On Monday, April 22, President Obama will host the 3rd Annual White House Science Fair and celebrate the student winners of a broad range of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) competitions from across the country.
This year’s Science Fair will showcase students projects such as economically-viable algae biofuel, a robot that paints with watercolor, a computer program that improves cancer detection and many more.
To learn more about the White House science fair, check out the video above, and be sure to tune in Monday, April 22 starting at 11:30 am EDT, right here at wh.gov/sciencefair, to watch the event live.
President Obama, first lady Michelle deliver remarks before kicking off White House festivities.
Today, the President and First Lady will host more than 30,000 people from all 50 states on the South Lawn of the White House for the 135th annual Easter Egg Roll.
Watch Live and Follow Online: The 2013 Easter Egg Roll
Today, the President and First Lady will host more than 30,000 people from all 50 states on the South Lawn of the White House for the 135th annual Easter Egg Roll. The curated live stream (above) is new this year, and features historic facts about egg rolls past and will highlight select events throughout the day.
Check out the complete Easter Egg Roll line-up, and go to WH.gov/live to watch additional live streams, including a feed from the Storytime Stage, where this year’s readers include NASCAR’s Danica Patrick, Minnesota Viking Adrian Peterson, Elmo, Abby, Gordon and Rosita from Sesame Street, the full cast of Super Sprowtz, The Wanted, and actress Quvenzhané Wallis, or you can tune in to the Rocking Egg Roll Stage to see performances from Jordin Sparks, Austin Mahone, Coco Jones, Sesame Street, and The Wanted. You can also watch cooking demonstrations of healthy family favorites from top chefs at the Play with Your Food station, and of course you can follow all the day’s action on social media using the hashtag #EasterEggRoll or on Storify.
In Case You Missed It
Here are some of the top stories from the White House blog:
Weekly Address: President Obama Offers Easter and Passover Greetings
President Obama uses his weekly address to mark a sacred time for the millions of Americans celebrating Easter and Passover, and he calls on everyone to use this time to reflect on the common values we share as a nation.
9:30 AM: The President and receives the Presidential Daily Briefing.
10:30 AM: The First Family attends the 2013 White House Easter Egg Roll.
A Special Message From the President
Published on Apr 1, 2013
April 1, 2013 – The White House releases a special video message from the President. Learn more at http://wh.gov
12:30 PM: Press Briefing by Press Secretary Jay Carney.
Speeches and Remarks
April 01, 2013
Remarks by the President and First Lady at the 2013 White House Easter Egg Roll
South Lawn
10:48 A.M. EDT
THE PRESIDENT: This is Jessica Sanchez, everybody! Give her a big round of applause. (Applause.) Kid President — give Kid President a big round of applause. (Applause.) The Easter Bunny is here. Give the Easter Bunny a big round of applause. (Applause.)
It is wonderful to see all of you. And I just want to say welcome. You guys brought the great weather. It was a little shaky this morning, but all of you did a great job sending a message upstairs, and now we’ve got beautiful weather.
And I now want to introduce the star of the Obama family, my wife, the First Lady, Michelle Obama. (Applause.)
MRS. OBAMA: Thank you, Mr. President. Thank you, Kid President, Robbie Novak. Isn’t he wonderful? (Applause.) Robbie, we’re so proud to have you here. You have been so inspiring. I can’t imagine that there’s anyone who hasn’t seen your video, right? You make us all want to work hard and be better. That’s right. So you’re going to spend a little time in the Oval Office just fixing things up for this President, aren’t you? All right, well, it’s good to have you here.
And it’s great to have everyone here this morning. We are so excited. The Easter Egg Roll is the biggest event that we have here on the South Lawn of the White House each year. Today we’re going to have more than 30,000 people who will pass through this yard in celebration of nutrition and health and activity. And we could not do this if it were not for all of our wonderful volunteers, our staff, all of the terrific performers and athletes who have taken time out of their lives and their busy days to make this important. So we need to give all of them a round of applause for all their hard work. (Applause.) Yes, indeed!
So today, we want you to have a great time. We want you to run around. We want you to go over and see the White House Garden. We want you to learn about making tasty, healthy food. We’re going to come down and do some Easter egg roll. We’re going to read some stories. But overall, we want you guys to have a good time and keep moving and be healthy. And, kids, eat your vegetables, okay?
All right, you all, take care. We’ll see you down there. Bye-bye. Thank you. (Applause.)
Weekly Address: Helping Protect Our Kids by Reducing Gun Violence
Published on Mar 23, 2013
Three months after the tragic shooting in Newtown, Connecticut, President Obama says that the Senate has taken important steps forward to help protect our kids by reducing gun violence. The American people made their voices heard, and the Senate made progress to make it harder for criminals and people with serious mental illnesses to get guns, to crack down on anyone trying to funnel guns to criminals, and to reinstate and strengthen a ban on the sale of military-style assault weapons. Each of these ideas deserves a vote.
