[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 182 (Wednesday, September 19, 2012)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 58299-58300]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-23302]


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  Federal Register / Vol. 77 , No. 182 / Wednesday, September 19, 2012 
/ Presidential Documents  

[[Page 58299]]


                Proclamation 8866 of September 14, 2012

                
National Hispanic-Serving Institutions Week, 2012

                By the President of the United States of America

                A Proclamation

                Equipping our children with the knowledge and skills 
                for a lifetime of success is among our Nation's most 
                important responsibilities. We know that providing the 
                next generation with a world-class education is not 
                just a moral obligation--it is a prerequisite for 
                America's progress in the 21st century. With Hispanics 
                representing more than 20 percent of students enrolled 
                in our public elementary and secondary schools, the 
                opportunities in postsecondary education offered to 
                these young people will have a significant impact on 
                our country's future. Hispanic-Serving Institutions 
                (HSIs) have helped bring the dream of a college 
                education within reach for many Hispanic students and 
                their families, and this week, we celebrate the 
                critical role these colleges and universities play in 
                American higher education.

                Across our country, HSIs are giving students access to 
                a quality education and vesting in them a lifelong 
                appreciation for intellectual inquiry. In these halls 
                of higher learning, students are pursuing careers in 
                science and engineering, health care, technology, 
                education, and other fields that will bolster our 
                economic prosperity and foster American innovation for 
                decades to come. Graduates of these institutions are 
                already leaders in every part of our national life, and 
                with these institutions graduating such a significant 
                portion of Hispanic students, HSIs are helping move us 
                closer to leading the world in college completion by 
                2020.

                As we reflect on the contributions of HSIs, let us 
                renew our commitment to preparing our future leaders--
                from focusing on early childhood education to combating 
                high school dropout rates--and to supporting those 
                institutions that equip students of all backgrounds to 
                take on tomorrow's challenges. By honoring this 
                commitment, we uphold that most American idea: that 
                with a quality education, a child of any race, faith, 
                or station in life can overcome any barriers to achieve 
                his or her dreams.

                NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the 
                United States of America, by virtue of the authority 
                vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the 
                United States, do hereby proclaim September 16 through 
                September 22, 2012, as National Hispanic-Serving 
                Institutions Week. I call on public officials, 
                educators, and all the people of the United States to 
                observe this week with appropriate programs, 
                ceremonies, and activities that acknowledge the 
                tremendous contributions these institutions and their 
                graduates have made to our country.

[[Page 58300]]

                IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this 
                fourteenth day of September, in the year of our Lord 
                two thousand twelve, and of the Independence of the 
                United States of America the two hundred and thirty-
                seventh.
                
                
                    (Presidential Sig.)

[FR Doc. 2012-23302
Filed 9-18-12; 11:15 am]
Billing code 3295-F2-P