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Former President Bill Clinton and NAACP to Receive Prestigious Award From The NEA Foundation in Nation's Capital

Posted on: Thursday, 8 December 2005, 09:00 CST

WASHINGTON, Dec. 8 /PRNewswire/ -- The NEA Foundation today announced that Former President Bill Clinton and the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) are the 2005 recipients of The NEA Foundation Award for Outstanding Service to Public Education. Bestowed upon individuals and organizations that have made exceptional contributions to public education, the award will be presented to President Clinton and the NAACP during The NEA Foundation's 11th Annual Salute to Excellence in Education Gala on Friday, December 9, 2005 in Washington, DC at the Marriott Wardman Park Hotel.

Harriet Sanford, President and CEO of The NEA Foundation, said, "The foundation is honored to give these awards to President Clinton and the NAACP for their exceptional work in public education and their continued contributions. President Clinton is an inspired leader and a great friend of public education, and the NAACP has been instrumental in advancing equal public education opportunities for all."

The Clinton administration's many successes surrounding public education include providing higher education with its largest funding increase since the GI Bill of Rights passed in 1944, opening college doors with Hope Scholarships and Lifetime Learning Tax Credits, reducing class size through the hiring of 100,000 teachers, and encouraging higher standards to turn around failing schools.

His administration also invested in school construction and safe school environments, funded after-school opportunities for more than a million children, and closed the "digital divide" by investing in educational technology for America's schools. In addition, funds increased twofold for the Head Start program, resulting in significant gains in both the enrollment and quality of the program.

While Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas is perhaps the best- known example of the NAACP's quest for educational equality, the organization has continued to collaborate, negotiate, legislate, litigate, and agitate on behalf of public education. The NAACP is actively engaged in a host of educational equality issues including the disproportionate assignment of minority students to special education classes and the effects of zero- tolerance discipline policies on minority students. In addition, the NAACP is working on a teacher recruitment, preparation, and retention plan with the goal of closing the achievement gaps and ensuring the promises of Brown in conjunction with the National Education Association (NEA), the American Federation of Teachers, the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards, and the National Alliance of Black School Educators.

"On behalf of NEA and our 2.7 million members, I congratulate President Clinton and the NAACP for their commitment and contributions to helping make public schools great for every child," said Reg Weaver, president of NEA. "Their hard work, dedication, and passion for public education have enabled us to make great strides and impact the lives of millions of public school students nationwide."

Past recipients of The NEA Foundation Award for Outstanding Service to Public Education include Mary Hatwood Futrell, Dean, The George Washington University Graduate School of Education and Human Development and Past NEA President; LeVar Burton, host and co-executive producer of Reading Rainbow; the late Fred Rogers, creator and host of Mister Rogers' Neighborhood; and Richard W. Riley, former U.S. Secretary of Education.

In addition to presenting The NEA Foundation Award for Outstanding Service to Public Education at the Salute to Excellence in Education gala, the foundation will also announce the $25,000 recipient of The NEA Foundation Award for Teaching Excellence, selected from five $10,000 national finalists.

The NEA Foundation inspires public education employees to ensure that all students succeed. Created by the members of the National Education Association in 1969, the foundation is sustained by their continuing support, as well as the support of dedicated corporate sponsors and committed friends. The foundation's various grant programs assist educators striving to close the achievement gaps, develop innovative classroom strategies, and participate in high-quality professional development. For more information, visit http://www.neafoundation.org/.

The NEA Foundation

CONTACT: Christine Chirichella, +1-202-822-7803, orcchirichella@nea.org, and Christiana Campos, +1-202-822-7261, orccampos@nea.org, both of The NEA Foundation

Web site: http://www.neafoundation.org/

Source: PRNewswire

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