For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
October 12, 2001
Educational Excellence for Hispanic Americans Commission
Executive Order
President's Advisory Commission on Educational Excellence for Hispanic Americans
By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the
laws of the United States of America, and in order to advance the
development of human potential, strengthen the Nation's capacity to provide
high-quality education, and increase opportunities for Hispanic Americans
to participate in and benefit from Federal education programs, it is hereby
ordered as follows:
Section 1. There is established, in the Department of Education, the
President's Advisory Commission on Educational Excellence for Hispanic
Americans (Commission). The Commission shall consist of not more than 25
members. Twenty-one of the members shall be appointed by the President.
Those members shall be representatives of educational, business,
professional, and community organizations who are committed to improving
educational attainment within the Hispanic community, as well as other
persons deemed appropriate by the President. The President shall designate
two of the appointed members to serve as Co-Chairs of the Commission. The
other four members of the Commission shall be ex officio members, one each
from the Department of Education, the Department of Housing and Urban
Development, the Department of the Treasury, and the Small Business
Administration. The ex officio members shall be the respective Secretaries
of those agencies and the Administrator of the Small Business
Administration, or their designees.
Sec. 2. The Commission shall
provide advice to the Secretary of Education ("Secretary") and shall
issue reports to the President, as described in section 7 below,
concerning:
(a) the progress of Hispanic
Americans in closing the academic achievement gap and attaining the
goals established by the President's "No Child Left Behind" educational
blueprint;
(b) the development,
monitoring, and coordination of Federal efforts to promote high-quality
education for Hispanic Americans;
(c) ways to increase parental,
State and local, private sector, and community involvement in improving
education; and
(d) ways to maximize the
effectiveness of Federal education initiatives within the Hispanic
community.
Sec. 3. There is established,
in the Department of Education, an office called the White House
Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanic Americans
(Initiative). The Initiative shall be located at, staffed,
and supported by the Department of Education, and headed by a Director,
who shall be a senior level executive branch official who reports to
the Secretary. The Initiative shall provide the necessary
staff, resources, and assistance to the Commission and shall assist and
advise the Secretary in carrying out his responsibilities under this
order. The staff of the Initiative shall gather and
disseminate information relating to the educational achievement
gap of Hispanic Americans, using a variety of means, including
conducting surveys, conferences, field hearings, and meetings, and
other appropriate vehicles designed to encourage the participation of
organizations and individuals interested in such issues, including
parents, community leaders, academicians, business leaders, teachers,
employers, employees and public officials at the local, State, and
Federal levels. To the extent permitted by law, executive
branch departments and agencies shall cooperate in providing resources,
including personnel detailed to the Initiative, to meet the objectives
of this order. The Initiative shall include both career
civil service and appointed staff with expertise in the area of
education.
Sec. 4. Executive branch
departments and agencies, to the extent permitted by law and
practicable, shall provide any appropriate information requested by the
Commission or the staff of the Initiative, including data relating to
the eligibility for and participation by Hispanic Americans in Federal
education programs and the progress of Hispanic Americans in closing
the academic achievement gap and in achieving the goals of the
President's "No Child Left Behind" education
blueprint. Where adequate data are not available, the
Commission shall suggest the means for collecting the
data. In accordance with the accountability goals
established by the President, executive branch departments and agencies
involved in relevant programs shall report to the President through the
Initiative by September 30, 2002, on:
(a) efforts to increase
participation of Hispanic Americans in Federal education programs and
services;
(b) efforts to include
Hispanic-serving school districts, Hispanic-serving institutions, and
other educational institutions for Hispanic Americans in Federal
education programs and services;
(c) levels of participation
attained by Hispanic Americans in Federal education programs and
services; and
(d) the measurable impact
resulting from these efforts and levels of
participation. The Department of Education's report also
shall describe the overall condition of Hispanic American education and
such other aspects of the educational status of Hispanic Americans, as
the Secretary considers appropriate.
Sec. 5. Insofar as the Federal
Advisory Committee Act, as amended (5 U.S.C. App), may apply to the
Commission, any functions of the President under that Act, except that
of reporting to the Congress, shall be performed by the Department of
Education in accordance with the guidelines that have been issued by
the Administrator of General Services.
Sec. 6.
(a) 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).
(b) To the extent permitted by
law, the Department of Education shall provide funding and
administrative support for the Commission and the Initiative.
Sec. 7. The Commission shall
prepare and submit an interim and final report to the President
outlining its findings and recommendations as follows:
(a) The Commission shall submit
an Interim Report no later than September 30, 2002. The
Interim Report shall describe the Commission's examination of:
(i) available research and information on the effectiveness
of current practices at the local, State, and Federal levels in
closing the educational achievement gap for Hispanic Americans
and attaining the goals established by the President's "No Child
Left Behind" educational blueprint;
(ii) available research and information on the effectiveness
of current practices involving Hispanic parents in the education of
their children; and
(iii) the appropriate role of Federal agencies' education
programs in helping Hispanic parents successfully prepare their
children to graduate from high school and attend post secondary
institutions.
(b) The Commission shall issue
a Final Report no later than March 31, 2003. The Final
Report shall set forth the Commission's recommendations regarding:
(i) a multi-year plan, based on the data collected
concerning identification of barriers to and successful models for closing
the educational achievement gap for Hispanic Americans, that
provides for a coordinated effort among parents, community
leaders, business leaders, educators, and public officials at the
local, State, and Federal levels to close the
educational achievement gap for Hispanic Americans and ensure
attainment of the goals established by the President's "No Child
Left Behind" educational blueprint.
(ii) the development of a monitoring system that measures
and holds executive branch departments and agencies accountable for
the coordination of Federal efforts among the designated
executive departments and agencies to ensure the participation of
Hispanic Americans in Federal education programs and promote
high-quality education for Hispanic Americans;
(iii) the identification of successful methods employed
throughout the Nation in increasing parental, State and local,
private sector, and community involvement in improving education
for Hispanic Americans;
(iv) ways to improve on and measure the effectiveness of
Federal agencies' education programs in ensuring that Hispanic Americans
close the educational achieve-ment gap and attain the goals
established by the President's "No Child Left Behind" educational
blueprint; and
(v) how Federal Government education programs can best be
applied to ensure Hispanic parents successfully prepare their
children to attend post secondary institutions.
Sec. 8. The Commission shall
terminate 30 days after submitting its final report, unless extended by
the President.
Sec. 9. Executive Order 12900
of February 22, 1994, as amended, is revoked.
GEORGE W. BUSH
THE WHITE HOUSE,
October 12, 2001.
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