Headliners Foundation Elects New Leadership

Houston. Cleveland. Chicago. New York. Headliners Foundation Chair Mark Morrison has lived in many locations but he and wife Ellen call Austin home.

Morrison, the retired managing editor of BusinessWeek, currently teaches Journalism at the University of Texas at Austin. As an alum and former editor-in-chief of the Daily Texan, it is no surprise Morrison is back in Austin at the School of Journalism. His involvement with the Headliners Foundation? It began in New York when Mike Quinn, noted political reporter and longtime University of Texas professor, tapped Morrison in 2000 to be one of the judges for the professional awards the Foundation offers. When Morrison moved back to Austin in 2005 he became a Headliners Club member and got a little closer to the Foundation family. “Gary Pickle recruited me for the board and here I am,” Morrison quipped.

A seat on the Foundation Board has special significance because it allows Morrison to promote good journalism which is exactly the type of impact he would like to have as a self-proclaimed “old timer.” After all, the club sprang from press club roots, Morrison notes, and the Foundation gives the club a distinctive place among great clubs.

“We have great momentum thanks to my predecessors Gary Pickle and Bud Shivers and to the strong support from many Headliners Club members,” Morrison said. He noted a modernized website, expanded scholarships including a new one honoring George Christian, new awards for online journalism and the Michele Kay Distinguished Speaker Series. “My No. 1 goal will be to nurture and build on all of these successes.”

In addition to his position as Chair of the Foundation Board, Morrison thoroughly enjoys participating in the Club’s Captains of Industry series. Great business people address members in these provocative evenings. Morrison leads these discussions with his distinctive interview style. He previously served on the boards of Zach Theatre and Texas Student Media and was a member of the KLRU Advisory Board and UT College of Communication Advisory Council.

And in his all-too-precious spare time? Morrison is an avid golfer but admits to being “not all that good.” In fact he figures “the more time I spend working on Foundation projects, the fewer double bogeys I make.”

About the Author

Jane Greig is Secretary of the Headliners Foundation of Texas. As a lifestyle columnist for four years and the consumer columnist (a k a “answer lady”) at the Austin American-Statesman for more than 14 years, Greig honed her journalist skills and won a Dallas Press Club Katie Award for Specialty Features.