The White House

Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release
September 16, 2011

President Obama Signs Maryland Disaster Declaration

The President today declared a major disaster exists in the State of Maryland and ordered Federal aid to supplement state and local recovery efforts in the area affected by Hurricane Irene during the period of August 24 to September 5, 2011.

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 Hurricane Irene in the counties of Calvert, Caroline, Cecil, Charles, Dorchester, Harford, Kent, Queen Anne’s, Somerset, St. Mary’s, Talbot, Wicomico, and Worcester.

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 Regis Leo Phelan as the Federal Coordinating Officer for federal recovery operations in the affected area.

FEMA said additional designations may be made at a later date if requested by the state and warranted by the results of further damage assessments.

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
September 16, 2011

President Obama Signs America Invents Act, Overhauling the Patent System to Stimulate Economic Growth, and Announces New Steps to Help Entrepreneurs Create Jobs

WASHINGTON, DC -- Today, at Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology in Alexandria, Virginia, President Obama signed the America Invents Act, historic patent reform legislation that will help American entrepreneurs and businesses bring their inventions to market sooner, creating new businesses and new jobs. In addition, the President announced additional steps that will help convert the ideas from America’s universities and research labs into new products, expanding our economy and creating 21st century jobs.

“I am pleased to sign the America Invents Act.  This much-needed reform will speed up the patent process so that innovators and entrepreneurs can turn a new invention into a business as quickly as possible,” said President Obama. “I’m also announcing even more steps today that will help bring these inventions to market faster and create jobs. Here in America, our creativity has always set us apart, and in order to continue to grow our economy, we need to encourage that spirit wherever we find it.”

Passed with the President’s consistent leadership and strong bipartisan support, the America Invents Act represents the most significant reform of the Patent Act since 1952. It will give a boost to American companies and inventors who have suffered costly delays and unnecessary litigation, and let them focus instead on innovation and job creation.  These reforms were also a key recommendation of the President’s Council on Jobs and Competitiveness, which has been a strong advocate for patent reform as a way to support job creation and strengthen America’s competitiveness in the global economy.

President Obama was joined at the signing by Acting Secretary of Commerce Rebecca Blank, US Patent and Trademark Office Director David Kappos, Ellen Kullman, CEO of DuPont and a Member of the President’s Jobs Council, John Lechleiter, CEO of Eli Lilly, as well as students from Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology, Members of Congress who have been instrumental in passing the bill, and inventors and small business owners who will benefit from this reform.

Key Elements of America Invents Act

The America Invents Act was passed with the President’s strong leadership to move this bill forward, after nearly a decade of legislative efforts. It reflects strong bipartisan cooperation and Congress working together on behalf of American innovation.

Many key industries in which the U.S. leads, such as biotechnology, medical devices, and advanced manufacturing, depend on a strong and healthy intellectual property system. The America Invents Act will help businesses, inventors, and entrepreneurs in five immediate ways:

  • A fast track option for Patent Processing within 12 Months: Instead of an average wait time of almost three years, the Patent and Trademark Office will be able to offer startups growing companies an opportunity to have important patents reviewed in one-third the time – with a new fast track option that has a guaranteed 12-month turnaround.  Patent ownership is a critical factor venture capital companies consider when investing in entrepreneurs hoping to grow their business.
  • Reducing the current patent backlog: Under the Obama Administration, the patent backlog has already been reduced from over 750,000 patent applications to 680,000, despite a 4% increase in filings. The additional resources provided in the law will allow the Patent and Trademark Office to continue to combat the backlog of nearly 700,000 patent applications and will significantly reduce wait times.
  • Reducing litigation: The Patent and Trademark Office will offer entrepreneurs new ways to avoid litigation regarding patent validity, at costs significantly less expensive than going to court.
  • Increasing patent quality: The Patent and Trademark Office has re-engineered its quality management processes to increase the quality of the examinations and has issued guidelines that clarify and tighten its standards for the issuance of patents.  The legislation gives the USPTO additional tools and resources to further improve patent quality, and allows patent challenges to be resolved in-house through expedited post-grant processes.
  • Increasing the ability of American Inventors to protect their IP abroad: The new law will harmonize the American patent process with the rest of the world to make it more efficient and predictable, and make it easier for entrepreneurs to simultaneously market products in the U.S. and for exporting abroad.  The Patent and Trademark Office has also expanded work-sharing with other patent offices around the world to increase efficiency and speed patent processing for applicants seeking protection in multiple jurisdictions.

