The Bush Institute is focused on ensuring opportunity for all, strengthening democracy, and advancing free societies.
A note from David J. Kramer
It’s been an inspiring and eventful time at the Bush Institute as we welcomed new Bush Center President and CEO Shilo Brooks to Dallas in the third quarter and kicked off yearlong celebrations for America’s 250th birthday next year.
We’re thrilled to have Shilo in place and engaging with all of you at events and through our work. And we will always be grateful for all that Ken Hersh did during his nine years as head of the Bush Center.
We kicked off our focus on next year’s semiquincentennial of our nation with two new series – “Democracy is a verb” and “America the exceptional.” Led by Nicole Bibbins Sedaca, the Kelly and David Pfeil fellow at the Bush Institute, “Democracy is a verb” explores America’s core values, the institutions that power our democracy, the people who serve, and pop culture’s role in our society. In the second, Cullum Clark, director of the Bush Institute-SMU Economic Growth Initiative, shows how the United States built the world’s best model for innovation and economic growth after World War II.
The “Profiles in Pluralism” issue of The Catalyst: A Journal of Ideas from the Bush Institute focused on Americans who are keeping this country united, while our two leadership programs also continue to build bridges across divides.
Our Stand-To Veteran Leadership Program, which brings together leaders in the veteran-serving space, held three modules in Dallas, giving the 2025 Scholars the opportunity to visit the National Medal of Honor Museum, join the Sept. 11 moment of silence at the Bush Center, and hear from first-time speakers General Jennie Leavitt and the Hon. Patrick Murphy. Meanwhile, applications for our 2026 Presidential Leadership Scholars Program, on which we partner with the presidential centers of Bill Clinton, George H.W. Bush, and Lyndon B. Johnson, jumped 12% from the year earlier.
Check-In, a tool powered by our Veteran Wellness Alliance to easily link veterans and their families to no-cost, high-quality mental and brain health care, saw connections jump 67% year-on-year in the third quarter, while referrals soared 62%.
Other quarterly highlights included congressional testimony on education by Anne Wicks, the Don Evans Family managing director of democracy and opportunity at the Bush Institute; ensuring effective implementation of the U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR); an Asian democracy leaders roundtable; and an explainer about policy changes around skilled foreign worker visas.
We were delighted to welcome Joseph Kim back to the Bush Institute as program manager of global policy
following his graduate work at the Harvard Kennedy School.
We were also privileged to host legendary sportscasters Bob Costas and Joe Buck as they discussed moments that transcended sports at an Engage at the Bush Center event alongside the new Game Changer: United by Sports exhibit at the George W. Bush Presidential Museum.
We’re very excited about our work for the rest of this year and into 2026. But none of this would be possible without you and your commitment to our shared values of freedom, opportunity, accountability, and compassion. We thank you for your support.
