For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
April 30, 2004
National Charter Schools Week, 2004
By the President of the United States of America
A Proclamation
America looks to its schools to give all students the skills they
need to realize their dreams and reach their potential. Charter
schools help fulfill this mission. During National Charter Schools
Week, we celebrate the successes of these institutions.
Charter schools are an important part of our effort to improve the
public school system and offer broader educational options to every
family. Like other public schools, charter schools are open to all
students. Because they are subject to fewer State and district
regulations than other public schools, charter schools offer teachers
and administrators more freedom in tailoring programs to meet specific
student and community needs. In exchange for this freedom, they must
meet stricter accountability standards.
Now in their second decade, the demand for charter schools is
growing among families from all backgrounds. During this school year,
our Nation's charter schools will educate nearly 700,000 students.
Many families choose charter schools because of the innovative
curriculum and focus on academic achievement, and because these schools
can be a promising alternative to a low-performing neighborhood
school.
Charter schools are an important part of the No Child Left Behind
Act. They provide parents with more choices for their children's
education. The greater autonomy of charter schools allows them to
employ innovative educational practices. Studies have shown that many
charter schools improve academic achievement for their students and
that parents of students in charter schools are satisfied with their
children's schools.
My fiscal year 2005 budget includes an overall 49 percent increase
for elementary and secondary education over 2001 levels, and it
proposes $219 million for charter school grants and $100 million for
charter school facilities. Together, funding for these two charter
school programs has increased 68 percent over 2001 levels. By raising
expectations, insisting on results, and refusing to accept failure, we
are strengthening our public schools and improving education for all
children in America.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, GEORGE W. BUSH, President of the United States
of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution
and laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim May 2 through May 8,
2004, as National Charter Schools Week. I commend our Nation's charter
schools, and I call on parents of charter school students to share
their successes to help all Americans understand more about the
important work of charter schools.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this thirtieth day
of April, in the year of our Lord two thousand four, and of the
Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and
twenty-eighth.
GEORGE W. BUSH
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