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THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release May 11, 1993

PRESIDENT NAMES COMMISSION ON PRESIDENTIAL SCHOLARS

(Washington, DC) The President today appointed 27 members of the White House Commission on Presidential Scholars. Among them is New Jersey Governor Jim Florio, who will serve as Chair of the Commission.

The Commission on Presidential Scholars is responsible for selecting 141 graduating high school seniors from around the country to become Presidential Scholars, the nation's highest honor for high school students. The Scholars are chosen on the basis of their accomplishments in many areas, such as academic and artistic success, leadership, and involvement in their schools and communities.

"The Presidential Scholars Program is an important vehicle for recognizing the the efforts and accomplishments of our country's young people," said the President. "I am glad that Governor Florio and the rest of this distinguished group of Americans have agreed to serve on this commission, and I look forward to welcoming the students they choose to the White House."

In addition to Governor Florio, the members of the Commission are:

MARGARET R. BLACKSHERE, Illinois. Assistant to the President of the Illinois Federation of Teachers; Former elementary school teacher; Holds a Masters in Urban Education from Southern Illinois University.

FRANCIS J. BONNER, Jr., Pennsylvania. Chair of the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at Mt. Sinai and Graduate Hospitals, Philadelphia, and Sacred Heart Hospital, Norristown.

THOMAS E. BRITTON, New Hampshire. Chair of the Monadnock Region District School Board and marketing representative for the Millipore Corporation and North American Pharmaceutical Field Marketing.

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REV. S.C. CURETON, South Carolina. Pastor of the Reedy River Baptist Church, a member of the President's Executive Board of the National Baptist Convention, U.S.A.

JOHN DAVIDSON, New Mexico. Member of the New Mexico Commission on Higher Education; Shareholder and Director in the law firm of Erwin and Davidson.

JOSEPH D. DiVINCENZO, New York. Commissioner of the Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority; President of DiVincenzo & Associates Insurance Agency; and Adjunct Professor at the Rochester Institute of Technology.

JIM R. FOTTER, Wyoming. President of the Wyoming Education Association; Member of the Education Commission of the States; and Delegate at the 1992 Democratic National Convention.

SUSAN F. FRIEBERT, Wisconsin. Former teacher and currently a high school team leader for guidance counselors and community volunteers to develop and implement programs to direct student academic planning and achievement.

SUSAN E. GAERTNER, Minnesota. Director of the Human Services Division of the Ramsey County, MN Attorney's Office, where she directs legal services for child support enforcement, paternity actions and civil commitments for the second largest jurisdiction in the State.

FELICIA GERVAIS, Florida. President of Leonard L. Farber Incorporated, a shopping center development firm. She also serves on numerous non-profit boards, including Outreach Broward (a program for troubled adolescents) and Center One (the nation's first AIDS center).

FREMAN HENDRIX, Michigan. Assistant Wayne County Executive for Legislative Affairs; Member of many civic groups, including the Northwest Detroit Community Leaders Council.

PATRICIA JEAN HENRY, Oklahoma. President of the National PTA; Member of the boards of the Oklahoma State Chamber of Commerce and the Academy for State Goals; Co-Founder of Pathway House, a rehabilitation program for drug addicted children.

BARBARA HOLT, Maine. Director of Franklin Pierce College in Portsmouth, NH; Served as the Chair and Director of Victory '92 in Maine.

GLORIA JACKSON, Florida. Retired public school administrator in Ft. Lauderdale; Alternate Delegate to the Democratic National Convention.

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NATHANIEL HAWTHORNE LaCOUR, Louisiana. President of the United Teachers of New Orleans; Vice President of the American Federation of Teachers; National Board Member of the A. Philip Randolph Institute; and Member of the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards.

DHYAN LAL, California. Principal of Carson High School in Los Angeles; and was the focus of a PBS documentary exploring how a Principal communicates with a culturally diverse student population to create a positive learning environment in post-riot Los Angeles.

RONNIE FERN LIEBOWITZ, New Jersey. Partner in the Newark law firm of Hellring, Lindman Goldstein & Siegal; Former General Counsel to Rutgers University.

BILL MARSHALL, Ohio. Law professor; served as the State Director of Maine for the Clinton Campaign.

PENNY MILLER, Kentucky. Assistant Professor of Political Science at the University of Kentucky; Chair of the Kentucky Commission on Women.

SANDY MILLER, Nevada. First Lady of the state of Nevada; Former teacher and advocate for children with learning disabilities.

MARILYN MONAHAN, New Hampshire. Secretary-Treasurer of the National Education Association.

DAN MORALES, Texas. Attorney General of Texas; First Hispanic elected to a statewide Constitutional office in the state of Texas.

DANIEL MORRIS, Colorado. Former teacher and President of the Colorado Education Association; Former Peace Corps volunteer.

CARLA NUXOLL, Washington. President of the Washington Education Association; Chair of the Board of PULSE.

JAMES SHIMOURA, Michigan. Former Special Assistant Attorney General for the State of Michigan; Shareholder in the law firm of Kemp, Klein, Umphrey and Edelman.

EDDIE L. SMITH, JR., Mississippi. Former high school teacher; Mayor of the City of Holly Springs, MS.

DAWN STEEL, California. President of Columbia Pictures from 1987-1990, the first woman to head a major motion picture studio.

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NIARA SUDARKASA, Pennsylvania. President of Lincoln University in Chester County, Pennsylvania; Previously the Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs at the University of Michigan, where she was the first African American woman to receive tenure. NANCY VERDERBER, Missouri. Administrative Liaison for Disability Related Issues for the St. Louis County School Districts and a member of the Coalition of Citizens with Disabilities in Greater St. Louis.

MARGARET M. WHILLOCK, Arkansas. Executive Vice President of the Baptist Medical Systems Foundation in Little Rock; Director of Development at the University of Arkansas.

TRACEY BAILEY, Florida. National Teacher of the Year.

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