Additional Initiatives Announced Today to Move Ideas from Lab to Market

Launch of new National Institutes of Health (NIH) center to assist biotech entrepreneurs:  To help industry shorten the time needed and reduce costs for the development of new drugs and diagnostics, the NIH plans to establish a new National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS).  NCATS aims to help biomedical entrepreneurs by identifying barriers to progress and providing science-based solutions to reduce costs and the time required to develop new drugs and diagnostics. For example, as one of its initial activities, NCATS will partner with DARPA to support development of a chip to screen for safe and effective drugs far more swiftly and efficiently than current methods.

Development of a National Bioeconomy Blueprint:  By January 2012, the Administration will develop a Bioeconomy Blueprint detailing Administration-wide steps to harness biological research innovations to address national challenges in health, food, energy, and the environment. Biological research lays the foundation of a significant portion of our economy. By better leveraging our national investments in biological research and development the Administration will grow the jobs of the future and improve the lives of all Americans. The Blueprint will focus on reforms to speed up commercialization and open new markets, strategic R&D investments to accelerate innovation, regulatory reforms to reduce unnecessary burdens on innovators, enhanced workforce training to develop the next generation of scientists and engineers, and the development of public-private partnerships.

University Presidents Commit to Commercialization Initiative: In coordination with the Administration, the Association of American Universities, and the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities, 135 university leaders committed to working more closely with industry, investors, and agencies to bolster entrepreneurship, encourage university-industry collaboration, and enhance economic development. Today, over 40 universities are answering the President’s call to expand their commercialization programs and goals.  These institutions include The Georgia Institute of Technology, which has outlined its expanded initiatives, as well as universities like the University of Virginia and Carnegie Mellon University, which are announcing plans today.

Coulter Foundation and NSF Launch a University Commercialization Prize with AAAS:  This prize competition will be used to identify and promote incentives to adopt best practices that improve university commercialization efforts. Supported by $400,000 in funding from the Wallace H. Coulter Foundation and NSF, the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) will lead the design and implementation of the prize in coordination with a diverse array of partner agencies, foundations, and organizations.

Developing University Endowments Focused on Lab to Market Innovations: Today, the Coulter Foundation is announcing that they have selected four new universities to participate in their Translational Research Partnership program -- Johns Hopkins University, University of Louisville, University of Missouri and University of Pittsburgh. As part of the program, each university will create a $20 million endowment to foster research collaboration between biomedical engineers and clinicians, with the goal of developing new technologies to improve patient care and human health. Translational research moves new ideas and discoveries from university laboratories to new products and services that directly impact human health, often by creating startups or by partnering with established businesses.

New Tools and License Agreements for Start-Ups and Small Businesses: The National Institutes of Health (NIH) Office of Technology Transfer has developed new agreements for start-up companies obtain licenses for early-stage biomedical inventions developed by intramural researchers at NIH or FDA. Companies that are less than 5 years old and have fewer than 50 employees will be eligible to use the new, short-term exclusive Start-Up Evaluation License Agreement and the new Start-Up Commercial License Agreement. These agreements allow a start-up company to take ideas sitting on the shelf, and attract additional investments to develop these NIH and FDA inventions into life-saving products.

New Help for Small Businesses: In addition, the USPTO, in collaboration with NSF and SBA, will pilot a program to assist SBIR grant recipients in taking advantage of the USPTO’s small business programs and resources. The USPTO pilot will provide comprehensive IP support to, initially, 100 NSF SBIR grant recipients to take advantage of accelerated examination and benefits stemming from the America Invents Act and will engage external stakeholders to provide pro bono or low cost IP services to awardees. 

