First Lady Embraces Cause of Youths at Risk

Mrs. Bush Emphasizes That Boys, in Particular, Need More Attention

Washington

First lady Laura Bush says schools can incorporate simple, inexpensive programs to help boys develop academically and socially, such as using well-researched curricula and recruiting more men to take up teaching.

“The number of men in schools is decreasing, and as more and more boys live in single-parent families and because of mobility in current American life, there is no guarantee they will have a male father figure at all in their lives,” Mrs. Bush said in an interview with Education Week at the White House last week. “So it is important for us to encourage more men to get into teaching, particularly in inner-city, underserved areas where boys are more likely to need a mentor as a role model.”

Mrs. Bush recently launched an initiative, called Helping America’s Youth, that will focus on the development of the...