The White House

Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release
July 22, 2014

Readout of the Chief of Staff’s Meetings in Berlin, Germany

In follow up to the telephone conversation between President Obama and Chancellor Merkel, the respective Chiefs of Staff, Denis McDonough (US) and Peter Altmaier (Germany), accompanied by Lisa Monaco, Assistant to the President for Counterterrorism and Homeland Security, and Günter Heiss, Head of Directorate-General 6 (Federal Intelligence Service, Coordination of Federal Intelligence Services), Federal Chancellery, met on Tuesday in Berlin for intensive talks on the state of bilateral relations and future cooperation.

The full range of issues was addressed, including intelligence and security matters.

Mr. McDonough and Mr. Altmaier agreed to set up a Structured Dialogue to address concerns of both sides and establish guiding principles as the basis for continued and future cooperation. The Structured Dialogue will be overseen by the Chiefs of Staff.

The White House

Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release
July 22, 2014

FACT SHEET: Ready to Work At a Glance: Job-Driven Training and American Opportunity

New Actions to Expand Job-Driven Training and Broaden the Pathway to the Middle Class

“So tonight, I've asked Vice President Biden to lead an across-the-board reform of America's training programs to make sure they have one mission: train Americans with the skills employers need, and match them to good jobs that need to be filled right now. That means more on-the-job training, and more apprenticeships that set a young worker on an upward trajectory for life. It means connecting companies to community colleges that can help design training to fill their specific needs. And if Congress wants to help, you can concentrate funding on proven programs that connect more ready-to-work Americans with ready-to-be-filled jobs.”

— President Obama, State of the Union, January 28, 2014

Across the country, federal job training programs help hard-working Americans find good jobs and careers, employers recruit and hire the skilled workers they need to compete, and American communities build the skilled workforces they need to attract business investment and create jobs. In order to continue to grow the economy, expand opportunity, and widen the pathway to the middle class, the President and Vice President are committed to improving training opportunities for Americans by replicating strategies that work.

In his 2014 State of the Union Address, and as part of his plan to make 2014 a Year of Action, the President announced that he was asking the Vice President to lead a review of federal training programs in order to identify and implement steps to make these programs more “job-driven”: to be responsive to the needs of employers in order to effectively place ready-to-work Americans in jobs that are available now or train them in the skills needed for better jobs. Today, the President and Vice President will announce the results of the review, including new actions by the federal government and the private sector. The Vice President will release a new report that details these actions and highlights successful job-driven strategies. The President will also sign the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, which will help improve business engagement and accountability across federally-funded training programs.

In the months ahead, the Administration will continue to work with business and union leaders, school administrators, workforce experts, and state and local elected officials to replicate successful training strategies in communities throughout the United States.

For additional details, click HERE.

Engaging Employers in Partnerships to Define Needed Skills, Offer Apprenticeships, and Hire Graduates

Matching ready-to-work Americans to in-demand jobs works best when employers engage to define needed skills, shape training programs, and invest in apprenticeships and on-the-job training.

  • Competitive grants to launch hundreds of job-driven industry partnerships across the country. $950 million in job-driven grants have already been launched and will have been awarded to over 100 job-driven industry partnerships by this fall. Starting October 1, all applicants for 25 annual competitive grant programs across federal agencies must follow the job-driven checklist, meaning that over $1.4 billion in existing job training funds for youth, displaced workers, long-term unemployed, and others will be awarded to hundreds of community organizations and education and training institutions in partnership with employers.
  • Expanding American Apprenticeships. In addition to making $100 million available for the American Apprenticeship Grants to expand apprenticeships to more Americans, the Administration has engaged high-growth industries and is today announcing new resources to help employers start or expand apprenticeships.
  • Using a job-driven checklist to ensure $15 billion in job training funds are more effective. Agencies boiled down what makes training programs successful and created a Job-Driven Checklist that will be used to drive successful practices like employer engagement and apprenticeship into all training programs.

Information to Help Job Seekers, States, and Communities Make Smart Choices

In-demand skills and job opportunities evolve as our economy and technology changes. Making data-driven tools available at all levels allows individuals, employers, and taxpayers to realize higher returns on training investments.