The White House

Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release
September 16, 2011

White House to Launch "Digital Promise" Initiative

Responding to President’s Call to Action, Key Effort by Leaders in Industry and Universities to Transform Learning Technology

Today, the White House and Secretary of Education Arne Duncan announced the launch of “Digital Promise,” a new national center created by Congress with bipartisan support to advance technologies to transform teaching and learning. Digital Promise will receive startup funds from the Department of Education as well as the Carnegie Corporation of New York and the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation. It will be overseen by board made up of prominent leaders in education and technology appointed by Secretary Duncan based on recommendations from the House of Representatives and United States Senate.

Digital Promise will work with leading researchers, entrepreneurs, and schools to identify and spur breakthrough learning technologies, determine quickly what’s working and what’s not, and transform today’s fragmented learning technology market, paving the way for the widespread use of learning technologies that deliver the best results for students, parents, and teachers. These efforts build upon the President’s call to create jobs by out-innovating, out-educating, and out-building the rest of the world, including the Administration’s efforts to bring all of America’s schools into the 21st century.

“Digital Promise is a unique partnership that will bring everyone together – educators, entrepreneurs, and researchers – to use technology to help students learn and teachers teach. There’s no silver bullet when it comes to education, but technology can be a powerful tool, and Digital Promise will help us make the most of it.” President Obama said.

“Created by Republicans and Democrats and championed by a coalition of educators and business leaders, Digital Promise is an independent nonprofit that will help spur breakthrough learning technologies. And it will help make sure Americans of all ages and races, regions and backgrounds can benefit from them. By harnessing the extraordinary work being done by educators, innovators, and citizens across this country, Digital Promise can help prepare Americans – and America – to succeed in the 21st Century,” said Secretary of Education Arne Duncan.

To realize the potential of learning technology, Digital Promise will work with educators and leading researchers, technology firms, and entrepreneurs on three key challenges:

  • Identifying Breakthrough Technologies. For years, researchers have been working on developing educational software that is as effective as a personal tutor. Preliminary results from a DARPA/Navy “digital tutor” project suggest that we can reduce the time required to become an expert in IT from years to months. Achieving similar results in subjects such as math would transform K-12 education. Digital Promise will begin its work by partnering with technology firms and researchers to map the R&D landscape, identifying opportunities for similar breakthroughs in learning from cradle through a career.
  • Learning faster what's working and what's not. Internet startups do rapid evaluations of their sites, running test after test to continually improve their services. When it comes to education, R&D cycles can take years, producing results that are out of date the minute they're released. Digital Promise will work with researchers and entrepreneurs to develop new approaches for rapidly evaluating new products.
  • Transforming the market for learning technologies. With more than 14,000 school districts, and an outdated procurement system, it’s difficult for entrepreneurs to break into the market, and it’s also tough to prove that their products can deliver meaningful results. Meanwhile, the amount we invest in R&D in K-12 education is estimated at just 0.2% of total spending on K-12 education, compared to 10-20% of revenues spent on R&D in many knowledge-intensive industries such as software development and biotech. Digital Promise will work with school districts to create “smart demand” that drives private sector investment in innovation.

Today, Secretary Duncan announced the inaugural board members of Digital Promise and the Administration made several additional announcements, including $15M in new awards from the National Science Foundation to support research that is developing next-generation learning environments. In addition, a number of private-sector partners announced an array of related efforts, including an initiative by schools and school districts to improve educational outcomes through the wider use of effective teaching and learning technologies; the launch of a new national alliance of top education-policy researchers focused on improving outcomes among the Nation’s disadvantaged children; and a number of new challenges and prizes for the development of video games and other forms of digital entertainment that spur learning and interest in science, math, and engineering.

Today’s event will be livestreamed at www.whitehouse.gov/live. For further details about Digital Promise and related initiatives please visit www.digitalpromise.org and http://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/the-press-office/2011/09/15/fact-sheet-digital-promise-initiative.

