Born into a family dedicated to public service.
John Ellis "Jeb" Bush was born into a family dedicated to public service. His grandfather Prescott Bush was United States Senator from Connecticut; his father George H. W. Bush was the 41st president of the United States (as well as congressman from Texas’s 7th District and CIA Director, among other positions); his brother George W. Bush was governor of Texas and later the 43rd president of the United States. He himself was Secretary of Commerce and later Governor of Florida from 1999 to 2007, being Florida’s only two term Republican governor.
Jeb Bush was also born into a family dedicated to education. During his 1988 campaign for the presidency, his father hoped to be seen as “the education president”. While first lady, his mother launched the Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy. It’s now the single largest provider of literacy services to US adults reading below a third-grade level. His brother’s presidency is associated with a major education reform, the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001.
Bush feels that government investment can serve as a necessary catalyst in areas of public policy, spurring even greater private sector investment. Under his leadership as governor, Florida frequently promoted innovation with, for example, charter schools or Everglades conservation. Immediately after leaving office, he launched the Foundation for Excellence in Education. The foundation assists states in developing approaches that provide for expanded educational opportunity, reaching underserved populations.
Bush has been outspoken on policies he believes in – taking sometimes controversial positions. Charter schools challenge the long-standing approach of having local government provide the schools. But Bush believes in providing parents with a choice on where they send their children to school. Florida also enacted the first statewide school voucher program in the nation, allowing students to use public money to attend private schools, resulting in statewide improved educational performance.
To a noticeable extent he governed from a religion-based moral ground, frequently articulating a moral-basis for policy, noting that his religious beliefs inform his concerns about social and welfare issues.
Since 2016, Bush has stepped away from the political maelstrom. He made a surprise appearance in a sketch for the 2016 Emmys, playing himself as an Uber driver picking up host Jimmy Kimmel; he revealed a relaxed, self-deprecating sense of humor.
And he’s been able to bring together his commitments to public service and education. Since 2016, he’s been executive professor and John D. White ’70 Distinguished Professor of Practice at the Bush School of Government and Public Service at Texas A&M University, named in honor of George H. W. Bush. And he’s now joining the University of Pennsylvania as a non-resident Presidential Professor of Practice for the 2018-2019 academic year. After years of public service himself, he will now be able to prepare the next generation.