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THE
WHITE HOUSE
Office of the Press Secretary
(Aboard Air Force One)
For Immediate Release November 13, 2000
INTERNATIONAL EDUCATION WEEK, 2000
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BY THE PRESIDENT OF
THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
A PROCLAMATION
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Today we live in a global community,
where all countries must work as partners to promote peace and prosperity
and to resolve international problems. One of the surest ways to
develop and strengthen such partnerships is through international
education programs.
These programs enable students to
learn other languages, experience other cultures, develop a broader
understanding of global issues, and make lasting friendships with
their peers in other countries who will one day guide the political,
cultural, and economic development of their nations. Some of America's
staunchest friends abroad are those who have experienced our country
firsthand as exchange students or who have been exposed to American
values through contact with American students and scholars studying
overseas.
Since World War II, the Federal Government
has worked in partnership with colleges, universities, and other
educational organizations to sponsor programs that help our citizens
gain the international experience and skills needed to meet the
challenges of an increasingly interdependent world. At the same
time, American educational institutions have developed study programs
that attract students from all over the world to further their education
in the United States.
One of the largest and most renowned
of these international education initiatives is the Fulbright Program,
which was founded by Senator J. William Fulbright more than half
a century ago. Since its inception, the program has provided nearly
a quarter of a million participants from the United States and 140
other nations - participants chosen for their academic and professional
qualifications and leadership potential - with the opportunity to
study and teach abroad and to gain knowledge of global political,
economic, and cultural institutions. As Senator Fulbright envisioned,
this program has proved to be a vital and positive force for peace
and understanding around the world.
To build on this tradition of excellence
in international education, I signed a memorandum in April of this
year directing the heads of Executive departments and agencies to
work with educational institutions, State and local governments,
private organizations, and the business community to develop a coordinated
national policy on international education. We must reaffirm our
national commitment to encouraging students from other countries
to study in the United States, promote study abroad by U.S. students,
and support the exchange of teachers, scholars, and citizens at
all levels of society. By doing so, we can expand our citizens'
intellectual and cultural horizons, strengthen America's economic
competitiveness, increase understanding between nations and peoples,
and, as Senator Fulbright so eloquently stated, direct "the
enormous power of human knowledge to the enrichment of our own lives
and to the shaping of a rational and civilized world order."
NOW, THEREFORE, I, WILLIAM J. CLINTON,
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 November 13 through November 17, 2000, as International
Education Week. I urge all Americans to observe this week with events
and programs that celebrate the benefits of international education
to our citizens, our economy, and the world.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto
set my hand this thirteenth day of November, in the year of our
Lord two thousand, and of the Independence of the United States
of America the two hundred and twenty-fifth.
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