U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings today delivered the keynote address to the Summit on Education Reform and Hispanic Education Attainment at the U.S. Department of Education Barnard Auditorium in Washington, D.C. The White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanic Americans (White House Initiative), the U.S. Department of Education, and several of the nation's leading Hispanic organizations, corporate leaders and national private entities met for the summit to increase awareness and share information on the promising practices and the positive outcomes they are producing for Hispanic students.

"No Child Left Behind came about because of a rare bipartisan coalition of parents, policymakers, business and civil rights leaders, and practitioners like you," Secretary Spellings said. "Thanks to your hard work, since 2002, Hispanic students are achieving all-time highs on the Nation's Report Card. Math scores for Hispanic 4th graders went up 5 points from 2003 to 2007—that's the equivalent to an extra half-year of instruction!"

"Yet, we still have a long road ahead. Today, only about half of our Hispanic students graduate from high school on time. That's unacceptable, especially at a time when 90 percent of our country's fastest-growing jobs require postsecondary education. It's up to all of us to build on the progress we've made by carrying the accountability movement forward."

"Education reform, particularly the No Child Left Behind Act and the America COMPETES Act, has been instrumental in helping close the achievement gap for Hispanic students in the early grades; however, much more work remains to be done, particularly at the high school and postsecondary levels," said Adam Chavarria, executive director of the White House Initiative. "This summit will highlight the substantive progress we have encountered to date and the work that still remains to ensure that Hispanic American students receive a high-quality education, graduate from high school and attain a postsecondary degree."

Conference sessions addressed a range of topics, including: education reform; early childhood development; academic preparation and college completion; Hispanic family involvement; and Hispanic education in the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). The White House Initiative also presented its culminating report, A Summary of Activities, Accomplishments and Hispanic Education Attainment: 2001-08, to Secretary Spellings.

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