The last few months have been busy for all of us. Local, state, and national elections, a global pandemic, economic challenges, and the ongoing conversations in our country around race, equity, and equality have led to passionate conversations and partisan hyperbole.

At the Bush Institute, we’ve remained focused on the heart of who we are: a nonpartisan organization rooted in the critical values of freedom, opportunity, accountability, and compassion. We’re right of center, but we open our arms and our ideas to anyone interested in creating thoughtful change around the biggest challenges of our time.

The Bush Institute continued a significant emphasis on democracy, publishing two editions of Democracy Talks, a series of Q&As on how to meet the challenges to democracy with thought leaders across sectors.

Interviewees included former Secretary of State Dr. Condoleezza Rice, former Homeland Security Secretaries Jeh Johnson and Michael Chertoff, Senator Mitt Romney, and Rep. Jeff Fortenberry.

The Bush Institute Education Reform Initiative experts completed a new series titled Beyond the Scantron: Tests and Equity in Today’s Schools. The series included articles and Q&As that examined key elements of high-quality exams and illustrated why using them well and consistently matters to equitably serve all students. The series was published by the Bush Institute and The 74.

The men and women who participate in our leadership programs have been on the front lines of solving problems with compassion. Our team supports leadership program participants virtually as they work in their communities:

• Michael Hole (Presidential Leadership Scholars 2019) recently launched a program that pairs seniors and teens to bridge generations and combat loneliness during the COVID-19 pandemic.
• Elizabeth Jamison (Stand-To Veteran Leadership Program 2019) helped create the Military Vote Coalition, a group of 15 organizations that aim to increase the military community’s access to the ballot box.