[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 31, Number 38 (Monday, September 25, 1995)]
[Pages 1663-1664]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Proclamation 6827--National Historically Black Colleges and Universities 
Week, 1995

September 21, 1995

By the President of the United States

of America

A Proclamation

    Just after the turn of the century, George Washington Carver, 
teacher, scientist, and intellectual leader at Tuskegee Institute, 
wrote, ``Education is the key to unlock the golden door of freedom.'' 
His words ring true for all Americans, but especially so for the 
students of our Nation's historically black colleges and universities. 
These institutions are a beacon of hope, a path to advancement, and a 
source of pride for African Americans and for everyone who values higher 
learning.
    Founded on a commitment to equal opportunity and academic 
excellence, historically black colleges and universities have enabled 
countless members of our society to receive a quality education and to 
pursue their goals and careers. In every sector of our diverse and 
vibrant country--business, law, academia, medicine, science, the arts, 
and the military--graduates of these schools have made outstanding 
contributions to our Nation's progress.
    These distinguished institutions have long provided a bridge to the 
American Dream for their alumni--many of whom are the first in their 
families to graduate from college. And while nearly all of America's 103 
historically black colleges and universities are located in the South, 
our entire Nation has benefited from their legacy. Indeed, 27 percent of 
all baccalaureate degrees awarded to African Americans are granted by 
these schools, which represent only 3 percent of America's institutions 
of higher education.
    It is their commitment to academic rigor and their dedication to 
empowering the minority community that have enabled historically black 
colleges and universities to build a proud tradition of excellence in 
this country. As centers of independent thought, black colleges hold out 
a promise to the young leaders of tomorrow--a promise that our Nation 
will continue to grow in wisdom, that the future will hold increased 
opportunity, and that education will open new doors to hope and 
prosperity.
    Now, Therefore, I, William J. Clinton, 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 24 through September 30, 1995, as National Historically Black 
Colleges and Universities Week. I call upon the people of the United 
States, including government officials, educators, and administrators, 
to observe this week with appropriate programs, ceremonies, and 
activities honoring America's black colleges and their graduates, and I 
encourage all Americans to rededicate themselves to the principles of 
justice and equality set forth in our Constitution.
    In Witness Whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty-first 
day of September, in the year of our Lord nineteen hundred and ninety-
five, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two 
hundred and twentieth.
                                            William J. Clinton

[Filed with the Office of the Federal Register, 1:54 p.m., September 22, 
1995]

Note: This proclamation was released by the Office of the Press 
Secretary on September 22, and it will be published in the Federal 
Register on September 26.

[[Page 1664]]