[United States Statutes at Large, Volume 124, 111th Congress, 2nd Session]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

 
PROCLAMATION 8602--NOV. 16, 2010

Proclamation 8602 of November 16, 2010
American Education Week, 2010
By the President of the United States of America
A Proclamation

Education is essential to our success as both a people and a Nation.
During American Education Week, we rededicate ourselves to providing a
complete and competitive education for every student, from cradle
through career.
In an increasingly interconnected world, our leadership and prosperity
depend on the standard and quality of education that we establish for
our students. In order to maintain our Nation's role as the world's
engine of discovery and innovation, my Administration is committed to
ensuring that America has the best-educated citizenry in the world.
To foster the next generation of great American leaders, we must
continue to invest in education at all levels, work with States and
districts to improve our educational system, and encourage reforms that
ensure the development of our students and teachers. We have also set a
goal of once again having the highest proportion of college graduates of
any country across the globe by the year 2020.
Educators and school employees must also strive to provide our students
with the tools needed to access a fulfilling and prosperous fu-

[[Page 4751]]

ture. Students are able to reach for their dreams when teachers,
parents, and communities support their efforts and insist upon
excellence.
Education has always been central to ensuring opportunity, and to
instilling in all our citizens the defining American values of freedom,
equality, and respect for one another. Our Nation's schools can give
students the tools, skills, and knowledge to participate fully in our
democracy, and to succeed in college, career, and life. This week, let
us reaffirm the importance of education and recognize that we all share
in the responsibility to educate our students.
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 November 14 through
November 20, 2010, as American Education Week. I call upon all Americans
to observe this week by supporting their local schools through
appropriate activities, events, and programs designed to help create
opportunities for every school and student in America.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this sixteenth day of
November, in the year of our Lord two thousand ten, and of the
Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-
fifth.
BARACK OBAMA