Publication
Education & Opportunity
Advancing Accountability
Helping leaders to value high standards, quality assessments, and meaningful consequences.

“Accountability matters so intensely because young people deserve schools that prepare them for their next steps. It is up to us to ensure that every child, regardless of personal circumstance, has options and choices for their own lives.”
— Anne Wicks, The Don Evans Family Managing Director, Opportunity and Democracy
Low-income and minority students too often lag behind their peers in the United States. Globally, American students rank below children in other countries in the core subjects of reading, math, and science.
To increase achievement for children of all races, ethnicities, and socioeconomic statuses, we must have:
- High standards and high-quality instruction
- Quality assessments tied to those standards
- Meaningful consequences for low performance

David J. Kramer
Executive Director, George W. Bush Institute and Vice President

Anne Wicks
Don Evans Family Managing Director, Opportunity and Democracy

Robin Berkley
Ann Kimball Johnson Director of Education

Alex Dowdy
Senior Program Manager, Leadership Programs

Alexis Yelvington
Program Manager, Opportunity

Will Cullen
Program Manager, Education and Opportunity

Bill Haslam
Sammons Enterprises Fellow

Nina Rees
Senior Fellow
Publications
Publication
The "A" Word: Why Accountability Matters and How to Improve It
The Bush Institute publishes The "A" Word: Accountability-The Dirty Word of Today's School Reform
Publication
After dismal test scores, lawmakers must give Texas students real tools to succeed
Publication
Assessments Play an Important Role in Serving Students
Publication
Prioritizing to Improve Student Outcomes
District leaders in Dallas, Houston, and Austin are implementing new ideas to improve student outcomes. What can we learn from these districts' innovations?
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Resource · Jan 13, 2026
George W. Bush Institute experts comment on the implementation of the new federal tax credit for individual contributions to Scholarship Granting Organizations under the One, Big, Beautiful Bill
Bush Institute experts Robin Berkley, The Ann Kimball Johnson director of education, and Nina Rees, senior fellow, wrote a letter to the United State Department of Treasury, Internal Revenue Service to comment on the tax credit for individual contributions to Scholarship Granting Organizations under the One, Big, Beautiful Bill.
Resource · Dec 18, 2025
A Republic of Readers
Rooted in a belief that reading opens every door, this book charts a path toward stronger literacy outcomes nationwide. Inside, you’ll find the insights, partnerships, and strategies guiding the Governors Forum on Reading and the movement it represents.