The White House

Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release
September 15, 2011

President Obama Signs New Jersey Disaster Declaration

The President today declared a major disaster exists in the State of New Jersey and ordered Federal aid to supplement state and local recovery efforts in the area affected by severe storms and flooding during the period of August 13-15, 2011.

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 and flooding in the counties of Cumberland, Gloucester, and Salem.

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 William L. Vogel as the Federal Coordinating Officer for federal recovery operations in the affected area. 

FEMA said additional designations may be made at a later date if requested by the state and warranted by the results of further damage assessments.

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
September 15, 2011

Statement from the Press Secretary on Speaker Boehner's Speech

Any plan to grow the economy and create jobs should be measured by whether it puts money in the pockets of middle class families, puts teachers, police officers, firefighters and construction workers back to work, and invests in our small businesses so they can grow and hire.  The President’s plan meets that test.  The American Jobs Act includes the kinds of proposals that have been supported in a bipartisan way in the past, is fully paid for, and prominent, independent economists say it could create between 1.5 and 2 million jobs.  And the President’s plan rebuilds the economy the American way, based on balance, fairness and ensuring there is the same set of rules for everyone from Wall Street to Main Street.  The President is committed to working with members of both parties in Congress to pass the American Jobs Act right away.

The White House

Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release
September 15, 2011

Statement by President Obama on Governor John Lynch’s Retirement

John Lynch, for nearly four terms as Governor, has worked across party lines time and time again to grow the New Hampshire economy, improve high school graduation rates and make it easier for businesses to invest in research and development.  Through some tough economic times, John maintained key services for Granite State residents all while keeping faith with New Hampshire’s independent spirit.  Michelle and I wish John and his family well and join the people of New Hampshire in thanking him for his many years of service.

The White House

Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release
September 15, 2011

President Obama to Travel to Cincinnati, Deliver Remarks at Brent Spence Bridge

WASHINGTON – On Thursday, September 22, the President will travel to Cincinnati, Ohio, to deliver remarks at the Brent Spence Bridge, urging Congress to pass the American Jobs Act now so that we can make much-needed investments in infrastructure projects across the country and put more Americans back to work.

The Brent Spence Bridge is on one of the busiest trucking routes in North America, yet it is considered ‘functionally obsolete’ because it is in need of so many significant repairs.  If Congress passes the American Jobs Act, we can put more Americans back to work while getting repairs like this done. 

The White House

Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release
September 15, 2011

Presidential Nominations Sent to the Senate

NOMINATIONS SENT TO THE SENATE:
Ronald Lee Buch, of Virginia, to be a Judge of the United States Tax Court for a term of fifteen years, vice David Laro, term expired.

Brad Carson, of Oklahoma, to be General Counsel of the  Department of the Army, vice Benedict S. Cohen, resigned.

Alastair M. Fitzpayne, of Maryland, to be a Deputy Under Secretary of the Treasury, vice Kim N. Wallace.

Kevin A. Ohlson, of Virginia, to be a Judge of the United States  Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces or the term of fifteen years to expire on the date prescribed by law, vice Andrew S. Effron, term expiring. 

“Digital Promise” Factsheet

Digital Promise is a new national center created by Congress with bipartisan support to advance technologies that can transform teaching and learning. It is being launched today with startup funds and support from the Department of Education as well as the Carnegie Corporation of New York and the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation.

Answering the President’s call to action, a number of prominent leaders in education and technology will help lead Digital Promise. Board members, who were appointed by Secretary of Education Arne Duncan based on recommendations from the House of Representatives and United States Senate, include John Morgridge (Chairman Emeritus of Cisco), Larry Grossman (former President of NBC News), Irwin Jacobs (co-founder of Qualcomm), Gilman Louie (founder of In-Q-Tel), Eamon Kelly (President Emeritus of Tulane University), Mark Dean (IBM Fellow and Vice President), Shae Hopkins (Executive Director and CEO, Kentucky Educational Television), Vince Juaristi (CEO & President, Arbola, Inc.), and Shirley Malcom (Head of the Directorate for Education and Human Resources Programs, American Association for the Advancement of Science).  For more information, go to: www.digitalpromise.org.