Over the last four years, construction crews have built or improved more than 350,000 miles of road – enough to circle the world more than 14 times. We’ve upgraded more than 6,000 miles of rail – enough to go coast-to-coast and back. And American workers have repaired or replaced more than 20,000 bridges.
But we still have a long way to go.
While our national infrastructure got its best grade in 15 years from the American Society of Civil Engineers‘ annual report card in 2013, that grade is now a D+ instead of a D. We don’t have to accept that for America — we can do better. And in a time of tight budgets, we can do it in a way that makes sure taxpayer dollars are spent wisely. Additionally, there are few more important things we can do to create jobs right now, and strengthen our economy than to put people back to work rebuilding America – our roads, bridges, schools, and ports.
Newtown. Today, the name of the town itself immediately conjures many images and emotions for people throughout our country. After visiting Newtown myself yesterday I am left with the memory of two words specifically — perseverance and character.
I was privileged to visit the Newtown Prevention Council, a drug free communities coalition dedicated to reducing substance abuse in Newtown, Connecticut. The Council has been in existence since 1986 and seeks to help young people and families make decisions in support of healthy and substance-free lifestyles. But as with all prevention focused coalitions they also strengthen family and build resiliency and self-reliance for a community.
I asked them if the presence of their Coalition had helped them since the tragedy that rocked their community on December 14. To a person, they agreed it had. Coalition members include faith leaders, the chief of the Newtown police department, public and private school principals, counselors, health care professionals including a school nurse and emergency room doctor, high school students and several other community members.
In the face of unspeakable tragedy, the strength of this community has come through. Community members and members of this coalition support one another and cultivate the core characteristics of a town that will be known not just for the tragedy it has been through but for its resilience and character. The community coalition has done great work in Newtown to reduce underage drinking and substance use. Using evidence based techniques they work to give parents and young people the tools they need to lead healthy lives. And they build trusting relationships among the participants, relationships that pay huge dividends when tragedy strikes.
In September 2009, the President announced that—for the first time in history—White House visitor records would be made available to the public on an ongoing basis. Today, the White House releases visitor records that were generated in December 2012. This release brings the total number of records made public by this White House to more than 3.1 million—all of which can be viewed in our Disclosures section.
Ed. note: For more information, check out Ethics.gov.
Lisa Ellman and Todd Park
March 29, 2013
03:02 PM EDT
“The role of citizens in our democracy does not end with your vote. America’s never been about what can be done for us. It’s about what can be done by us together through the hard and frustrating, but necessary work of self-government.” — President Barack Obama, November 7, 2012
Since the first day of the Obama Administration, the Federal government has worked to make government more efficient, effective, and responsive to citizens’ needs. The Administration has harnessed new technology to engage the public, worked to disclose information more quickly, and given citizens a greater voice in decision-making.
In September 2011, the Administration’s work was launched on the world stage when President Obama and other world leaders endorsed the principles of the global Open Government Partnership (OGP). As part of our commitment to OGP, the United States launched the National Action Plan, a set of twenty-six concrete commitments that help increase public integrity, promote public participation, manage public resources more effectively, and improve public services. Praised by civil society organizations and the public, the Plan stands as a great example of what we can do as a country when government, civil society, and the public collaborate together. As the President has said, “Put simply, our countries are stronger when we engage citizens beyond the halls of government.”
Today, we are proud to report that the United States has fulfilled twenty-four of those commitments. You can read more about the implementation of our National Action Plan here. Some highlights include:
President Barack Obama delivers remarks on infrastructure, at the Port of Miami Tunnel project in Miami, Fla., March 29, 2013. (Official White House Photo by Chuck Kennedy)
President Obama was in Florida today, where he got a chance to see the Port Miami tunnel project on Dodge Island. The project, which is the result of three years of work by over 500 employees and more than 6,000 sub-contractors and vendors, will create connect the port to the interstate highway system more quickly and safely and will take over 1.5 million trucks out of the downtown area per year.
It is projects like this one, the President said in remarks following his tour, that will help reignite the true engine of our economic growth — a rising, thriving middle class. “Projects like this create a lot of other good jobs, too,” President Obama explained. “You ask any CEO where we they rather locate their business and hire new workers. Are you going to set up shop in a country that’s got raggedy roads, runways that are pot-holed, and backed-up supply chains? Or are you going to seek out high-speed rail, Internet, high-tech schools, new state-of-the-art power grids, new bridges, new tunnels, new ports that help you ship products made in America to the rest of the world as fast as possible? That’s what people are looking for. That’s what CEOs are looking for.”
