LITERATURE + LECTURES

The Greater Houston Partnership and the Kiwanis Club of Houston in cooperation with the City of Houston, the Port of Houston Authority, Harris County and the U.S. Department of Commerce, invite you to attend a 2010 International Executive of the Year Luncheon. Please join us in honoring Mr. David Leebron, President of Rice University and Mrs. Y. Ping Sun, University Representative, Rice University, as the Greater Houston Partnership’s 2010 International Executive of the Year with a special introduction by The Honorable James A. Baker, III, former Secretary of State.

David W. Leebron became the seventh president of Rice University on July 1, 2004. Shortly after arriving in Houston, he launched a community wide discussion known as the Call to Conversation, which led to the formation of a 10-point strategic plan — the Vision for the Second Century, or V2C. Elements of the plan now being implemented include enhancing Rice’s research mission, internationalization with an increased focus on Asia and Latin America, 30 percent growth in the undergraduate student body, a more dynamic campus and expanded engagement with the city of Houston.

A native of Philadelphia, Leebron is a graduate of Harvard College and Harvard Law School. After a brief clerkship with Judge Shirley Hufstedler of the U.S, Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, Leebron taught at the UCLA School of Law in 1980, and worked for the following two years at an international law firm in New York City. In 1983 he joined the law faculty of New York University, and in 1989 he became a law professor at Columbia University where he was appointed dean in 1996.

Leebron has taught and written in the areas of human rights, international trade and finance, privacy and personal liability. At Rice, he also holds an appointment as a political science professor. He serves on several not-for-profit boards, including the KIPP Foundation, BioHouston, the Houston Technology Center and the Greater Houston Partnership. Mr. Leebron also serves on the board of the IMAX Corp. He has received an honorary degree from Nankai University in Tianjin, China, and was recognized by France with the honor of Commandeur de l’Ordre National de Merite. Leebron is married to Y. Ping Sun, and they have two children, Daniel and Merissa.

Y. Ping Sun came to Rice University in 2004 with her husband David W. Leebron, Rice’s seventh president. A native of Shanghai, China, Ping attended Beijing Languages University and was offered a full scholarship to Princeton University, where she graduated cum laude in 1985 from the Woodrow Wilson School of International and Public Affairs. She received a J.D. from Columbia University School of Law in 1988, where she served as an editor of the Journal of Transnational Law.

Ping practiced law in the New York offices of White & Case LLP from 1988-1992 and Sidley Austin Brown & Wood, LLP from 1993 2004, where her practice focused on corporate and international transactions.

Ping serves Rice as a University Representative in numerous roles on campus and in the Houston community. She is of counsel at the firm of Yetter Warden LLP. Ping is a trustee of the Texas Children’s Hospital, a board member of the Asia Society (Houston chapter), Teach For America (Houston Regional Board), St. John’s School and United Way. Ping also serves on the Advisory Board of Asian Chamber of Commerce, Chinese Community Center, Houston Greeter and Julia Ideson Library Preservation Partners. Ping has been appointed to the Mayor’s International and Development Council. She is also a member of the Governing Council at the Shepherd School of Music at Rice University and an Honorary Chair of the Baker Institute Roundtable at Rice University.

LOCATION: The Westin Galleria • 5060 West Alabama, Houston, TX. DATE & TIME: Thursday, September 30, 2010 • 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.

Held annually over the past 24 years, the International Executive of the Year recognizes an outstanding business person who has demonstrated the global leadership that continues to make Houston a center of international business. The resourceful efforts of these recipients keep the region on the cutting edge of the global economy.

Focusing on innovations, business strategies and vision, the International Executive of the Year is one of the Partnership’s most prestigious international business awards and events.

Past recipients of the International Executive of the Year: Larry Kellner (2009); Bela and Matha Karolyi (2008); Mathew Knowles (2007); John Hofmeister (2006); Nijad I. Fares (2005); Archie W. Dunham (2004); Michael L. Grimes (2003); Richard E. Wainerdi (2002); Edgar Ortiz (2001); George J. Donnelly (2000); Don J. Wang (1999); Cheryl Thompson-Draper (1998); Gordon M. Bethune (1997); The Hon. Lloyd M. Bentsen (1996); Joseph A. Hafner, Jr. (1995); Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, accepted by Don Jordan (1994); Raymond A. LeBlanc (1993); Robert A. Mosbacher (1992); Kenneth L. Lay and George W. Strake, Jr. (1991); Robert Cizik (1990); Constantine Nicandros (1989); Rod Canion (1988); Frank Lorenzo (1987); and Dr. Antonio M. Gotto, Jr. (1986).

HAVE QUESTIONS? Please contact Bojan Vukovic at bvukovic@houston.org  or 713-844-3636.