  • Ensure all federal programs track employment outcomes. Employment measures will be added to any program without them, including programs serving Americans with disabilities and veterans.
  • Mobilizing America’s innovators. Following a White House Data Jam for Job Seekers, Glassdoor, Apploi and others are committing to make personalized guidance on job search and training freely available.
  • Give states and localities information and incentives to tailor job-driven strategies locally. Agencies will provide states guidance and flexibility to tailor job-driven strategies, offering grants for implementation.

Innovation and Promoting More Effective Strategies

We will enable agencies to pilot promising job-driven training strategies and learn how best to scale them.

  • High-impact innovations in higher education. The Department of Education will waive particular federal student aid rules to enable the testing of innovative education models awarding degrees based on demonstrated skills rather than seat time, and the Department of Labor will award $25 million to create an online skills academy designed to prepare adult learners for in-demand careers.
  • Testing effective strategies for adult learners. The Department of Agriculture will award $200 million for up to 10 pilot projects to rigorously test employment and training programs. A partnership of employers, foundations, and non-profits is launching a national competition to crowd source for the best technologies to upskill this population.
  • Testing strategies for disconnected youth. The Administration will allow up to 10 state and local pilot programs to blend funds from multiple federal programs to test new models for serving disconnected youth, and the Department of Labor will use Job Corps’ demonstration authority to experiment with new models to improve outcomes for youth under age 20.

The White House

Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release
July 21, 2014

Readout of the President’s Homeland Security Council Meeting

This afternoon, the President and Vice President met in the Situation Room with the President’s Homeland Security Council to discuss the urgent humanitarian situation at the border as well as the comprehensive response that the Administration has implemented at the President’s direction. Today’s meeting took place as preliminary data show that average daily apprehensions of unaccompanied children by the Customs and Border Patrol have dropped by about half from June to July. This important decline was noted, and the Council committed to continuing aggressive efforts on both sides of the border to deter illegal migration—including by sustaining cooperation with Central American leaders—and to providing appropriate care for those apprehended at the border. Participants also discussed combating the root causes of migration and the need to secure the additional resources sought in the President’s supplemental appropriations request.

Attendees at this afternoon’s meeting included:

  • The Vice President
  • Chuck Hagel, Secretary of Defense
  • James Cole, Deputy Attorney General
  • Sylvia Burwell, Secretary of Health and Human Services
  • Jeh Johnson, Secretary of Homeland Security
  • Denis McDonough, Assistant to the President and Chief of Staff
  • John Podesta, Counselor to the President
  • Kristie Canegallo, Deputy Chief of Staff to the President
  • Amb. Samantha Power, Permanent Representative of the United States of America to the United Nations
  • Brian Deese, Acting Director of the Office of Management and Budget
  • Valerie Jarrett, Senior Advisor and Assistant to the President for Intergovernmental Affairs and Public Engagement
  • Susan Rice, Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs
  • Neil Eggleston, Assistant to the President and Counsel to the President
  • Stephanie O’Sullivan, Principal Deputy Director of National Intelligence
  • Cecilia Muñoz, Assistant to the President and Director of Domestic Policy
  • Lisa Monaco, Assistant to the President for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism
  • Katie Fallon, Assistant to the President and Director of the Office of Legislative Affairs
  • Rajiv Shah, Administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development
  • General Martin Dempsey, Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff
  • Heather Higginbottom, Deputy Secretary of State
  • Craig Fugate, Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency
  • Dan Tangherlini, Administrator of the General Services
  • Jeffrey Prescott, Deputy National Security Advisor to the Vice President
  • Rand Beers, Deputy Assistant to the President for Homeland Security
  • Gil Kerlikowske, Commissioner of the Customs Border Protection
  • Thomas Winkowski, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Immigration and Customs Enforcement

About the Homeland Security Council:
The Homeland Security Council was created by Executive Order in 2001 and codified in statute by the Homeland Security Act of 2002. Similar to the National Security Council, which is also a statutory body, the Homeland Security Council serves to coordinate across the government on homeland security issues. In 2009, the Homeland Security Council and National Security Council were integrated under one staff, but both continue to exist by statute. Meetings of either are convened as needed. 

The White House

Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release
July 21, 2014

Readout of the President’s Call with President Komorowski of Poland

This afternoon, President Obama spoke with Polish President Komorowski to discuss the situation in Ukraine and the upcoming NATO Summit in Wales.  The two presidents exchanged views in advance of the meeting in Warsaw tomorrow of the leaders of nine NATO members from Central and Eastern Europe.  President Obama and President Komorowski agreed on the importance of raising defense spending among European members of NATO, as well as on the importance of alliance-wide and credible contributions to NATO’s reassurance efforts in Central and Eastern Europe.  The two leaders also stressed the need for Transatlantic solidarity in responding to the tragic shoot-down of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 and Russia’s efforts to destabilize Ukraine. 