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services today released a new, easy-to-use interactive tool that gives anybody – researchers, physicians, public health professionals, policymakers, consumer advocates, tech innovators, and the public – the ability to find and examine data on multiple chronic conditions among Medicare beneficiaries. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Chronic Conditions Dashboardfurthers the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA) goals for health promotion and the prevention and management of multiple chronic conditions and is an integral part of the Administration’sHealth Data Initiative that seeks to release more health-related data in more usable formats to the public in order to promote innovation and improvement in health and care.
The Dashboard includes data for 2011 and presents summarized information on the prevalence of chronic conditions, as well as aggregate Medicare costs and utilization measures for beneficiaries with multiple chronic conditions at various geographic levels – national, state, and hospital referral region. Examples of what you can find in the Dashboard include:
Today President Obama welcomed President Ernest Bai Koroma of Sierra Leone, President Macky Sall of Senegal, President Joyce Banda of Malawi, and Prime Minister José Maria Pereira Neves of Cape Verde to the White House. The United States has strong partnerships with these countries based on shared democratic values and shared interests. Each of these leaders has undertaken significant efforts to strengthen democratic institutions, protect and expand human rights and civil liberties, and increase economic opportunities for their people.
President Obama and the visiting leaders discussed how the United States can expand our partnership to support their efforts to strengthen democratic institutions and promote economic opportunity, both in their countries and across sub-Saharan Africa. A particular focus of the conversation was on the importance of transparency and respect for human rights, and President Obama commended each leader for their work in these areas and their commitment to join the Open Government Partnership. President Obama also commended these leaders for their leadership on food security and engaged the leaders in a fruitful conversation about how the United States can help Africa harness the potential of its young people and empower the next generation of African leaders.
While in Washington, each leader is participating in numerous meetings and events to strengthen bilateral cooperation on a range of shared priorities. Joint events include a dinner hosted by the Corporate Council on Africa to discuss trade and investment opportunities with representatives from U.S. businesses; a public discussion on democratization in Africa at the United States Institute for Peace; an economic and development roundtable with U.S. government officials; and a meeting with Secretary of Defense Hagel to discuss cooperation on shared regional security and peacekeeping objectives in Africa.
The visit of these four leaders underscores the President’s commitment to substantive engagement and strengthenedpartnerships with African nations. A link to the President’s remarks following the meeting can be found here.
Last month, President Obama said in a speech in Chicago, “There is no surer path to success in the middle class than a good education.”
Today, I had the opportunity to speak at the Department of Education’s Higher Education Program Project Directors’ Meeting, which gathered thousands of people who work every day to ensure that more students receive a good education.
Project directors from across the country came together in Washington, DC to discuss how to better serve students in their three program and grant administration areas: Institutional Service (IS), which strengthens institutions that serve largely minority or low-income populations and first-generation college students; Student Service (SS), which works to provide academic preparation, support and career development; and Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education (FIPSE), which seeks to help implement, evaluate, and share innovative reforms to improve productivity, efficiency, and completion in higher education.
To reach this target, we project that the proportion of college graduates in the U.S. will need to increase by 50 percent nationwide by the end of the decade. That means that eight million more young adults will need to earn associate’s degrees, bachelor’s degrees, and postsecondary certificates by 2020.
President Obama is committed to increasing access, attainment, and affordability of higher education programs. His commitment to expanding educational opportunity is reflected in the largest investment in student aid since the G.I Bill, so that more students can afford college—he expanded tax credits to help families pay for college, doubled the number of Pell Grants, and led the call to keep student loan interests down.
These are lofty goals. But when I think about my own educational career, and what a difference it made in my own life, I want that for every single student in this country. The President wants it for his daughters. All parents want it for their children. Every child deserves a chance to thrive, contribute to society, and realize their dreams—no matter what their circumstances.
To illustrate this, I told the story of an amazing individual who benefited from one of these federally funded programs.
LaTisha, a young woman from Michigan, took part in the Upward Bound program. She initially had thought only to apply to local colleges. But with the encouragement, mentoring, and responsibilities given to her by the Upward Bound staff, LaTisha applied to most Ivy League schools and got into every single one. She went to Yale, where she gave back to the community by reaching out to local public school students and helping to coordinate a prison education program. Today, she is an elementary school teacher in Indianapolis.
For LaTisha and countless other students, the programs represented at the meeting gave them the tools and confidence to follow their dreams.
I was so inspired by her story, and by the work of all the attendees of the conference who make stories like LaTisha’s possible. Their steadfast commitment to our nation’s students reminds me that together, we can create a better future for everyone in our country.
Valerie Jarrett is Senior Advisor to the President
Students Speak: The Power of STEM
Earlier this month, President Obama met with 40 of the nation’s top scientists and engineers—discoverers of new drug candidates to treat common cancers; inventors of tools to help surgeons in the operating room; developers of complex algorithms that can help robots navigate; and more. All of these innovators were finalists in the 2013 Intel Science Talent Search competition, and all of them are still in high school.
