Ronald G. Steinhart to receive Jonsson Ethics Award

Dallas banking pioneer and community leader Ronald G. Steinhart is the recipient of the 2009
J. Erik Jonsson Ethics Award, presented annually by SMU’s Cary M. Maguire Center for Ethics and Public Responsibility.

Ronald G. Steinhart

Steinhart will be honored and featured as speaker at a noon luncheon Feb. 4 at the Fairmont Hotel in Dallas.  He will be the 12th recipient of the award, which honors individuals who exemplify the spirit of moral leadership and public virtue.  Past winners range from Dr. Charles C. Sprague, first president of the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, to Roger Staubach, the former Dallas Cowboys quarterback who built a global real estate firm after leaving football.

The prestigious award is named for a founder of Texas Instruments, J. Erik Jonsson, who was elected mayor of Dallas shortly after President John Kennedy was assassinated and worked to restore the city’s morale and image. The Maguire Center was endowed by SMU trustee emeritus and oilman Cary M. Maguire in 1995 to support teaching and research in ethics and to engage academic and community leaders to explore important social issues.

Steinhart was active in the Dallas financial community for more than 37 years, retiring as CEO of the Bank One Corporation Commercial Banking Group in January 2000. Steinhart has held leadership positions in civic and banking industry groups on the local, state and national levels and is currently a director of the State Fair of Texas, the Dallas Museum of Art and the Dallas Center for Performing Arts.  In the past, Steinhart has served as chairman of the Dallas Citizens Council, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Teacher Retirement System of Texas, Chairman of the Housing Authority of the City of Dallas and as a director of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.

Tickets for Steinhart’s award luncheon are available for $50 apiece and sponsorships ranging from $2,500 to $25,000 are available for the event. Please call (214) 768-4633 for more information.