White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for African Americans

Executive Order 13621 of July 26, 2012

White House Initiative on Educational Excellence
                for African Americans

                By the authority vested in me as President by the
                Constitution and the laws of the United States of
                America, to restore the country to its role as the
                global leader in education, to strengthen the Nation by
                improving educational outcomes for African Americans of
                all ages, and to help ensure that all African Americans
                receive an education that properly prepares them for
                college, productive careers, and satisfying lives, it
                is hereby ordered as follows:

                Section 1. Policy. Over the course of America's
                history, African American men and women have
                strengthened our Nation, including by leading reforms,
                overcoming obstacles, and breaking down barriers. In
                the less than 60 years since the Brown v. Board of
                Education decision put America on a path toward equal
                educational opportunity, America's educational system
                has undergone a remarkable transformation, and many
                African American children who attended the substandard
                segregated schools of the 1950s have grown up to see
                their children attend integrated elementary and
                secondary schools, colleges, and universities.

                However, substantial obstacles to equal educational
                opportunity still remain in America's educational
                system. African Americans lack equal access to highly
                effective teachers and principals, safe schools, and
                challenging college-preparatory classes, and they
                disproportionately experience school discipline and
                referrals to special education. African American
                student achievement not only lags behind that of their
                domestic peers by an average of two grade levels, but
                also behind students in almost every other developed
                nation. Over a third of African American students do
                not graduate from high school on time with a regular
                high school diploma, and only four percent of African
                American high school graduates interested in college
                are college-ready across a range of subjects. An even
                greater number of African American males do not
                graduate with a regular high school diploma, and
                African American males also experience disparate rates
                of incarceration.

                Significantly improving the educational outcomes of
                African Americans will provide substantial benefits for
                our country by, among other things, increasing college
                completion rates, productivity, employment rates, and
                the number of African American teachers. Enhanced
                educational outcomes lead to more productive careers,
                improved economic opportunity, and greater social well-
                being for all Americans. Complementing the role of
                Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) in
                preparing generations of African American students for
                successful careers, and the work of my Administration's
                separate White House Initiative on Historically Black
                Colleges and Universities, this new Initiative's focus
                on improving all the sequential levels of education
                will produce a more effective educational continuum for
                all African American students.

                To reach the ambitious education goals we have set for
                our Nation, as well as to ensure equality of access and
                opportunity for all, we must provide the support that
                will enable African American students to improve their
                level of educational achievement through rigorous and
                well-rounded academic and support services that will
                prepare them for college, a career, and a lifetime of
                learning.

                Sec. 2. White House Initiative on Educational
                Excellence for African Americans. (a) Establishment.
                There is hereby established the White House Initiative
                on Educational Excellence for African Americans
                (Initiative), to be housed in the Department of
                Education (Department). There shall be an Executive
                Director of the Initiative, to be appointed by the
                Secretary of Education (Secretary). The Initiative
                shall be supported by the Interagency Working Group
                established under subsection (c) of this section and
                advised by the Commission established under section 3
                of this order.

                    (b) Mission and Functions.

(1) The Initiative will help to restore the United States to its role as
the global leader in education; strengthen the Nation by improving
educational outcomes for African Americans of all ages; and help ensure
that African Americans receive a complete and competitive education that
prepares them for college, a satisfying career, and productive citizenship.

(2) The Initiative will complement and reinforce the Historically Black
Colleges and Universities Initiative established by Executive Order 13532
of February 26, 2010, and together, they both will support enhanced
educational outcomes for African Americans at every level of the American
education system, including early childhood education; elementary,
secondary, and postsecondary education; career and technical education; and
adult education.

(3) To help expand educational opportunities, improve educational outcomes,
and deliver a complete and competitive education for all African Americans,
the Initiative shall, consistent with applicable law, promote, encourage,
and undertake efforts designed to meet the following objectives:

(i) increasing general understanding of the causes of the educational
challenges faced by African American students, whether they are in urban,
suburban, or rural learning environments;

(ii) increasing the percentage of African American children who enter
kindergarten ready for success by improving their access to high-quality
programs and services that enable early learning and development of
children from birth through age 5;

(iii) decreasing the disproportionate number of referrals of African
American children from general education to special education by addressing
the root causes of the referrals and eradicating discriminatory referrals;

(iv) implementing successful and innovative education reform strategies and
practices in America's public schools to ensure that African American
students receive a rigorous and well-rounded education in safe and healthy
environments, and have access to high-level, rigorous course work and
support services that will prepare them for college, a career, and civic
participation;

