In 1972, he became president of the organization. As president, Mr. Keehn helped World Education become an innovative leader in literacy and education, especially for women and girls. Throughout his tenure, Mr. Keehn remained committed to building sustainability from the ground up; he wisely once inverted the axiom "Speak and they shall listen", to "Listen and they shall speak." These sage words capture the essence of World Education's philosophy and demonstrate why Mr. Keehn is such a fitting recipient for the first World Education Award.

Mr. Keehn left World Education in 1980 and went on to help establish InterAction, a coalition of more than 150 U.S. non-profit organizations involved in international development. There he held the position of Director of Development Education for many years.

Dick May-Smith met World Education's founder, Welthy Fisher, in 1961 and has supported the organization ever since.

Mr. Mayo-Smith, a resident of Boston, began his relationship with World Education in 1962. He was taking a break from teaching at Philips Exeter Academy to work in India, following John F. Kennedy's call to "wage peace." Mr. Mayo-Smith and his family were looking for an eye-opening experience, so he began work in community development. Mr. Mayo-Smith was involved in a project to write elementary general science textbooks for the Punjab and, from 1962-64, after meeting Welthy Fisher, worked for World Education in Lucknow in adult literacy.

Mr. Mayo-Smith returned to Massachusetts and from 1965 to 1973, he served as Headmaster of The Roxbury Latin School. Since then he has been involved in helping to start organizations such as Educators for Social Responsibility and has served on boards of a number of non-profits seeking to effect social change. He is married to Nancy Fox, and they have three children and six grandchildren.

The World Education Award has been established to honor and recognize those who have dedicated their lives to the issues near and dear to World Education—literacy and other social development activities that help improve the lives of the poor, with a particular focus on girls and women's education.

Read Dick Mayo-Smith and Tom Keehn's biography's in the World Education Award program.