President Barack Obama launched a new initiative aimed at improving the educational outcomes for African-Americans, who despite steady progress in recent years on indicators such as high school graduation and college-going rates, still trail significantly behind their white and Asian peers.
The president signed an executive order last month to establish the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for African Americans.
He said he was creating the initiative “so that every child has greater access to a complete and competitive education from the time they’re born all through the time they get a career.”