FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Margaret Justus
January 7, 2010 281-250-8253
Texas Lyceum Launches Exciting 30th Anniversary Year
& Elects Midland City Councilman as 2010 President
Group also adds 20 New Directors from across Texas
(AUSTIN) Officials with the Texas Lyceum, one of the state’s preeminent non-profit, non-partisan leadership organizations, will swear in their 2010 president, 44 year-old Midland City Councilman and entrepreneur John James, this month in the Old Supreme Court Room of the Texas Capitol. In addition, twenty new Directors will join the Texas Lyceum at its February meeting in San Antonio.
James is a businessman who grew up in San Antonio and has called Midland home for 15 years. James attended St. Mary’s University, where he received his BBA in Marketing, and Texas A&M, where he received his Masters in Public Administration. A former CEO of TOMCAT USA, James has served on the Midland City Council since 2008 and owns and runs two Texas businesses: Logicoat, a Midland-based industrial coatings company and My Shuttle Home, a charter transportation company in San Antonio. He is a past president of the Midland Development Corporation and currently serves on the Texas Human Rights Commission.
James will lead the Texas Lyceum into its 30th Anniversary, with a full slate of groundbreaking meetings and debates across the state. “Our plans for an outstanding 30th anniversary year are well underway with the anticipation of the ‘2010 Great Debate Series,’ which will be incorporated in all four Lyceum conference venues and televised via Texas PBS,” said James. “These ‘Great Debates’ will focus on some the most pressing and timely issues facing our state, including cyber security in San Antonio from February 4-7th; health care in Houston from April 23-24th; and energy in Midland from August 6-7th. The ‘Great Debates’ will culminate in October with a 30th Anniversary celebration and a debate centered around the November election. We look forward to continuing the Texas Lyceum tradition of bringing compelling, meaningful discourse to the issues most important to Texans.”
“John has been working hard for months to make this a stellar 30th anniversary for the Texas Lyceum and all who participate in our conferences,” said incoming Chairman and 2009 Lyceum President Jay Rutherford of Fort Worth. “John’s experience in both the public and private sectors has positioned him perfectly to make this year an outstanding one for the Texas Lyceum.”
In addition to naming a new president, The Texas Lyceum also nominated 20 new Directors including: George Antuna of Schertz; Christian Archer of San Antonio; Stuart Bernstein of Austin; Andrew Biar of Houston; Kimberly Bursey-Reece of Texarkana; Jane Cummins of Houston; Alistair Dawson of Houston; Todd Frazier of Houston; Mike Gerber of Austin; Ayda Gonzales of San Antonio; Sofia Hernandez of Edinburg; Amy Jasperson of San Antonio; Robert Jones of Austin; Alicia Knight of Lubbock; Jenny Ligon of College Station; Kelly Overley of Lubbock; Jeepers Ragsdale of Hunt; Bryan Sanchez of Houston; Dennis Speight of Austin; and Heather Wagner of Austin.
Along with hosting four conferences, the nearly all-volunteer organization aimed at fostering the next generation of Texas leaders is scheduled to release their annual Texas Lyceum Poll this summer on issues and statewide races, name a Steward of Texas Leadership Values award recipient and award college scholarships to a group of deserving Texas high school seniors.
About the Texas Lyceum:
The Texas Lyceum, a non-profit, non-partisan group, is a premier statewide leadership organization focused on identifying the next generation of top Texas leaders. The Lyceum consists of 96 men and women from throughout the state who begin their six-year term while under the age of 46, and have demonstrated leadership in their community and profession, together with a deep commitment to Texas.
In 2009, the Lyceum conducted the third annual Texas Lyceum Poll, an independent survey of Texan’s attitudes about issues facing the state and the nation, and held its 24th Annual Public Conference in Austin entitled: “The 2009 Stimulus Package: What’s in it (or not) for Texas?”
The Lyceum has an impressive list of former members who are serving or have served in public office including: Former President George W. Bush, Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison, Governor Rick Perry, former Texas Comptroller John Sharp, Texas State Senators Rodney Ellis and Kirk Watson, Houston Mayor Bill White, Texas Supreme Court Justices Don Willett and Dale Wainwright, U.S. District Judge Vanessa Gilmore, former Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings, and Congressman Pete Olson. Current Directors include Texas Representatives Veronica Gonzales and Marc Veasey.
The Texas Lyceum acts as a catalyst to bring together diverse opinions and expertise to focus on national and state issues, and seeks to emphasize constructive private sector, public sector, and individual responses to the issues.
To accomplish these purposes, the Lyceum conducts periodic public forums, publishes the Lyceum Journal, commissions The Texas Lyceum Poll, and convenes programs for the Directors to explore and discuss key economic and social issues of the state and nation. For more information visit: http://www.texaslyceum.org/.
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