7-31-12: Obama Selects Hrabowski To Helm New Education Commission

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Hrabowski-0731.mp3

Seeking to improve the educational outcomes for African-American students--which reports detail are rather bleak--President Obama formed the President's Advisory Commission on Educational Excellence for African-Americans last week.

Obama has only appointed one person to the Commission thus far: its Chair, Dr. Freeman Hrabowski. Dr. Hrabowski is entering his 20th year as President of the University of Maryland Baltimore County.

While the Commission is still in its infancy, the White House has outlined key areas that the Commission will be focused on, including: 

• Coordinating with federal agencies to increase the learning opportunities and achievement of African-American students--in grades K-12 and enrolled in collegiate-level institutions
• Strengthening the nation's Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs)
• Developing a national network of organizations and indivudals to implement evidence-based practices  

In an interview with Sheilah Kast, Dr. Hrabowski describes ways to attempt to close the achievement gap, encourage minority students to pursue careers in STEM (science, technology, education and math), and details UMBC's strides in these areas.

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Dr. Hrabowski on how the Commission can replicate--on a larger scale--some of UMBC's efforts with underserved students