The White House

Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release
July 21, 2014

Presidential Nominations Sent to the Senate

NOMINATIONS SENT TO THE SENATE:

Mickey D. Barnett, of New Mexico, to be a Governor of the United States Postal Service for a term expiring December 8, 2020. (Reappointment)

Charles H. Fulghum, of North Carolina, to be Chief Financial Officer, Department of Homeland Security, vice Margaret Ann Sherry, resigned.

James L. Huffman, of Oregon, to be a Member of the Board of Trustees of the Morris K. Udall and Stewart L. Udall Foundation for a term expiring October 6, 2014, vice Michael Butler, term expired.

James L. Huffman, of Oregon, to be a Member of the Board of Trustees of the Morris K. Udall and Stewart L. Udall Foundation for a term expiring October 6, 2020.  (Reappointment)

Adri Davin Jayaratne, of Michigan, to be an Assistant Secretary of Labor, vice Brian Vincent Kennedy.

Barbara A. Leaf, of Virginia, a Career Member of the Senior Foreign Service, Class of Minister-Counselor, to be Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to the United Arab Emirates.

Virginia E. Palmer, of Virginia, a Career Member of the Senior Foreign Service, Class of Minister-Counselor, to be Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to the Republic of Malawi.

William V. Roebuck, of North Carolina, a Career Member of the Senior Foreign Service, Class of Counselor, to be Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to the Kingdom of Bahrain.

The White House

Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release
July 21, 2014

President Obama Signs Minnesota Disaster Declaration

The President today declared a major disaster exists in the State of Minnesota and ordered federal aid to supplement state and local recovery efforts in the area affected by severe storms, straight-line winds, flooding, landslides, and mudslides during the period of June 11 to July 11, 2014.

Federal funding is available to state and eligible local governments and certain private nonprofit organizations on a cost-sharing basis for emergency work and the repair or replacement of facilities damaged by the severe storms, straight-line winds, flooding, landslides, and mudslides in the counties of Chippewa, Freeborn, Jackson, Murray, Nobles, Pipestone, Renville, and Rock.

Federal funding is also available on a cost-sharing basis for hazard mitigation measures statewide. 

W. Craig Fugate, Administrator, Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), Department of Homeland Security, named Warren J. Riley as the Federal Coordinating Officer for federal recovery operations in the affected area. 

FEMA said that damage surveys are continuing in other areas, and more counties and additional forms of assistance may be designated after the assessments are fully completed.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION MEDIA SHOULD CONTACT:  FEMA NEWS DESK AT (202) 646-3272 OR FEMA-NEWS-DESK@DHS.GOV

The White House

Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release
July 21, 2014

Readout of National Security Advisor Susan E. Rice’s Meeting with Ed Miliband

President Obama joined National Security Advisor Rice’s meeting today with Mr. Ed Miliband, leader of the United Kingdom’s opposition Labour Party.  Mr. Miliband was meeting with Ambassador Rice to discuss issues of shared concern, including the situations in Ukraine, Israel/Gaza,  and Iraq. The President and Mr. Miliband affirmed the strong ties that bind the United States and the United Kingdom.  The President and Mr. Miliband met previously during the President’s visit to London in May 2011.

The White House

Office of the Vice President

For Immediate Release
July 21, 2014

Office of the Vice President Announces Staff Changes

Washington, DC – The Office of the Vice President announced today that Melanie Kaye, Director of Communications to Dr. Jill Biden departed the White House.  Kaye is succeeded by James M. Gleeson, who most recently worked in the U.S. House of Representatives. 

“It has been a pleasure to have Melanie serve as my Director of Communications,” said Dr. Jill Biden.  “Her incredible dedication and remarkable skills have helped us bolster our Joining Forces initiative for our country’s military families, honor teachers and bring attention to the importance of education for our children and country’s future, improve access to quality health care, and promote the empowerment of women and girls.  I am so grateful for Melanie’s invaluable advice over the past three years as well as her kindness and integrity.  Joe and I wish her all the best.”

