[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 204 (Friday, October 22, 2010)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 65417-65421]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-27004]



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Part II





The President





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Executive Order 13555--White House Initiative on Educational Excellence 
for Hispanics
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                         Presidential Documents 
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  Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 204 / Friday, October 22, 2010 / 
Presidential Documents  

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 Title 3--
 The President

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                Executive Order 13555 of October 19, 2010

                
White House Initiative on Educational Excellence 
                for Hispanics

                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 
                expanding educational opportunities and improving 
                educational outcomes for Hispanics and Latinos 
                (Hispanics) of all ages, and to help ensure that all 
                Hispanics receive an education that properly prepares 
                them for college, productive careers, and satisfying 
                lives, it is hereby ordered as follows:

                Section 1. Policy. At more than 52 million strong, 
                including 4 million in Puerto Rico, Hispanics 
                constitute the country's largest and fastest growing 
                minority group. They have had a profound and positive 
                impact on our country through, among other things, 
                their community's strong commitment to family, faith, 
                hard work, and service. Many Hispanics contribute to 
                this Nation bilingually in the English and Spanish 
                languages--a true asset for our country in an 
                increasingly global, interdependent world.

                Hispanic students are the largest minority group in our 
                Nation's schools, numbering more than 11 million in our 
                public elementary and secondary school system, and 
                constituting more than 22 percent of all pre-K-12 
                students. Hispanic students face educational challenges 
                of crisis proportions. Fewer than half of all Hispanic 
                children participate in early childhood education 
                programs, and far too few Hispanic students graduate 
                from high school; of those who do complete high school, 
                many are not adequately prepared for college. Only 12 
                percent of adult Hispanics have a bachelor's degree, 
                and just 3 percent have completed graduate or 
                professional degree programs. At the same time, large 
                numbers of Hispanic adults lack the education or 
                literacy skills they need to advance their careers; 
                they also are less likely than members of other groups 
                to have taken job- or career-related courses, with the 
                exception of basic education classes, such as English 
                as a second language.

                Our country was built on and continues to thrive on its 
                diversity, and there is no doubt that the future of the 
                United States is inextricably linked to the future of 
                the Hispanic community. To reach the ambitious 
                education goals we have set for our Nation, as well as 
                to ensure equality of opportunity for all, we must 
                provide the opportunities that will enable Hispanic 
                students to raise their educational attainment at every 
                level of the American education system. America's 
                future competitiveness in our global economy will be 
                substantially enhanced by improving educational 
                outcomes for Hispanics.

                Sec. 2. White House Initiative on Educational 
                Excellence for Hispanics.

                    (a) Establishment. There is established the White 
                House Initiative on Educational Excellence for 
                Hispanics (Initiative), to be housed in the Department 
                of Education (Department). The mission of the 
                Initiative shall be to help restore the United States 
                to its role as the global leader in education and to 
                strengthen the Nation by expanding educational 
                opportunities and improving educational outcomes for 
                Hispanics of all ages and by helping to ensure that all 
                Hispanics receive a complete and competitive education 
                that prepares them for college, a career, and 
                productive and satisfying lives.
                    (b) Initiative Administration. There shall be an 
                Executive Director of the Initiative, to be appointed 
                by the Secretary of Education (Secretary). The 
                Initiative shall be advised by the Commission 
                established under section

[[Page 65418]]

                3 of this order and supported by the Working Group 
                established under subsection (c) of this section. The 
                Department shall provide the staff, resources, and 
                assistance for the Initiative and the Working Group. To 
                the extent permitted by law, departments, agencies, and 
                offices represented on the Working Group shall provide 
                resources, including personnel detailed to the 
                Initiative, to assist the Department in meeting the 
                objectives of this order.
                    (c) Interagency Working Group.

(1) There is established the Federal Interagency Working Group on 
Educational Excellence for Hispanics (Working Group), which shall be 
convened and chaired by the Initiative's Executive Director.

(2) The Working Group shall consist of senior officials from the 
Department, the White House Domestic Policy Council, the Department of 
Labor, and the Department of Health and Human Services, as well as such 
additional departments, agencies, and offices as the President may 
designate. Senior officials shall be designated by the heads of their 
respective departments, 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 or 
educational challenges facing Hispanics, such as early childhood education, 
K?12 education, higher education, career and technical education, language 
acquisition, and adult education.

                    (d) Initiative Objectives.

