The Texas Lyceum has launched a national Campaign for Civility that calls on elected officials at all levels of government across the country to embrace civil discourse when they conduct government business.
“As the newly elected and returning officials take their oaths of office, civility in politics and public discourse is essential—now more than ever,” said Crayton Webb, the 2025 president of The Texas Lyceum. Webb is the CEO of Dallas-based Sunwest Communications.
“Today we call on all elected officials at the local, state and federal levels to adopt core values and principles which have stood the test of time and, indeed, are at the cornerstone of our democracy: to engage in civil discourse on critical public policy issues facing our communities; to seek to understand before being understood; and to exercise the ability to disagree without being disagreeable,” Webb said in a statement.
The Texas Lyceum is considered the state’s premier nonprofit, non-partisan, statewide leadership organization.
According to Texas Lyceum, the campaign also challenges everyday Texans to hold themselves accountable for how they treat one another and encourages them to engage in civil and respectful dialogue on important issues affecting the state and the nation.
Common ground campaign
The organization is celebrating its 45th anniversary this year and has a long history of bringing together civic and business leaders of diverse opinions and expertise to find common ground and engage in robust and civil discourse on state and national issues.
Texas Lyceum said it has a deep commitment to the future of Texas and seeks to identify and develop the next generation of leadership in the state and to drive public policy decisions to promote the stewardship of Texas values, traditions and resources.
“Our leaders in both political parties set the tone for all citizens,” Webb said. “Name-calling and character assassination from either side of the political aisle isn’t constructive. There must always be room for diverse perspectives to be passionately argued and thoughtfully debated. Debate is the lifeblood of democracy, and passionate discourse should never mean losing sight of the fact that we are all Texans, and we are all Americans. How we argue matters as much as what we argue, and civility must return to our political process.”
The organization said the campaign was announced from the Senate Floor of the State Capitol Building during the Lyceum’s annual Investiture program in Austin. Twenty-six new directors were sworn in and joined the ranks of the Lyceum, along with Webb, who was sworn in as president of the organization.
Joining the ceremony as guest speakers were The Hon. Margaret Spellings, former secretary of education under President George W. Bush and now the president and CEO of the Bipartisan Policy Center in Washington, D.C.; and Michael Sorrell, president of Paul Quinn College in Dallas.
Both are alumni of the Lyceum.
The organization said that at any given time, it has 96 active directors and a robust alumni network.
Notable Lyceum alumni include President George W. Bush, U.S. Senators Ted Cruz and Kay Bailey Hutchison, governors Greg Abbott and Rick Perry, U.S. Congressmen Chris Bell, Pete Gallegos, Marc Veasey, Sheila Jackson Lee, Chancellor John Sharp, and many others who have gone on to major elected and appointed public service accomplishments and to lead substantial corporate, nonprofit, educational, or civic organizations.
Texas Lyceum 2025
New directors joining the Texas Lyceum as the Class of 2025 include:
- Jenny Achilles, Austin
- Cassandra Bandy, Houston
- Lane Conner, Dallas
- Morgan Craven, San Antonio
- Cameron Cushman, Fort Worth
- Michelle Erbeyi, Garland
- Anita Fernandez, San Antonio
- Jonathan Fombonne, Houston
- Paige Fox, El Paso
- Nicholas Ganjei, Amarillo
- Neelima Gonuguntla, Irving
- Roberto Haddad, McAllen
- Brooke Hobgood, Lubbock
- Jerrod Jones, The Woodlands
- Michael Limas, Brownsville
- Hasan Mack, Austin
- Marissa Marquez, Houston
- Michelle Martinez, San Antonio
- Sarah Matz, Buda
- Katie Romano, Austin
- Karen Rugaard Ward, Houston
- Justin Shipley, Dallas
- Brandon Simmons, Houston
- Isaac Trumbo, Dallas
- Matthew Watkins, Austin
- Summer Webb, Valentine
This year, Lyceum directors will gather for conferences focused on artificial intelligence and public policy; the diverse backgrounds and communities that make up our Texas heritage; immigration and the Texas economy; the future of journalism and media; and the state of law enforcement and policing.
The Lyceum also will release the results of its nationally acclaimed Texas Lyceum Poll at a special news conference during the Texas Legislative Session in April.
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