James Gleeson comes to the White House from the U.S. House of Representatives where he served as Communications Director to Congressman Xavier Becerra (CA-34), Chairman of the House Democratic Caucus.  From passage of the Affordable Care Act and efforts to find budget solutions during the Simpson-Bowles Commission and the Super Committee, to the pursuit of commonsense immigration reform and economic policies to grow the economy and strengthen the middle class, James helped coordinate House Democrats’ communications strategy and messaging efforts since 2009.

Before moving to D.C., James was an Account Manager for a political consulting firm in Denver, Colorado.  Prior to that, he served in the Colorado State House as a Legislative Aide to then-Majority Caucus Leader Michael Cerbo, and as a Policy Strategist for the Autism Society of Colorado.

James attended Arapahoe Community College in Littleton, Colorado and earned a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Colorado, Boulder.  He lives in Silver Spring, Maryland with his wife Kelly Berens Gleeson. 

The White House

Office of the Vice President

For Immediate Release
July 21, 2014

FACT SHEET: The Vice President’s Address to the 115th National Conference of the Veterans of Foreign Wars

“We have a lot of obligations as the government— obligations to the poor, the disadvantaged, the elderly, our children. But we only have one sacred obligation, only one truly sacred obligation, and that's to equip and support those who we send to war and care for and protect them and their families when they return from war.  That's the only truly sacred obligation. “

-VICE PRESIDENT JOSEPH BIDEN
AUGUST 27, 2013

Our government’s sacred obligation is to support our troops and care for them when they come home.  One of the most powerful ways we can uphold that obligation is to provide our veterans with the access to the resources and training necessary for them to succeed. The following bullets highlight major actions that the Administration is taking to live up to our sacred obligation.

Skills – Job Driven Training and American Opportunity

The Administration’s work to train veterans and their families with job driven trainings include:

Developing, diversifying, and expanding models for rapid, effective job training: The Department of Defense (DoD) is working to bridge the gap between the skills veterans obtain in military service and the skills needed in the civilian workforce in several ways. The IT Training and Certification Partnership, a public-private partnership with organizations including Cisco, Microsoft, and Oracle will enable thousands of Servicemembers to gain industry-recognized, nationally-portable certifications necessary for high-demand technology professions before they transition from military service. 

Accelerated Learning Competition.  To ensure that Veterans can take full advantage of innovative learning models, the VA will sponsor a $10 million competition to identify leading practices among alternative learning models, and evaluate the employment outcomes of accelerated learning programs (ALPs) for post-9/11 Veterans. The competition will be a multi-staged event leading to direct funding of Veteran participation in IT-centric ALPs, including coding bootcamps.  This two-year demonstration project will start in FY15, with the help of funding through the VA Center for Innovation, and has the potential to scale to other communities based on demonstrated outcomes and the availability of resources.

Outreach to ALPs regarding eligibility requirements for GI Bill® and VR&E. The VA is keenly interested in the viability of innovative learning models, such as accelerated learning programs (ALPs), for employment of our Veterans, especially in growing sectors like information technology. Recognizing that many institutions in the emerging field of accelerated learning are not familiar with the process by which programs can be approved for GI Bill® eligibility or be eligible for the Vocational Rehabilitation & Employment (VR&E) program, VA is sending a letter to ALPs with a fact sheet on the GI Bill® accreditation process through State Approving Agencies, as well as a fact sheet on the VR&E eligibility process.

Making Apprenticeships Work: Through a new partnership between the Departments of Veterans Affairs and Labor, employers now have a fast-track for their veteran employees to access their GI Bill® benefits for registered apprenticeships, helping more than 9,000 veteran apprentices receive the benefits they have earned.

Maximizing Business Engagement to Train and Hire Veterans: The Veteran Employment Training Service (VETS) in the DOL is establishing a Job Development Unit, to make the connection between commitments from national and regional employers seeking to hire veterans and local business engagement teams at American Job Centers. In addition, the Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment (VR&E) program at the VA will work with the DOL to develop a more standardized process for how vocational rehabilitation counselors serving veterans with service-connected disabilities can effectively use labor market information, employer partnerships, and information from state Workforce Investment Boards to connect veterans with disabilities to in-demand training and employment opportunities.