(v) ensuring that all African American students have comparable access to
the resources necessary to obtain a high-quality education, including
effective teachers and school leaders, in part by supporting efforts to
improve the recruitment, preparation, development, and retention of
successful African American teachers and school leaders and other effective
teachers and school leaders responsible for the education of African
American students;

(vi) reducing the dropout rate of African American students and helping
African American students graduate from high school prepared for college
and a career, in part by promoting a positive school climate that does not
rely on methods that result in disparate use of disciplinary tools, and by
supporting successful and innovative dropout prevention and recovery
strategies that better engage African American youths in their learning,
help them catch up academically, and provide those who have left the
educational system with pathways to reentry;

(vii) increasing college access and success for African American students
and providing support to help ensure that a greater percentage

of African Americans complete college and contribute to the goal of having
America again lead the world in the proportion of adults who are college
graduates by 2020, in part through strategies to strengthen the capacity of
institutions of higher education that serve large numbers of African
American students, including community colleges, HBCUs, Predominantly Black
Institutions (PBIs), and other institutions; and

(viii) enhancing the educational and life opportunities of African
Americans by fostering positive family and community engagement in
education; reducing racial isolation and resegregation of elementary and
secondary schools to promote understanding and tolerance among all
Americans; improving the quality of, and expanding access to, adult
education, literacy, and career and technical education; and increasing
opportunities for education and career advancement in the fields of
science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.

(4) In working to fulfill its mission and objectives, the Initiative shall,
consistent with applicable law:

(i) identify evidence-based best practices that can provide African
American students a rigorous and well-rounded education in safe and healthy
environments, as well as access to support services, which will prepare
them for college, a career, and civic participation;

(ii) develop a national network of individuals, organizations, and
communities to share and implement best practices related to the education
of African Americans, including those identified as most at risk;

(iii) help ensure that Federal programs and initiatives administered by the
Department and other agencies are serving and meeting the educational needs
of African Americans, including by encouraging agencies to incorporate best
practices into appropriate discretionary programs where permitted by law;

(iv) work closely with the Executive Office of the President on key
Administration priorities related to the education of African Americans;

(v) increase the participation of the African American community, including
institutions that serve that community, in the Department's programs and in
education-related programs at other agencies;

(vi) advise the officials of the Department and other agencies on issues
related to the educational attainment of African Americans;

(vii) advise the Secretary on the development, implementation, and
coordination of educational programs and initiatives at the Department and
other agencies that are designed to improve educational opportunities and
outcomes for African Americans of all ages; and

(viii) encourage and develop partnerships with public, private,
philanthropic, and nonprofit stakeholders to improve African Americans'
readiness for school, college, and career, as well as their college
persistence and completion.

(5) The Initiative shall periodically publish reports on its activities.
The Secretary and the Executive Director of the Initiative, in consultation
with the Working Group and the Chair of the Commission established under
subsection (c) of this section and section 3 of this order, respectively,
may develop and submit to the President recommendations designed to advance
and promote educational opportunities and attainment for African Americans.

                    (c) Interagency Working Group.

(1) There is established the Federal Interagency Working Group on
Educational Excellence for African Americans (Working Group), which shall
be convened and chaired by the Initiative's Executive Director and that
shall support the efforts of the Initiative described in subsection (b) of
this section.

(2) The Working Group shall consist of senior officials from the
Department, the White House Domestic Policy Council, the Department of
Justice,

the Department of Labor, the Department of Health and Human Services, the
National Science Foundation, the Department of Defense, and such additional
agencies and offices as the President may subsequently designate. Senior
officials shall be designated by the heads of their respective agencies and
offices.

(3) The Initiative's Executive Director may establish subgroups of the
Working Group to focus on different aspects of the educational system (such
as early childhood education, K-12 education, higher education (including
HBCUs and PBIs), career and technical education, adult education, or
correctional education and reengagement) or educational challenges facing
particular populations of African Americans (such as young men,
disconnected or out-of-school youth, individuals with disabilities,
children identified as gifted and talented, single-parent households, or
adults already in the workforce).

                    (d) Administration. The Department shall provide
                funding and administrative support for the Initiative
                and the Working Group, to the extent permitted by law
                and within existing appropriations. To the extent
                permitted by law, other agencies and offices
                represented on the Working Group may detail personnel
                to the Initiative, to assist the Department in meeting
                the objectives of this order.
                    (e) Collaboration Among White House Initiatives.
                The Initiative may collaborate with the White House
                Initiatives on American Indian and Alaska Native
                Education, Educational Excellence for Hispanics, Asian-
                American and Pacific Islanders, and (consistent with
                section 3(c) of this order) Historically Black Colleges
                and Universities, whenever appropriate in light of
                their shared objectives.

