Proclamation 6819—America Goes Back to School, 1995

The beginning of a new school year is a time of renewal and anticipation for families, educators, and communities across America. Teachers ready their classrooms and curricula; law enforcement officers redouble their efforts to keep neighborhoods safe and drug-free; businesses work with schools to create stronger partnerships; and parents everywhere encourage their children to look forward to the challenges ahead.

This time of year also provides us with an occasion to renew our faith in the promise of education—the spark that lights our ambitions and gives us the tools to grow and succeed. To ensure America's continued leadership in the coming century, we must empower every citizen with the knowledge and training necessary to meet new and varied challenges. The generation of young people in school today deserves our Nation's pledge to help them get on the right course and make the most of their lives.

Improving education means strengthening families and schools. Families are responsible for raising children, and parents are their first and most important teachers. Schools are responsible for providing children with quality education and meaningful guidance. But schools and families cannot do it alone. Instead, religious organizations, community leaders, older Americans, volunteer groups, service agencies, industries, and every caring individual must work together, realizing that the complexity of our diverse and changing society demands innovative and effective solutions for helping our children embrace the values of good citizenship.

In March 1994 I signed into law the Goals 2000: Educate America Act, which supports grassroots efforts to help schoolchildren meet high standards for achievement and discipline. School-to-Work programs are uniting businesses, community colleges, and high schools to provide work-study experience and technical expertise, and a new system of direct loans is making a college education more affordable and accessible. This year the Department of Education is deepening its commitment to parent and community involvement by joining the Family Involvement Partnership for Learning to sponsor America Goes Back to School: A Place for Families and the Community. This initiative encourages all Americans to take part in the drive for excellence in education. I am proud that the Department has acted boldly to foster support for America's families and students.

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 September 11 through September 18, 1995, as a time when "America Goes Back to School." I call upon parents, community and State leaders, businesses, civic and religious organizations, and all our citizens to observe this period with appropriate ceremonies and activities expressing support for schools and colleges, children and families, and to continue their active involvement on behalf of America's students throughout the year.

In Witness Whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this eighth day of September, in the year of our Lord nineteen hundred and ninety-five, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and twentieth.

WILLIAM J. CLINTON