Making it easier for qualified Servicemembers to earn a Commercial Driver’s License: For the first time, all 50 States and the District of Columbia, now waive the skills test for qualified Servicemembers and veterans applying for a State Commercial Driver’s License (CDL).  For four years, the Administration has worked state-by-state, partnering with the Department of Defense (DoD), other Federal agencies and outside stakeholders to make it easier for military truck drivers to earn a CDL. The waiver process saves the CDL applicant time and money, making it easier to transfer the skills learned in the military to civilian life and a job.  To date more than 6,000 service personnel have taken advantage of the Skills Test Waiver.  

Economic Competitiveness for Veterans

The Administration is committed to increasing the economic competitiveness of veterans and their families.  

Veteran Employment Center: On April 23, the First Lady and Dr Biden announced the Veterans Employment Center, the single authoritative on-line source for connecting transitioning Servicemembers, veterans and their families to meaningful career opportunities. The VEC is the first government-wide product that brings together a reputable cadre of public and private employers with real job opportunities, and provides our military community with the tools to translate their military skills into plain language and build a profile that can be shared – in real time – with employers who have made a public commitment to hire veterans. The VEC lists over 1.5 million private and public sector jobs and employers have made commitments to hire over 150,000 individuals from the military community.

Federal Government Hiring: In 2009, President Obama signed Executive Order 13518 and launched the Veterans Employment Initiative.  Since then, the federal government is setting the example, hiring more than 300,000.  In FY2013, there were a total of 162,839 new hires within the federal government.  Of these, 50,502 were veterans.  This equates to 31% veterans of all federal new hires in FY2013. 

Category

FY 2006

FY 2007

FY 2008

FY 2009

FY 2010

FY 2011

FY 2012

FY 2013

Federal New Hires

226,825

228,649

288,865

292,679

281,651

229,853

195,139

162,839

Veteran New Hires

50,098

52,431

65,607

70,170

72,133

65,030

56,422

50,502

% of All Employees

22.1%

22.9%

22.7%

24.0%

25.6%

28.3%

28.9%

31%
 

Joining Forces

In June 2012, the President issued his challenge to the private sector to hire or train 100,000 veterans or their spouses by the end of 2013.  Efforts to encourage private sector hiring have been led by First Lady Michelle Obama, Dr. Jill Biden and their Joining Forces initiative.  Since this time, businesses have exceeded this goal by hiring and training more than 540,000 veterans and their spouses. 

The Administration’s work for veterans and their families through Joining Forces initiatives include:

Interstate Compact on Educational Opportunity for Military Children: Most military children will attend six to nine different school systems from kindergarten to 12th grade, and they may find that they have to retake certain academic classes or are unable to join an extra-curricular activity or sports team.  DoD works with state policymakers and other state leaders to address school transition challenges such as these through the Interstate Compact on Educational Opportunity for Military Children (the compact), developed in 2007 with the assistance of the Council of State Governments.   The compact helps ensure that the children of military families are afforded the same opportunities for educational success as other children and are not penalized for frequent moves.  The Compact provides for a consistent policy in the areas of eligibility, enrollment, placement and graduation in every school district and in every state that chooses to join.  As of July 2014, 48 states have enacted legislation adopting the Compact.  The other two states (New Hampshire and New York) have both passed legislation which is awaiting their Governors’ signatures.

Facilitating Military Spouse Transition through Licensure Portability: Military spouses are highly-skilled and tremendously talented and they should have the opportunity to build careers and work in the fields they have chosen.  However, military spouses report that their career paths are often disrupted by frequent moves.  Many military spouses who work in licensed professions can face lengthy re-employment delays and financial expenses due to variable, state-specific conditions and processes for professional licenses in their new state. As of July 2014, 47 states have passed legislation that facilitates military spouse transition through one or more aspects of licensure portability.  DoD continues to work with the other three states (Iowa, New York and Pennsylvania) to enact legislation in support of this issue.

Facilitating Licensure and Academic Credit for Transitioning Servicemembers:  Transitioning Servicemembers leave the military with documented training and experience that can prepare them for civilian employment; however, this documentation is not always used by state entities to qualify them for licenses required for their occupation or to provide them academic credit. Reported unemployment rates of separating Servicemembers that are higher than national averages have brought attention to supporting issues such as expedited licensure and increased academic credit recognition to alleviate this problem. DoD is working with states to help ease the transition of separating Servicemembers in the areas of education and employment.  As of July 2014, 46 states have passed some sort of legislation that facilitates separating Servicemembers to receive licensure and/or academic credit for military education, training and experience. 

