Thomas W. Luce, III
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Thomas W. Luce III is an American lawyer, government official, non-profit executive, and former advisor to
H. Ross Perot H is the eighth letter of the Latin alphabet. H may also refer to: Musical symbols * H number, Harry Halbreich reference mechanism for music by Honegger and Martinů * H, B (musical note) * H, B major People * H. (noble) (died after 12 ...
. He is CEO of Biotech Initiatives at Lyda Hill Philanthropies.


Early life and education

Thomas W. Luce III was born in
Dallas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...
,
Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...
, where he was raised by a single mother. He attended public schools in
Highland Park Independent School District Highland Park Independent School District (HPISD) is a public school district based in University Park, Texas, within the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. HPISD serves most of the town of Highland Park, all of the city of University Park, and t ...
. He received an athletic scholarship to
Virginia Military Institute The Virginia Military Institute (VMI) is a public senior military college in Lexington, Virginia, United States. It was founded in 1839 as America's first state military college and is the oldest public senior military college in the U.S. In k ...
but transferred to
Southern Methodist University Southern Methodist University (SMU) is a Private university, private research university in Dallas, Texas, United States, with a satellite campus in Taos County, New Mexico. SMU was founded on April 17, 1911, by the Methodist Episcopal Church, ...
where he earned a
B.B.A. A Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) is an undergraduate degree in business administration awarded by colleges and universities after completion of four years and typically 120 credits of undergraduate study in the fundamentals of business ...
in 1962 and a J.D. from the
Dedman School of Law SMU Dedman School of Law, commonly referred to as SMU Law School or Dedman School of Law, is a law school located in Dallas, Texas. Jason P. Nance serves as its current dean. Founded in February 1925, the school located is on the Southern Meth ...
in 1966.


Spirit of Texas

In 1982, Ross Perot Jr. and co-pilot Jay Coburn completed the first round-the-world flight in a helicopter, the Spirit of Texas. Tom Luce helped facilitate the achievement by arranging for a container ship to carry a shipping container filled with jet fuel into the middle of the Pacific Ocean to serve as a refueling station.


Purchase of Magna Carta

In 1984, Luce handled negotiations for a purchase of a 700-year-old copy of
Magna Carta (Medieval Latin for "Great Charter"), sometimes spelled Magna Charta, is a royal charter of rights agreed to by King John of England at Runnymede, near Windsor, on 15 June 1215. First drafted by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Cardin ...
by
Ross Perot Henry Ross Perot ( ; June 27, 1930 – July 9, 2019) was an American businessman, politician, and philanthropist. He was the founder and chief executive officer of Electronic Data Systems and Perot Systems. He ran an Independent politician ...
. He brought the document to the United States wrapped in brown shipping paper and stowed in the coat closet across from his seat on a commercial American Airlines flight.


Political activities


1990 Texas gubernatorial race

Luce ran for
Governor of Texas The governor of Texas is the head of state of the U.S. state of Texas. The governor is the head of the executive branch of the government of Texas and is the commander-in-chief of the Texas Military Forces. Established in the Constit ...
as one of several Republicans looking to succeed outgoing Governor
Bill Clements William Perry Clements Jr. (April 13, 1917 – May 29, 2011) was an American businessman and Republican Party politician who served two nonconsecutive terms as the governor of Texas between 1979 and 1991. His terms bookended the sole ...
. He placed third in the Republican primary with 115,835 votes.


H. Ross Perot presidential campaign

A long-time advisor to Perot, Luce was the chairman of his campaign for President of the United States in 1992.


Public service


George W. Bush administration

President Bush nominated Luce to the position of assistant secretary for the Office of Planning, Evaluation and Policy Development at the U.S. Department of Education on May 20, 2005, and the
U.S. Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and House have the authority under Article One of the ...
confirmed his appointment to this position on July 1, 2005.


State of Texas

Luce was appointed to major posts by Texas governors five times, including as chief justice pro tempore of the
Supreme Court of Texas The Supreme Court of Texas (SCOTX) is the court of last resort for civil matters (including juvenile delinquency cases, which are categorized as civil under the Texas Family Code) in the U.S. state of Texas. A different court, the Texas Court ...
, as well as posts on the
Sunset Advisory Commission The Sunset Advisory Commission is an agency of the Texas Legislature that evaluates state agencies and makes recommendations to the legislature on the need for, performance of, and improvements to agencies under review. The commission is headqua ...
and the
Superconducting Super Collider The Superconducting Super Collider (SSC), nicknamed Desertron, was a particle accelerator complex under construction from 1991 to 1993 near Waxahachie, Texas, United States. Its planned ring circumference was with an energy of 20 TeV per proto ...
Commission. In 2012,
Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives The speaker of the Texas House of Representatives is the speaker (politics), presiding officer of the Texas House of Representatives. The Speaker's main duties are to conduct meetings of the House, appoint committees, and enforce the Rules of the ...
Joe Straus Joseph Richard Straus III (born September 1, 1959) is an American politician who served as the speaker of the Texas House of Representatives from 2009 to 2019. A Republican, he represented District 121, which comprises northeastern Bexar Count ...
appointed Luce to the
Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas The Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT) is a state agency that funds cancer research in Texas. It is funded by bonds issued by the state of Texas. Researchers and organizations in Texas are invited to apply for grants that ...
Oversight Committee.


Nonprofit leadership

In addition to his legal career and public service, Luce has founded and led a number of nonprofit organizations including the
National Math and Science Initiative The National Math and Science Initiative (NMSI) is a non-profit organization based in Dallas, Texas, that launched in 2007. Its mission is to improve student performance in the subjects of science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) in the ...
and the Meadows Mental Health Policy Institute. Most recently, Luce founded the state policy think tank Texas 2036, "a nonpartisan 501c3 nonprofit that hopes to use data and research to drive the planning and policy Texans will need to address challenges impacting hestate's future."


Honors

In 2012, '' U.S. News & World Report'' inducted Luce into the U.S. News STEM Leadership Hall of Fame. Luce was recognized and honored by Republican Congressman
Lamar Smith Lamar Seeligson Smith (born November 19, 1947) is an American politician and lobbyist who served in the United States House of Representatives for for 16 terms, a district including most of the wealthier sections of San Antonio and Austin, as w ...
on the floor of the
United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...
in 2012 "for his years of leadership and contributions to improving our public schools, strengthening higher education and supporting business and economic growth," and in 2015 by Democratic Congresswoman
Eddie Bernice Johnson Eddie Bernice Johnson (December 3, 1934 – December 31, 2023) was an American politician who represented Texas's in the United States House of Representatives from 1993 to 2023. Johnson was a member of the Democratic Party. Johnson was electe ...
for his role in education reform in Texas. In 2015, Sarah Fullinwider Perot and Ross Perot Jr. donated $1.75 million to endow the Thomas W. Luce, III Centennial Dedman Law Scholars Program at SMU. In 2018, he was awarded the 2018 Linz Award, an annual honor recognizing enduring civic or humanitarian efforts benefiting Dallas. In 2021, Luce was inducted into the Dallas Business Hall of Fame.


References


External links


White House Biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Luce, Tom 1940 births Highland Park High School (University Park, Texas) alumni Southern Methodist University alumni Dedman School of Law alumni George W. Bush administration personnel 20th-century American politicians Living people Businesspeople from Dallas Texas Republicans American lawyers Lawyers from Dallas