Biography
Ann O'Beay is a professional with over 25 years of executive, management, operations and consulting experience related to state government, higher education, industry, advanced research and education networking, grants and development, research institutions, P-20 information technology, STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) education, public-private partnerships, corporate relations, strategic planning, and project management. In February 2014, Ann returned to Internet2 as the Senior Director of Industry Relations and Community Engagement. Most recently she has served as principal/owner of AEO Consulting working with such clients as Battelle Memorial Institute, JASON Learning, and University of Tennessee-Knoxville. She previously fulfilled the role of Director of Grants and Strategic Alliances for the University System of Ohio (USO), a position preceded by her engagement as Chief Technology Officer (CTO) for the then-Chancellor of the Ohio Board of Regents. In the CTO role, she was the liaison between the Chancellor and the Education Technology Partner organizations serving the USO, including: the Ohio Academic Services Network (OARnet); the Ohio Supercomputer Center (OSC); the Ohio Learning Network (OLN); the Ohio Library and Information Network (OhioLINK); and eTech Ohio. As a consultant, O'Beay has applied her background in research and education networking and telecommunications to strategic planning, facilitation, development, grants capture and administration, and project management services to the public and private sectors. She served as a Project Manager for Merit Network's and the Ohio Middle Mile Consortium's successful Broadband Technology Opportunities Program (BTOP) proposals to the National Telecommunications Infrastructure Administration (NTIA) of the Department of Commerce, under the American Recovery and Investment Act (ARRA), which were collectively awarded over $175M in federal grants. She has also served as Co-principal Investigator for initiatives funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation via EDUCAUSE, and in a successful application to the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH). Previously, O'Beay served as the founding Director of Corporate Relations for Internet2. She led MCI's efforts with the National Science Foundation Network (NSFNET) and the very high-speed Backbone Network Service (vBNS) initiatives. Her related experience includes executive and management positions with Fortune 500 companies including AT&T, where she specialized in education. She has also held teaching positions in vocal music and biology and earth science. She has been a liaison to EDUCAUSE / Net@EDU, Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF), North American Network Operators Group (NANOG), the Internet Society (ISOC), and other key organizations in the course of her career. She serves as Vice President, Board Member, and co-founder of the Internet Legacy Institute (ILI). O'Beay holds a master's degree and a bachelor's degree (magna cum laude) from Eastern Michigan University. She completed a year of post graduate study in education at Reading University, Reading, England and pursued studies at the London School of Singing as a Rotary Foundation Graduate Scholar.