Principles of Excellence

The Principles of Excellence were announced on April 27, 2012 by President Obama in Executive Order 13607, to ensure that student veterans, Servicemembers, and family members have information, support, and protections while using Federal education benefits. To date, more than 6,000 educational institutions have signed on. Tools developed to provide more information to students and increase oversight of programs offered by educational institutions are discussed below:

GI Bill® Comparison Tool: The GI Bill® Comparison Tool makes it easier to research colleges and employers providing training under the GI Bill®. It displays median borrowing amounts, graduation rates, and loan-default rates by school and indicates whether or not the school participates in the Yellow Ribbon Program or has agreed to adhere to the Principles of Excellence. Further, the tool allows veterans, Servicemembers, their spouses, and dependents to estimate the amount of funding they may receive under the Post-9/11 GI Bill®. As of July 15, 2014, there nearly 300,000 visits to the Web site.

GI Bill® Feedback System: The GI Bill® Feedback System is a centralized online reporting system that allows veterans, Servicemembers, and eligible dependents to report negative experiences with educational institutions. VA serves as the intermediary to resolve complaints between the student and school. Submitted complaints may be reviewed by state and Federal law enforcement agencies including the Department of Justice.  As of July 15, 2014, there were over 1,700 complaints submitted.

8 Keys to Veterans’ Success on Campus: Developed by ED and VA, in conjunction with more than 100 education experts, the 8 Keys to Veterans' Success on Campus are eight concrete steps that institutions of higher education can take to help veterans and Servicemember’s transition into the classroom and thrive once they are there. Over the past year, the number of commitments has steadily increased as more colleges and universities have affirmed their commitment to take the necessary steps to assist veterans and Servicemembers in transitioning to higher education, completing their college programs, obtaining career-ready skills, and achieving success.

The White House

Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release
July 21, 2014

FACT SHEET: President Obama Applauds New Commitments in Support of the My Brother’s Keeper Initiative

“That’s what ‘My Brother’s Keeper’ is all about. Helping more of our young people stay on track. Providing the support they need to think more broadly about their future. Building on what works – when it works, in those critical life-changing moments.”

- President Barack Obama, February 27, 2014

In February, as part of his plan to make 2014 a year of action focused on expanding opportunity for all Americans, the President unveiled the “My Brother’s Keeper” initiative to address persistent opportunity gaps faced by boys and young men of color and ensure that all young people can reach their full potential.  As part of the initiative’s launch, the President also established the My Brother’s Keeper Task Force to review public and private sector programs, policies, and strategies and determine ways the Federal Government can better support these efforts, and how to better involve State and local officials, the private sector, and the philanthropic community.

Today, the President will announce new commitments in support of the My Brother’s Keeper initiative at the Walker Jones Education Center in Washington, DC.  Following the announcement, the President will hold a town hall session where he will take questions from the group of DC-area youth who will attend the event. During the session, the President will highlight how the My Brother’s Keeper initiative and the Administration continue to work to build ladders of opportunity for all young people across the country.  In attendance at the event will be leaders from 60-plus school districts across the country with the Council of the Great City Schools, parents, business leaders, athletes, mayors and members of Congress. 

Today, Magic Johnson Enterprises’ Earvin “Magic” Johnson and Deloitte CEO Joe Echevarria launched the National Convening Council ("NCC"), an independent private sector initiative bringing together leaders from business, philanthropy and the faith, youth and nonprofit communities.  Over the next several months, the NCC will travel the country, lifting up examples of cross-sector efforts that are having a positive impact on boys and young men of color.

Creating Opportunity for All

For decades, opportunity has lagged for boys and young men of color. But across the country, communities are adopting approaches to help put these boys and young men on the path to success.  And the President, joined by foundations, businesses, and many other leaders, wants to build on that success to ensure that all young people, including boys and young men of color, who are willing to work hard have an opportunity to get ahead and reach their full potential.

The My Brother’s Keeper initiative encourages the use of proven tools that expand opportunity for young people, including access to basic health, nutrition, mentorship, high-quality early education and early introductions into the workforce, as well as partnering with communities and police to reduce violence and make our classrooms and streets safer.