To realize the potential of learning technology, Digital Promise will work with leading educators, researchers, technology firms, and entrepreneurs on three key challenges:

  • Identifying breakthrough technologies. For years, researchers have been working on developing educational software that is as effective as a personal tutor.  Preliminary results from a DARPA/Navy “digital tutor” project suggest that we can reduce the time required to become an expert in IT from years to months.  Achieving similar results in subjects such as math would transform K-12 education.  Digital Promise will begin its work by partnering with technology firms and researchers to map the R&D landscape,identifying opportunities for breakthroughs in learning from the cradle through a career.
  • Learning faster what's working and what's not. Internet startups do rapid evaluations of their sites, running test after test to continually improve their services. When it comes to education, R&D cycles can take years, producing results that are out of date the minute they're released.  Digital Promise will work with researchers and entrepreneurs to develop new approaches for rapidly evaluating new products.
  •  Transforming the market for learning technologies. With more than 14,000 school districts and outdated procurement systems, it’s difficult for entrepreneurs to break into the market and it’s also tough to prove that their products can deliver meaningful results.  Meanwhile, the amount we invest in R&D in K-12 education is estimated at just 0.2% of total spending on K-12 education, compared to 10-20% of revenues spent on R&D in many knowledge-intensive industries such as software development and biotech.   Digital Promise will work with school districts to create “smart demand” that drives private-sector investment in innovation.

Other Initiatives Being Announced with the Launch of Digital Promise

Creating a League of Innovative Schools:In partnership with Digital Promise, leading schools, school districts, and networks such as the District of Columbia Public Schools; Mooresville Graded School District, North Carolina; High Tech High in San Diego, California; York County School Division, Virginia; E.L. Haynes in Washington, DC; Malden High School, Malden, Massachusetts; and the New Tech High Network, are coming together to launch a League of Innovative Schools. The League will be a coalition of schools dedicated to innovation in learning technologies and significant improvements in educational outcomes. The League will explore key steps it can take to help the learning technology market, including:

  • Rapid testing of promising new technologies.Internet companies like Netflix and Amazon don’t make decisions on the basis of hunches.  They use rapid, low-cost experimentation to continually improve their products.  Similar opportunities exist for learning technologies. Schools with the flexibility to try new things and the data systems to capture the results offer opportunities for trials, both identifying what works and doing rapid prototyping to refine new tools. Working together, these schools can accelerate the pace of learning and innovation.
  • Creating a buyers’ consortium to demand better prices and higher quality.New Hampshire, Vermont, Rhode Island, and Maine formed a consortium called the New England Common Assessment Program to buy testing materials together, getting a higher quality product at a lower cost.  Members of the League can band together to improve their purchasing power for emerging solutions.
  • Encouraging entrepreneurs to develop game-changing innovations by promising to buy them.By using what’s called an “Advance Market Commitment,” five countries and the Gates Foundation agreed to purchase large quantities of a vaccine that hadn’t been developed yet – a vaccine to immunize kids in developing countries against diseases such as pneumonia and meningitis. The private sector responded, and today that vaccine is on the market and could help save the lives of 7 million children by 2030. Similarly, a consortium of schools and school districts could encourage entrepreneurs to develop new solutions that deliver dramatic improvements in student learning outcomes.

New Investments by NSF on Cyber-learning:  In support of the Administration’s initiative, the National Science Foundation will announce $15 million in new awards to support research that is developing next-generation learning environments.

Innovative research projects and prototypes include:

  • "GeoGames" that help students analyze data across geographical areas to solve real-world challenges;
  • Robots that use non-verbal cues to teach vocabulary to kids;
  • Systems that create augmented reality for students with hearing disabilities;
  • Tools for family learning about energy management using data from home thermostats; and
  • Online tutors that assess a student's real-time comprehension and tailor learning strategies.

