An exceptional group of leaders will begin their experience at the George W. Bush Presidential Center on July 15 as the seventh class of Stand-To Veteran Leadership Program Scholars. We hope you will connect with them soon on LinkedIn and embrace them into our Veteran Leadership Program network. You should have received an email from Michael Bailey outlining opportunities to engage with your newest VLP colleagues.

In other news, Shilo Brooks will become the next President and CEO of the Bush Center on Sept. 2, succeeding Ken Hersh, who is retiring after nine years of inspirational leadership. In announcing his appointment, President Bush said, “The energy and intellect he will bring to our policy work and community engagement will benefit the North Texas community and beyond.”

We also have a new Leadership Programs team member, Will Cullen, who will manage VLP as Program Manager of Leadership Programs at the Bush Institute. He succeeds Michael Bailey, who is shifting his focus to VLP alumni and the Bush Institute’s democracy work. Will comes from New Jersey and previously taught seventh grade English language arts in Dallas.

We are making a change to the alumni online platform we use to facilitate your links to the Bush Center and each other. All the relevant details are below but you will receive an email with a login link and instructions on how to set up your profile.

Finally, we want to share that Check-In – the Veteran Wellness Alliance’s easy-to-use resource connecting veterans, service members, and their families to no-cost, high-quality mental and brain health care – is now at over 3,200 connections with more than 1,400 direct referrals to high-quality care. Please keep sharing Check-In as widely as possible with your network and connect with our Veterans and Military Families team to learn how you can offer Check-In as a resource for your organizations.

Don’t hesitate to reach out if we can assist you in any way. Thank you for all you do!

Kelley Jiou
Director, Leadership and Programming

Jason Galui
Director, Veterans and Military Families

The new platform will look and feel very similar, with many of the features you’ve come to love from Workplace. We’re adding others that we believe will help keep this network strong moving forward.

Here’s what you can expect:

• A familiar, easy-to-navigate space that mirrors the feel of Workplace.

• Chat groups by cohort, topic, and interest – plus an all-network group for everyone (and all in one app, unlike Workplace!).

• Timely updates from the program team, all in one place.

• Events, announcements, and opportunities to stay in the loop.

• Workplace will be moving to read-only mode Aug. 31.

You’ll receive everything you need to get started in August, including your Flip login link, profile setup instructions, and ways to engage. Flip was built with your feedback and experiences in mind, and we believe it will be a useful tool to connect us all. Don’t hesitate to reach out to Michael with feedback.

Attending a conference or gathering? Find other alumni!

We want to make it simpler for you to connect with other Veteran Leadership Program alumni at conferences. Thanks to Alumni Committee feedback, you can add information about any conference or event that you're attending to a new section of the Workplace Knowledge Library. If you see an event that you're planning to attend, add your name to the document. Then you can start a Workplace chat with everyone going as the event gets closer. This is a work in progress, so please share any feedback.

Update your contact information

Send any email and mailing address updates to Michael, so we can keep in touch and update you on the Veteran Leadership Program.

We are planning an alumni gathering in Washington, D.C., on Oct. 8, as part of our current Scholars’ Module Four programming. Details, time, and location to come.

The Military Influencer Conference will take place in Atlanta, Georgia, Sept. 21-24. We are thrilled to offer VLP alumni complimentary general admission again this year. Click here to reserve your complimentary Connector Pass. Be on the lookout for an email from Michael about an alumni gathering in Atlanta that week.

If you have additional ideas for alumni gatherings, please reach out to Michael.

Webinars

We’re excited to continue to bring you a wide range of webinars, including some focused on the leadership topics you voted for. Make sure to check the events section of Workplace for more details, and feel free to submit ideas for webinar topics any time.

Here’s what’s currently in the works, but watch for an email with formal dates and times:

• Patrick Murphy, 32nd Under Secretary of the Army

• Major General Jeannie Leavitt

• Admiral Michael Giorgione, Founder & CEO, LeadingLeaders LLC

• Edmond Lopez (2024), Stephanie Rundle (2024), Quiana Abner (2023), and Chris Mulder (2021) recently contributed to a Bush Institute feature honoring the Month of the Military Child.

• Melissa Bird (2024) was appointed to the Oklahoma Board of Nursing by the Governor of Oklahoma.

• Stan Kurtz (2023) retired from the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA).

• Susan Thaxton (2023) began a new position as Chief Operating Officer at Annapolis Maritime Museum & Park.

• Daniel Avegalio (2022) started a new role as Dean of Students at Missouri Western State University.

• Sandra Ambotaite (2024) presented an alumni testimonial at the Bush Institute’s 2025 Forum on Leadership.

• Ryan Callahan (2022) and Mark Harper (2022) were featured in a Bush Institute blog discussing their collaboration on Combat the Silence, which recently received an Emmy.

• Adelle Bish (2021) was awarded a prestigious Insight Grant from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC).

• Beth Conlin (2021) was featured in a Bush Institute blog to discuss breaking down employment barriers for military spouses and dependents stationed abroad.

• Román Baca (2024) was featured in The New York Times highlighting the impact of Exit12 Dance Company helping veterans process trauma through the form of dance.

• Dennis Miller (2021) was featured in a Bush Institute Strategerist podcast recording to discuss the legacy of the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion.

• Libby Jamison (2019) joined the Founding Committee of Military Families for Free Expression.

• Jonathan Horowitch (2018) was featured in a discussion about prioritizing a culture of care and workplace health in the A Culture of Care segment for Wtop News.

• Kim Guedry (2022) was selected to serve as Regional Director for the Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency for Region 6, which includes Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Texas.

• Rachelle Chapman (2024) started a new position as Senior Director at The Adecco Group US Foundation.

A new collection of never-before-seen paintings by President Bush that captures the spirit of people who comprise SMU and the Bush Center – now on display until Oct. 19. Remember that VLP Alumni receive free admission to the Bush Museum. If you are planning on visiting, let us know!

Game Changer: United by Sports opens Sept. 6 at the Bush Center

Our new exhibit takes visitors on a tour of the remarkable power of sports to bring people together and inspire greatness in fans young and old.

An overview of school choice: Charters, magnets, Educational Savings Accounts, and more

New school choice guide by Robin Berkley, the Ann Kimball Johnson Director of Education at the Bush Institute, and Nina Rees, Senior Fellow at the Bush Institute.

Mrs. Laura Bush’s 2025 Summer Reading List for Kids

This year’s list celebrates America, everyday adventures, and friendships that stand the test of time. It features 16 books including I Loved You First, written by Jenna Bush Hager and Barbara Pierce Bush, First Ladies Make History, In a Jar, and The Rabbit Listened.

Read the new Catalyst issue, ‘The Case for Conservatism’

The spring edition of The Catalyst: A Journal of Ideas from the Bush Institute, explains why conservative values such as humility, respect for tradition, and prioritizing human dignity remain important. It brings together political scientists, pollsters, foreign policy experts, human rights advocates, journalists, and others to discuss the current political and geopolitical landscape, why conservatism still matters, and what the philosophy must do to adapt.