[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 39, Number 17 (Monday, April 28, 2003)]
[Pages 485-486]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Proclamation 7666--National Charter Schools Week, 2003

 April 25, 2003

 By the President of the United States

 of America

 A Proclamation

    Charter schools provide many children with a first-class education, 
and they have gained national recognition for their accountability 
standards, innovative programs, and success with young people. The high 
expectations they set and the opportunities for development they create 
help students attending charter schools realize their potential and 
achieve their dreams.
    Charter schools are held to the same standards, including curriculum 
standards, as traditional schools, and are also accountable to students, 
parents, and community leaders for producing results and improving 
achievement. By defining expected goals and offering options for 
children trapped in low-performing schools, charter schools help improve 
the overall quality of education in America.
    The success of charter schools is evident in the achievements of the 
children who attend those schools and in the positive response from the 
communities they serve. In little more than a decade, 2,700 charter 
schools have opened in 36 States and the District of Columbia, and 
nearly two-thirds of these schools have waiting lists. Forty States and 
the District of Columbia have enacted charter school laws, and this year 
four additional States began considering charter school laws. To help 
State and local districts provide parents with more quality education 
alternatives, I have proposed increased funding for charter schools so 
that more of our children can receive the gift of a good education.
    The accomplishments of charter schools prove that we can improve our 
public education system by replacing low expectations with a culture of 
achievement that rewards success and does not tolerate failure. Over the 
last 2 years, my Administration has taken steps to realize this vision 
by supporting accountability for results, expanded parental choice, 
increased local flexibility, and a focus on what works. With the No 
Child Left Behind Act of 2001, we continue to build a stronger 
educational foundation for America's children. States are now 
responsible for improving student achievement in public schools by 
maintaining tough academic standards and setting annual progress goals. 
The law further requires regular testing to ensure all students are 
proficient in reading and math and to help identify learning problems.
    My Administration is working to provide the resources schools need 
to fund education reform and achieve these high standards. We have 
increased funding for elementary and secondary education by 36 percent 
in the last 2 years, and the Federal Government will spend nearly $24 
billion on these programs this year. Through the new Reading First 
program, over $500 million has been distributed to 29 States to assist 
with reading programs that help ensure that our children will know how 
to read by the third grade. Expansions of our charter schools, and 
reforms in traditional public schools, are helping build the mind and 
character of our future leaders.
    During National Charter Schools Week, we renew our commitment to our 
children and their education. I urge every American to visit a charter 
school and learn about its efforts to help children in their community. 
Charter schools are just one of many successful alternatives that ensure 
that no child is left behind. By raising expectations and fostering 
hope, we can help build a future of promise for our next generation of 
Americans.
     Now, Therefore, I, George W. Bush, President of the United States 
of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution 
and laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim April 27 through May 
3, 2003, as National Charter Schools Week. I commend the States with 
charter schools, and I call on parents of charter school children to 
share their success stories with others so that all Americans may 
understand more about the important work of charter schools.
     In Witness Whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty-fifth 
day of April, in the year of our Lord two thousand three, and of the 
Independence of the United States of

[[Page 486]]

America the two hundred and twenty-seventh.
                                                George W. Bush

 [Filed with the Office of the Federal Register, 8:45 a.m., April 29, 
2003]

Note: This proclamation will be published in the Federal Register on 
April 30.