[United States Statutes at Large, Volume 131, 115th Congress, 1st Session]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

 
Proclamation 9600 of April 28, 2017

National Charter Schools Week, 2017

By the President of the United States of America

A Proclamation

During National Charter Schools Week, we recommit ourselves to
empowering students and giving parents their rightful freedom over their
children's education. We recognize the successful public charter schools
across the country and the families, teachers, administrators, and
communities who continue to invest in our Nation's most precious
resource--our children.
More than 25 years ago, an idea took root: educators free of restrictive
processes and policies, and empowered to experiment with new teaching
methods, would generate better outcomes for students. Charter schools
are built around this idea. Like traditional public schools, they are
tuition-free, but they operate independently from traditional school
boards and, in exchange, are held accountable by local authorizers to
standards that are often more demanding.
Education is the foundation for success, and educational opportunity
should not be limited or defined by status, income, or residence. All

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children deserve access to a quality education. When our children
receive a rigorous education and are held to high standards, they can
achieve their goals, rise out of poverty, and actively engage in our
democracy.
For too long, however, students across this country have been trapped in
failing or underperforming schools simply because of their zip code. The
Washington one-size-fits-all approach has not worked for far too many of
our children. Fortunately, we have seen how allowing families the
freedom to choose other schooling options--including charter schools--
delivers life-changing results.
Today, 44 States and the District of Columbia have laws that allow for
charter schools, which enroll more than 3 million students. The demand
for charter schools only continues to grow: a recent study showed that
at least 70 percent of parents favor opening a charter school in their
neighborhood. This is because charter schools work. According to
Stanford University's Center for Research on Education Outcomes study,
students in urban charter schools, on average, achieve significantly
greater outcomes in both reading and math. This is why I have called
upon the Congress to increase funding for charter schools as well as
school choice programs for disadvantaged youth, which would include
millions of African American and Latino children. Under the leadership
of Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos, we will expand charter school
options for students throughout the United States.
As Americans, we have an abiding conviction that our next generation's
future should be even brighter than ours. Education provides the
staircase out of poverty, toward a fulfilling life of work and service,
and a true shot at the American Dream. We want every student--from New
Orleans to Kansas City, from Houston to Detroit, and every city and town
in between--to rise to success. Charter schools have tremendous
potential to offer students around the country the priceless gift of
possibility. As a Nation, we should support the continued success of
charter schools and hold our students up to the high standards they are
all capable of achieving.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, DONALD J. TRUMP, 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 April 30 through May
6, 2017, as National Charter Schools Week. I commend our Nation's
successful public charter schools, teachers, and administrators, and I
call on States and communities to empower parents and families by
supporting high-quality charter schools as an important school choice
option.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty-eighth day
of April, in the year of our Lord two thousand seventeen, and of the
Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-
first.
DONALD J. TRUMP