The American Road was conceived and designed by Songmasters, founded in 1994 by a coalition of senior executives from the nonprofit, music, entertainment and marketing worlds. Songmasters develops and delivers integrated marketing and brand communications, business development, music services and non-profit services to its clients. All Songmasters programs directly benefit educational and other charitable causes.
Songmasters’ partners and affiliates have an impressive record of accomplishments, including significant work with for profits and non-profits, award-winning concerts, televised events, feature and made-for-television films, music CDs, videos and radio series. Some of its extensive for-profit and non-profit client list can be found on the Songmasters’ website.
The American Road key project staff includes a highly skilled team of core leadership and their staff advancing the key elements of the project. More detailed information can be found on the Songmasters website/Our People.
Brief Bios
JENNIFER COHEN, Songmasters’ Founder and Managing Partner, oversees music production, development of the digital portal and delivery of the supporting programming and will serve as Executive Producer of all media included in the project. Ms. Cohen was formerly a successful and multi-award-winning executive at Time Warner music labels, Warner/Elektra/Atlantic International (now Warner Music International). Ms. Cohen is responsible for design and coordination of all Songmasters’ integrated marketing and brand communications programs, music initiatives, and project development.
REGAN McCARTHY, Ph.D., Songmasters’ Senior Partner, is responsible for the development of educational and civic engagement components of The American Road as well schools and communities nationwide. Presently, Dr. McCarthy oversees Songmasters’ media production activities, development and oversight of all philanthropic, non-profit and community relations. McCarthy has led major educational, museum and award-winning media production initiatives and has also had extensive experience in the education, government, diplomacy and nonprofit sectors.
MARIE HUBLEY ALCOCK, Ph.D., serves as a leader of the curriculum development process for the project. A national and international education consultant, her work focuses on the areas of curriculum, instruction, and assessment design. For the last twenty-five years she has worked in public and private education as a teacher, administrator, and public advocate. She is the President of Learning Systems Associates. Dr. Alcock is widely published and read, including as co-author of Bold Moves for Schools, How We Create Remarkable Learning Environments and many more including numerous papers and articles about student mobility, innovative models of education, curriculum mapping, gaming in education, leadership, and organizational change.
PETER ASHER serves as Executive Producer of The American Road contemporary “cover” music recordings and Executive Music Advisor to the planned events and concerts. A legendary performer who amassed nine “Top 20” records during his career, Mr. Asher has been awarded 37 RIAA-certified gold albums and 22 platinum albums in the U.S., and many more internationally. He has produced fourteen Grammy® Award-winning recordings and was twice honored individually with the Grammy Award for “Producer of the Year.” He was producer of the Grammy- nominated original cast album of the Broadway musical, “Bright Star,” which itself won a Tony in 2017. Among his film-related music projects are several soundtrack album collaborations with Hans Zimmer for select films in the Madagascar, Superman, Spiderman and Pirates of the Caribbean series, among others. His previous collaborations with Songmasters have resulted in an award-winning concert, album and PBS special.
ANDREA BEACH leads digital and technology design and development for The American Road. Ms. Beach is the founder and CEO of BeachFront Technologies, an outsourced strategic technology, development, and execution arm for major digital projects. Her deep knowledge of digital technologies and understanding of mobile-driven consumer behavior has made her well-respected digital platform developer, especially for advanced, complex projects. She consults with some most highly recognized digital deliverers such as Coca-Cola, Ford, IBM, NASA, AT&T, UPS, and SONY. She leads development of the digital content hub (the “Tapestry”) and all additional features in digital delivery pipeline for every component of The American Road.
BILL BOOHER assists with government and corporate relations for the American Road. Among his extensive leadership positions in corporate, non-profit and government relations sectors, he has served as Executive VP, COO and Treasurer of the Council on Competitiveness, a non-partisan think tank. He also served as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Technology Policy at the US Department of Commerce. An entrepreneur with a long history of successful business development and leadership, he is now Principal and COO of IAG, serving global and major domestic clients in the US and on every continent in many business categories. He brings experience, bench depth and results in strategy, traditional and digital business sponsorship and investment to The American Road.
DICK FERGUSON leads business development for The American Road. A senior marketing executive and entrepreneur with a long history of successful business development and leadership, he has served global and major domestic clients in the US and on every continent in many business categories, including automotive, financial and professional services, healthcare, sports/entertainment and consumer goods. Mr. Ferguson brings unparalleled experience and results in traditional and digital advertising, experiential marketing and promotion, and nontraditional marketing services to The American Road.
HEIDI HAYES JACOBS, Ed.D. serves as The American Road’s editor of the curriculum writing process and Professional Development Advisor. Dr. Jacobs is internationally recognized for her work in curriculum mapping, curriculum integration, and developing 21st century approaches to teaching and learning. She is President of Curriculum Designers, Inc. and Executive Director of the Curriculum Mapping Institute, and works as an education consultant with schools and districts (K–12), academic institutions, professional and research organizations on issues and practices pertaining to curriculum reform, instructional strategies to encourage critical thinking, strategic planning, assessment and effective learning spaces.
BRIAN J. MURPHY serves as the EIC (Executive in Charge) for all live and broadcast events of The American Road. For more than 30 years, he has successfully married corporate America and the entertainment industry through effective strategic marketing campaigns that cross all distribution and media channels, now pioneering related work in early stage mobile technology, vision recognition, mobile search and app development. With roots at Time Warner, Mr. Murphy has executed major entertainment and production operations such as AT&T Presents Hard Rock Live, Live at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and MasterCard’s Music in High Places. He has developed and produced acclaimed broadcast events and special for CBS, PBS, MTV, VH1, DirecTV, Viewer’s Choice and more.
Our thanks go to ADAM M. FINKEL, Sc.D. for his support for development of The American Road website.