On May 30th, the My Brother’s Keeper Task Force released its 90-day report.  This report includes key indicators that will provide a comprehensive view of the environments and outcomes for boys and young men of color and their peers.  It also contains recommendations on steps our society can take to begin to expand opportunity for all in areas including:

o   Entering school ready to learn;

o   Reading at grade level by third grade;

o   Graduating from high school ready for college and career;

o   Completing post-secondary education or training;

o   Entering the workforce; and

o   Reducing violence and providing a second chance.

The Administration is doing its part by identifying programs and policies that work, and recommending action that will help all our young people succeed.  Since the launch of My Brother’s Keeper, the President’s Task Force has met with and heard from thousands of Americans, through online and in-person listening sessions, who are already taking action.

New Commitments

Today, leading private sector organizations announced independent commitments that further the goals of the My Brother’s Keeper initiative and directly address some of the key recommendations in the Task Force Report.

Reducing High School Dropout Rates, Improving the Worst Performing Schools and Actively Recruiting High Quality and Sustained Mentors:

  • The NBA, the National Basketball Players Association (NBPA) and the National Basketball Retired Players Association (NBRPA) announced a five-year commitment in partnership with MENTOR: The National Mentoring Partnership, Team Turnaround and the Council of the Great City Schools (CGCS).

o   Through the partnership, these organizations will support a public service announcement campaign designed to recruit 25,000 new mentors, with a specific emphasis on recruiting men of color.

o   The NBA and its teams will work with educators in at-risk schools across many of their franchise cities to provide incentive programs that increase attendance and improve overall school performance.  Current and former NBA players will also participate in a series of grassroots, "lessons in leadership and teamwork" workshops in schools and after-school organizations that will inspire boys and young men of color to take charge of their lives, make good decisions, and be successful in their pursuit of education.

  • AT&T announced an $18 million commitment this year to support mentoring and other education programs with a mentoring component as part of the company’s Aspire initiative - a $350 million commitment focused on high school success and workforce readiness for students at risk of dropping out of school. 

o   AT&T is launching the Aspire Mentoring Academy Corps, powered by AmeriCorps, AT&T and MENTOR: The National Mentoring Partnership to support AmeriCorps members in regions around the country and engage thousands of at-risk youth in mentoring activities. 

o   AT&T will expand the engagement of its employees through the Aspire Mentoring Academy with a goal to provide students who are at risk of dropping out of high school with 1 million hours of mentoring by the end of 2016. 

o   AT&T is using technology to scale its efforts through online mentoring, developing a mentoring app and piloting a program that mentors students through the CISCO IT certification process, thus developing critical Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) skills. 

Creating High Schools for the New Economy

  • Along with their partners from Silicon Valley and elsewhere, the Emerson Collective, founded by Laurene Powell Jobs, will collaborate with districts and educators to launch a competition to find and develop the best designs for next generation high schools. Together, they will contribute $50 million for this effort.

o   Efforts will include connecting some of Silicon Valley’s best innovators and design thinkers with some of the country’s most effective and inventive educators and students to create schools for the new economy and provide models that can be adopted by other schools in the future. 

o   This school redesign initiative aims to use the best in design thinking, education research and practice and technology to create new school environments to dramatically increase the engagement and success of currently underserved students enabling them to achieve and compete at the highest levels and provide the supports, tools and resources educators need to be and feel engaged, effective and supported. 

Encouraging and Supporting Comprehensive Cradle-to-College-and-Career Community Solutions for Youth:

  • Today, the leaders of 60 of the largest urban school systems in the country with the Council of the Great City Schools, which collectively educate nearly three million of America’s male students of color, have joined in an unprecedented pledge to change life outcomes of boys and young men of color by better serving these students at every stage of their education. 

o   Through an eleven-point plan that stretches from early childhood to graduation, these school districts will better support boys and young men of color by focusing on strategies with proven results.  These include expanding access to high quality preschool, implementing or scaling early warning systems to prevent grade retention, establishing programs to reduce suspensions and expulsions, increasing access to advanced and rigorous coursework and ensuring increased FAFSA completion.

Expanding Access to Advanced Placement (AP) Courses and Rigorous College Prep:

  • The College Board is investing over $1.5 million for “All In”, a national College Board program to ensure that 100% of African American, Latino, and Native American students with strong AP potential enroll in at least one matched AP class before graduation. 

o   As part of their “All In” commitment, the College Board is partnering with all 60 school superintendents who have signed on to the CGCS pledge to identify and reach out to young men of color who have demonstrated the potential to succeed in AP classes. 