                Sec. 3.  President's Advisory Commission on Educational
                Excellence for African Americans. (a) Establishment.
                There is established in the Department the President's
                Advisory Commission on Educational Excellence for
                African Americans (Commission).

                    (b) Commission Mission and Scope. The Commission
                shall advise the President and the Secretary on matters
                pertaining to the educational attainment of the African
                American community, including:

(1) the development, implementation, and coordination of educational
programs and initiatives at the Department and other agencies to improve
educational opportunities and outcomes for African Americans of all ages;

(2) efforts to increase the participation of the African American community
and institutions that serve the African American community in the
Department's programs and in education programs at other agencies;

(3) efforts to engage the philanthropic, business, nonprofit, and education
communities in a national dialogue on the mission and objectives of this
order; and

(4) the establishment of partnerships with public, private, philanthropic,
and nonprofit stakeholders to meet the mission and policy objectives of
this order.

                The Commission shall meet periodically, but at least
                twice a year.

                    (c) Commission Membership and Chair.

(1) The Commission shall consist of not more than 25 members appointed by
the President. The President shall designate one member of the Commission
to serve as Chair. The Executive Director of the Initiative shall also
serve as the Executive Director of the Commission and administer the work
of the Commission. The Chair of the Commission shall work with the
Executive Director to convene regular meetings of the Commission, determine
its agenda, and direct its work, consistent with this order.

(2) The Commission may include individuals with relevant experience or
subject-matter expertise that the President deems appropriate, as well as
individuals who may serve as representatives of a variety of sectors,
including the education sector (early childhood education, elementary

and secondary education, higher education (including HBCUs and PBIs),
career and technical education, and adult education), labor organizations,
research institutions, the military, corporate and financial institutions,
public and private philanthropic organizations, and nonprofit and
community-based organizations at the national, State, regional, or local
levels.

(3) In addition to the 25 members appointed by the President, the
Commission shall also include two members from the President's Board of
Advisors on Historically Black Colleges and Universities (Board),
designated by the President. In turn, the Board will henceforth include two
members from the Commission, designated by the President. This reciprocal
arrangement will foster direct communication and vital consultations that
will benefit both bodies.

(4) The Executive Director of the Commission and the Executive Director of
the Board shall convene at least one annual joint meeting between the
Commission and the Board for the purpose of sharing information and forging
collaborative courses of action designed to fulfill their respective
missions. Such meetings shall be in addition to other prescribed meetings
of the Commission or Board.

(5) The Executive Director of the Commission shall be a non-voting, ex
officio member of the Board and shall be the Commission's liaison to the
Board; and the Executive Director of the Board shall be a non-voting, ex
officio member of the Commission and shall be the Board's liaison to the
Commission.

                    (d) Commission Administration. The Department shall
                provide funding and administrative support for the
                Commission, to the extent permitted by law and within
                existing appropriations. Members of the Commission
                shall serve without compensation but shall be allowed
                travel expenses, including per diem in lieu of
                subsistence, as authorized by law for persons serving
                intermittently in the Government service (5 U.S.C.
                5701-5707). Insofar as the Federal Advisory Committee
                Act, as amended (5 U.S.C. App.) (the “Act”), may
                apply to the administration of the Commission, any
                functions of the President under the Act, except that
                of reporting to the Congress, shall be performed by the
                Secretary, in accordance with the guidelines issued by
                the Administrator of General Services.

                Sec. 4.  General Provisions. (a) The heads of agencies
                shall assist and provide information to the Initiative
                as may be necessary to carry out the functions of the
                Initiative, consistent with applicable law.

                    (b) Nothing in this order shall be construed to
                impair or otherwise affect:

(1) the authority granted by law to an executive department, agency, or the
head thereof; or

(2) the functions of the Director of the Office of Management and Budget
relating to budgetary, administrative, or legislative proposals.

                    (c) This order shall be implemented consistent with
                applicable law and subject to the availability of
                appropriations.

                    (d) This order is not intended to, and does not,
                create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural,
                enforceable at law or in equity by any party against
                the United States, its departments, agencies, or
                entities, its officers, employees, or agents, or any
                other person.

                    (Presidential Sig.)

                THE WHITE HOUSE,

                    Washington, July 26, 2012.