On September 11, David Johns, head of the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for African Americans, visited Georgia Tech and led a panel discussion with student leaders and university officials. Part of a nation-wide listening tour, the event was designed to understand best practices for overcoming the challenges and barriers obstructing educational excellence to underrepresented minority students.

Johns has held this national leadership position since early 2013, when he was appointed by U.S. Education Secretary, Arne Duncan.

At the opening of the session, Johns discussed statistics and facts about the issue so attendees could ponder ways to move forward and solve the problem. He then led panelists in a conversation to share insights and experiences, and then opened it up to audience members for questions and discussion.

Georgia Tech panelists included:

• Maya Carrasquillo (student) – President of the National Society of Black Engineers - Georgia Tech Chapter
• Henderson Johnson (student) – Vice President of the National Society of Black Engineers - Georgia Tech Chapter
• Donna Whiting, Associate Director for Teacher Education Partnerships
• S. Gordon Moore, Jr., Executive Director for Student Diversity and Inclusion
• Kamau Bobb, Program Director at the National Science Foundation

The White House has asked colleges and universities to graduate an additional one million students in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) fields in the next ten years. In order to successfully reach this goal, the number of Hispanics, African-Americans, and other underrepresented minorities in STEM majors must increase exponentially.

Georgia Tech continues to rise to the challenge by increasing the number of STEM graduates and focusing our efforts on improving affordability for all students, including Hispanics, African Americans, and other underrepresented groups. Georgia Tech is also committed to building the pipeline future students. Read more >