New Analysis by Council of Economic Advisers on Learning Technology Market:  A well-trained workforce is essential to economic growth and competitiveness, and the skills of the entire workforce depend critically on the educational foundation established during the K-12 school years.  Well-designed instructional software can provide personalized learning, adapting to the needs of individual students and evolving as the student progresses, which can be an important complement to other educational reform efforts.  Educational technology holds the promise of substantially improving outcomes for K-12 students, but there are significant challenges in bringing new products to market.

A new analysis by the Council of Economic Advisers, to be released in conjunction with the launch of Digital Promise, examines the learning technologies market and steps that could be taken to reduce barriers for entrepreneurs. The CEA analysis found substantial promise for education technology, but identified two key challenges for entrepreneurs: (1) it is difficult for producers of these technologies to demonstrate the effectiveness of their products to potential buyers, and (2) market fragmentation creates barriers to entry by all but the largest suppliers. The CEA analysis concluded that the spread of broadband Internet and Common Core State Standards have improved the landscape for educational technologies, but these factors alone are likely insufficient for a “game changing” advance.  Additional steps are needed to identify measures that could provide local school systems with greater access to good information about the effectiveness of various educational technology products and give prospective developers of these products access to customers on a scale sufficient to encourage entry into the market.

Leading Researchers Working Together to Determine What Works in Learning Technology:Supporting the goals of Digital Promise, the Urban Education Lab, hosted by the University of Chicago’s Urban Education Institute, will launch a new national alliance of over 35 of America’s top education-policy researchers intended to help improve the educational outcomes of our country’s most disadvantaged children. The new Urban Education Lab will seek to:

  • Assemble inter-disciplinary teams of leading education-policy researchers and practitioners to carry out randomized controlled trials of the sort common in medicine, to provide “gold standard” tests of a wide range of policies that have the potential to be fundamental for improving schooling outcomes in U.S. urban areas;
  • Combine the results of these randomized experiments with benefit-cost analysis to help policymakers ensure that investments in education generate the greatest possible social returns;
  • Help disseminate new research findings with the goal of having every school and child in the country benefit from “best practices” identified by rigorous social science analysis.

Affiliates of the new Urban Education Lab already have numerous studies underway, including how to improve classroom learning environments through better use of technology.

Launch of 2012 National STEM Video Game Challenge:In partnership with Digital Promise, a coalition of leading technology companies, community-based organizations, and educational non-profits are today announcing year two of the National STEM Video Game Challenge.  The competition harnesses the appeal of making and playing video games to foster motivation for STEM subjects (science, technology, engineering and mathematics).  The Challenge—inspired  by President Obama’s Educate to Innovate campaign—was developed by the Joan Ganz Cooney Center at Sesame Workshop and E-Line Media and is sponsored by the AMD Foundation, Entertainment Software Association, Microsoft X Box 360 and the CPB-PBS Ready to Learn Initiative.  Outreach partners include the American Library Association, the American Association of School Librarians, Boys and Girls Club of America, Girl Scouts of the USA, the George Lucas Educational Foundation, One Economy Corporation, International Game Developers Association, and BrainPOP.  

Leading Video Game Company Establishes Education Prize: Valve, creator of best-selling video game franchises and leading technologies, is stepping into the educational arena due to interest from teachers, students, researchers, and fans after the release of Portal 2, a brain-challenging puzzle game.  Valve will run a competition next year where middle- and high-school students and teachers can create levels of Portal 2 to be used in the home and classroom while competing for prizes worth $250,000.  As a start, Valve will be giving out free copies of Portal, the first in the series, which is rated for teens.  For more information, go to: www.learnwithportals.com.

 The Nature Conservancy and Morgridge Family Foundation Partnering to Create Digital Content for Kids:  The Nature Conservancy is announcing a $2 million gift from the Morgridge Family Foundation to support the development of new digital educational content based on its conservation science. The Nature Conservancy has more than 500 scientists working on conservation around the country. Through this program, the Conservancy will make their research available to hundreds of thousands of students and educators, taking its messages and content into the classroom and the home at scale. The platform will launch in the spring of 2012 with plans to translate content into other languages. 