 

Creating Entry-Level Job, Mentorship and Apprenticeship Opportunities for Youth:

  • Citi Foundation is making a three year, $10 million commitment to create ServiceWorks, a groundbreaking, national program that uses volunteer services to help 25,000 young people in ten cities across the United States develop the skills they need to prepare for college and careers.

o   The program, which will deploy 225 AmeriCorps members over three years, will engage youth, age 16-24, in service and build a large-scale volunteer response to the crisis of low college and career attainment.  The young people – in Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Newark, San Francisco, St. Louis and Washington, D.C. – will receive training in critical 21st century leadership and workplace skills, the chance to build their networks and connections to their communities, and the opportunity to use their new skills by participating in and leading volunteer service projects.

o   Thousands of professionals – including Citi employees – will participate as volunteer mentors and trainers.

 

Disproving the Negative Narrative:

  • Discovery Communications will invest more than $1 million to create an original independent special programming event to educate the public about issues related to boys and men of color and address negative public perceptions of them.  

o   The program will show specific youth stories and the interventions that made a difference in their lives as an illustration of ways to impact the future of boys and men of color.  This 1-hour program will air across Discovery networks and is scheduled to air in 2015.

o   Discovery Education will also host a series of screenings and town halls in partnership with community based non-profits to discuss "My Brother’s Keeper" stories of intervention and ways that communities can get involved and help address this important issue facing our Nation. 

Building on Successful Evidence Based Programs that Recruit High Quality and Sustained Mentors:

  • Becoming A Man (B.A.M.) and Match tutoring programs announced $10 million in new funding.

o   The funding will support the expansion of B.A.M. and Match tutoring programs, in addition to supporting a large-scale study on the programs’ long-term effects conducted by the University of Chicago Crime Lab and Urban Education Lab. B.A.M. is a mentoring and cognitive behavioral therapy program developed by the nonprofit organization Youth Guidance. Match is an intensive, individualized math tutoring intervention developed by Match Education.

o   The commitment is made possible by the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development of the National Institutes of Health, and Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel and the Chicago Public Schools. 

o   With this announcement, B.A.M. and Match are also committing to expand to 3-5 new cities over the next three years.  

MBK Task Force Commitments

Through the MBK Task Force, a federal interagency working group created by Presidential Memorandum, the Departments of Justice (DOJ) and Agriculture (USDA), along with the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) announced today two new youth corps programs to expand opportunities for youth.  Both programs directly address recommendations in the Task Force Report.  The programs are intended to help young people successfully enter the workforce as well as create additional job opportunities and increase entry-level job, mentorship and apprenticeship options for all young people, including boys and young men of color.

Supporting Disconnected Youth Through Service and Engagement:

  • CNCS and the DOJ’s Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) today announced a jointly funded AmeriCorps program called Youth Opportunity AmeriCorps. 

o   The program, which totals up to $10 million over three years, will enroll disconnected youth in national service programs as AmeriCorps members over the next 3 years.  It includes a mentorship component, in which grantees will provide mentoring support to the AmeriCorps members.

Providing Opportunities that Build Early Career Skills: 

  • USDA and AmeriCorps today announced a landmark new partnership between AmeriCorps and the USDA’s Forest Service, which connects youth with service opportunities to restore the nation’s forests and grasslands.

o   The $3.8 million joint funding will provide resources for both AmeriCorps grantees and member organizations of the 21st Century Conservation Service Corps (21CSC), and will also provide for 300 new AmeriCorps members serving in U.S. Forests. 

Previous Private Sector Commitments

  • In June 2014, eleven of the nation's leading philanthropies announced a $194 million investment in initiatives to expand opportunity for boys and young men of color.
  • In June 2014, UBS America announced a five-year, $10 million commitment to establish a new education platform for improving college success among under-resourced populations. Commencing in three markets — New York, New Jersey and Connecticut — with an intensive program focused on young men of color, UBS NextGen Leaders aims to empower students with the skills, knowledge and experience needed to succeed in college and compete in the global marketplace.
  • In June 2014, JPMorgan Chase & Co. launched the expansion of “The Fellowship Initiative: Expanding the Horizons of Young Men of Color,” to provide boys and young men of color with long-term fellowships and pathways to jobs. The program involves a $10 million commitment to expand the effort to three cities serving nearly 200 youth.