(1) To expand educational opportunities, improve education outcomes, and 
deliver a complete and competitive education for all Hispanics, the 
Initiative shall, consistent with 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 Hispanic students;

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

  (iii) implementing successful and innovative education reform strategies 
and practices in America's public schools to ensure that Hispanic students, 
like their peers, receive a rigorous and well-rounded education, and have 
access to student support services that will prepare them for college, a 
career, and civic participation;

  (iv) ensuring that all Hispanic students have access to excellent 
teachers and school leaders, in part by supporting efforts to improve the 
recruitment, preparation, development, and retention of successful Hispanic 
teachers and school leaders and other effective teachers and school leaders 
responsible for the education of Hispanic students;

  (v) reducing the dropout rate of Hispanic students and helping Hispanic 
students graduate from high school prepared for college and a career, in 
part by promoting a positive school climate and supporting successful and 
innovative dropout prevention and recovery strategies that better engage 
Hispanic youths in their learning, help them catch up academically, and 
provide those who have left the educational system with pathways to 
reentry;

  (vi) increasing college access and success for Hispanic students and 
providing support to help ensure that a greater percentage of Hispanics 
complete college and contribute to the goal of having America again lead 
the world in the proportion of college graduates by 2020, in part through 
strategies to strengthen the capacity of Hispanic-Serving Institutions, 
community colleges, and other institutions of higher education serving 
large numbers of Hispanic students; and

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  (vii) enhancing the educational and life opportunities of Hispanics by 
fostering positive family and community engagement, improving the quality 
of, and expanding access to, adult education, literacy, and career and 
technical education, as well as increasing opportunities for education and 
career advancement in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and 
mathematics.

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

  (i) help ensure that Federal programs and initiatives administered by the 
Department and other agencies are serving and meeting the needs of Hispanic 
children, youths, and adults;

  (ii) work closely with the Executive Office of the President on key 
Administration priorities related to the education of Hispanics;

  (iii) increase the Hispanic community's participation in, and capacity to 
participate in, the Department's programs and education-related programs at 
other executive departments and agencies;

  (iv) advise Department officials and, through the Working Group, other 
agency officials on issues related to the Hispanic community and the 
educational attainment of Hispanic students;

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

  (vi) encourage and develop partnerships with public, private, 
philanthropic, and nonprofit stakeholders to improve Hispanics' readiness 
for school, college, and career, as well as their college persistence and 
completion; and

  (vii) develop a national network of individuals, organizations, and 
communities to share and implement best practices related to the education 
of Hispanics.

(3) The Initiative shall periodically publish reports on its activities. 
The Secretary and the Executive Director of the Initiative, in consultation 
with the Interagency Working Group and the Chair of the Commission 
established under section 3 of this order, may develop and submit to the 
President recommendations designed to advance and promote educational 
opportunities and attainment for Hispanics, including recommendations for 
short- and long-term initiatives.

                    (e) Collaboration Among White House Initiatives. 
                The White House Initiatives on Educational Excellence 
                for Hispanics, Historically Black Colleges and 
                Universities, Tribal Colleges and Universities, and 
                Asian-American and Pacific Islanders shall work 
                together whenever appropriate in light of their shared 
                objectives.

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

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

(1) developing, implementing, and coordinating educational programs and 
initiatives at the Department and other agencies to improve educational 
opportunities and outcomes for Hispanics of all ages;

(2) increasing the participation of the Hispanic community and Hispanic-
Serving Institutions in the Department's programs and in education programs 
at other agencies;

(3) engaging the philanthropic, business, nonprofit, and education 
communities in a national dialogue regarding the mission and objectives of 
this order; and

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(4) establishing 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, and may work through task forces composed 
                exclusively of Commission members, as appropriate.

                    (b) Commission Membership and Chair.

(1) The Commission shall consist of no more than 30 members appointed by 
the President. 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, career and 
technical education, and adult education), labor organizations, research 
institutions, corporate and financial institutions, public and private 
philanthropic organizations, and nonprofit and community-based 
organizations at the national, State, regional, or local levels.

(2) The President shall designate one of the members to serve as Chair of 
the Commission, who shall work with the Initiative's Executive Director to 
convene regular meetings of the Commission, determine its agenda, and 
direct its work, consistent with this order.

                    (c) Commission Administration. The Executive 
                Director of the Initiative shall also serve as the 
                Executive Director of the Commission and administer the 
                work of the Commission. The Department shall provide 
                funding and administrative support for the Commission, 
                to the extent permitted by law. 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.) (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) This order supersedes Executive Order 13230 of 
                October 12, 2001.

[[Page 65421]]

                    (b) 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,

                    October 19, 2010.

[FR Doc. 2010-27004
Filed 10-21-10; 11:15 am]
Billing code 3195-W1-P