Tech Firms Providing Recommendations and Support for Digital Promise: To further the goals of Digital Promise, TechAmerica Foundation – through an effort dubbed the Recommendations for Education and Advancement of Learning (REAL) Agenda – will assemble a commission of leading technology leaders and outline a set of initial R&D and policy priorities for the inaugural years of Digital Promise. The TechAmerica trade association will also publicize the effort and identify funding sources from among its 1,000 member companies.  In addition, the Information Technology Industry Council (ITI) has committed to helping incubate Digital Promise by providing counsel from education technology experts, identifying funding sources, and partnering to promote the mission of the initiative. The Software and Information Industry Association (SIIA) will provide counsel on the initiative’s agenda, promote industry and investor involvement and funding, and disseminate information on its efforts to support the development of innovative learning technologies.

###

The White House

Office of the First Lady

For Immediate Release
September 15, 2011

First Lady Michelle Obama Announces "Breakthrough" Health and Wellness Commitment in the Restaurant Industry

World’s Largest Full-Service Restaurant Company – Darden Restaurants – to change both kids’ and full menus

HYATTSVILLE, MD – First Lady Michelle Obama joined Darden Restaurants and Partnership for a Healthier America today to announce a “breakthrough” health and wellness commitment in the restaurant industry. Darden, whose brands include Red Lobster, Olive Garden, LongHorn Steakhouse and Bahama Breeze, is the world’s largest full service restaurant company and owns and operates 1,900 restaurants in 49 states, serving over 400 million meals per year.

Darden is committing to reduce its calorie and sodium footprints, and to provide greater choice and variety to families through changes to its kids’ menus. Across the entire Darden portfolio of brands, the company is working toward a 10 percent reduction of calories and sodium over five years and a 20 percent reduction in calories and sodium over 10 years. On kids’ menus, fruits or vegetables will become the default side option and 1-percent milk will be the default beverage choice with free refills. Changes to the kids’ menus are starting now and will be fully implemented by next July.

“I’m here today because this is a breakthrough moment in the restaurant industry,” said First Lady Michelle Obama. “Darden is doing what no restaurant company has done before - they’re not just making their kids menus healthier so that parents have more choices and more control, they’re committing to make changes across the full menu at every single one of their restaurants. Darden is working to make the healthy choice the easy choice, and they’re making it the delicious and fun choice too. I’m confident that if companies like Darden continue to be creative and innovative and keep our kids’ best interests at heart then we will solve the challenge of childhood obesity and give all our kids the healthy futures they deserve.”

One of every two dollars spent on food is spent in restaurants, and over one-third of calories consumed in America are eaten at restaurants. The Childhood Obesity Task Force Report specifically calls on restaurants to, “consider their portion sizes, improve children’s menus, and make healthy options the default choice whenever possible.” Last September, the First Lady spoke to the National Restaurant Association, encouraging restaurants to rethink what they serve to kids and families. Since then, there has been positive movement in the industry with commitments from various restaurant leaders to provide healthier menu options.

Partnership for a Healthier America secured the following commitments and will be working with Darden to evaluate and monitor their progress with these efforts.

Kids’ Menus – changes starting now and to be fully implemented by July 2012

  • Guarantee a fruit or vegetable will be the default side for every kids’ menu item at those restaurants offering a default side on the children’s menu: Bahama Breeze, LongHorn Steakhouse and Red Lobster.
  • 1% milk will be the default beverage, provided automatically if no alternate beverage is requested. Milk will be prominently promoted on the menu and made available with free refills.
  • Food illustrations on the menu will promote the healthy choices for meals and drinks.
  • Healthier menu options will be more prominently displayed when possible.
  • Carbonated beverages will not be displayed on children’s menus.
  • Improve the nutritional content of one or more children’s menu items to provide equal or less than 600 calories, 30% of total calories from fat, 10% of total calories from saturated fat and 600 mg of sodium.

Calories/Sodium Footprint Reduction – changes to be implemented by 2016 and 2021

  • By 2016, reduce calories by 10% and over a ten-year period by 20%.
  • By 2016, reduce sodium by 10% and over a ten-year period by 20%.