These students are living proof that with the right skills, tools, and opportunities, innovation and discovery can happen at any age. That’s why the Obama Administration is placing a stronger emphasis than ever on equipping the next generation of American innovators in science, technology, engineering, and math—the “STEM” fields.
Students Speak: The Power of STEM
Published on Mar 28, 2013
Earlier this month, President Obama met with 40 of the Nation’s top scientists and engineers—discoverers of new drug candidates to treat common cancers; inventors of tools to help surgeons in the operating room; developers of complex algorithms that can help robots navigate; and more. All of these innovators were finalists in the 2013 Intel Science Talent Search competition, and all of them are in still in high school.
Luckily, there is no shortage of passion among students about the power and “coolness” of STEM. Here’s what some of the Intel competition finalists had to say about the power and potential of science, technology, engineering and math:
“STEM holds the key to changing the world for the better” – Kensen Shi, 17, A&M Consolidated High School, TX
“STEM provides a link between learning and doing, tying knowledge to experimentation and real-world problems” – Adam Bowman, 17, Montgomery Bell Academy, TN
“Pursuing STEM at any age allows you to discover and answer fundamental questions about the universe, from creating frisbee shooting robots to studying the causes behind cancer” – Lillian Chin, 18, The Westminster Schools, GA
“STEM is cool because it provides opportunities to develop new technologies to improve the quality of life” – Kelly Zhang, 17, College Preparatory School, CA
We couldn’t agree more. That’s why, with the help of critical partners at foundations, non-profits, universities, and private-sector companies, the Obama Administration is acting to achieve two ambitious goals: adding one million more STEM graduatesin the next decade, and preparing 100 thousand excellent STEM teachers to give students the skills they need to thrive.
But success isn’t just about increasing numbers. We also know that diversity is one of America’s greatest assets. To build a truly innovative STEM workforce of the future, we must do everything we can to incorporate the full range of the Nation’s talents, skills, and perspectives—including those of communities typically underrepresented in STEM, such as women, girls, and minorities.
One of the things that I really strongly believe in is that we need to have more girls interested in math, science, and engineering. We’ve got half the population that is way underrepresented in those fields and that means that we’ve got a whole bunch of talent … not being encouraged the way they need to.
To that end, as part of our response to President Obama’s call to countries around the world to politically and economically empower women and girls, the White House launched the Equal Futures App Challenge to promote civic education and inspire girls to serve as leaders in our democracy. And, through our broad Tech Inclusion initiatives—including a Tech Inclusion Summit last held at the White House last month—we’re working to expand participation of all youth in tech fields, including underrepresented minorities and girls, by collaborating with community groups, businesses, and organizations committed to the same goal.
There are steps you can take right now to help expand the participation of the Nation’s young people in STEM studies and careers:
Together, we can empower American STEM students to—in the words of Intel finalist Paulomi Bhattacharya, 18 (Harker School, CA) — “look around and imagine something even greater in the hope of bettering society and the world.”
Becky Fried is a Communications and Policy Analyst at the White House Office of Science & Technology Policy
Yesterday, I had the opportunity to speak at the screening of excerpts from an extraordinary new documentary, “Makers: Women Who Make America.” College and high school students from all over the Washington, DC area came together to watch the documentary, and hear a panel discussion with two incredible women – former Congresswoman Pat Schroeder, and former President of Brown University, Ruth Simmons – both of whom were also featured in Makers.
Linda Douglass, Senior Vice President for Global Communications for Atlantic Media Company, moderated the panel. Linda is a former broadcast journalist who has covered six presidential campaigns.
Statement by the President on the Withdrawal of the Nomination of Caitlin Halligan
Today, I accepted Caitlin Halligan’s request to withdraw as a nominee for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. I am deeply disappointed that even after nearly two and a half years, a minority of Senators continued to block a simple up-or-down vote on her nomination. This unjustified filibuster obstructed the majority of Senators from expressing their support. I am confident that with Caitlin’s impressive qualifications and reputation, she would have served with distinction.
The D.C. Circuit is considered the Nation’s second-highest court, but it now has more vacancies than any other circuit court. This is unacceptable. I remain committed to filling these vacancies, to ensure equal and timely access to justice for all Americans.
This sickens me. President Of The United States, Barack Hussein Obama, has not the right to select his appointees for positions he deems these people qualified because of racist, ignorant dumbass Congressmen & Senators obstructing The Presidents choices.
Every past POTUS has had smooth sailing when it comes to picking personnel for their cabinet.
President Barack Obama delivers remarks on infrastructure, at the Port of Miami Tunnel project in Miami, Fla., March 29, 2013. (Official White House Photo by Chuck Kennedy)
Jueseppi B.
