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THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release May 3, 1999

        PRESIDENT CLINTON NAMES PAUL F. COLE AND ALAN L. WURTZEL 
            AS MEMBERS OF THE NATIONAL SKILL STANDARDS BOARD

     The President today announced his intent to appoint Paul F. Cole

and Alan L. Wurtzel as members of the National Skill Standards Board.

Mr. Paul F. Cole, of Albany, New York, has served since 1984 as Secretary-Treasurer of the New York State AFL-CIO. He has been a Vice President of the American Federation of Teachers since 1974 and a member of the Board of Directors of the New York State United Teachers from 1972-1997. Previously, he taught Social Studies for 23 years at Lewiston-Porter Senior High School in Youngstown, New York. He has served as a member of the National Skill Standards Board since 1995. Mr. Cole received a B.A. in Political Science from Marquette University and an M.S. degree from Canisius College.

Mr. Alan L. Wurtzel, of Delaplane, Virginia, is Vice Chairman of the Board of Circuit City Stores, Inc. He served as Chief Executive Officer from 1972-1986. From 1986-1988, he served as President of Operation Independence, a nonprofit organization which was created at the request of Shimon Peres to help Israel become economically independent. He currently serves as the Director or Member of several companies and institutions, including Circuit City Stores, Inc., Dollar Tree Stores, Inc., The Phillips Collection, and the National Center on Education and the Economy. He has served as a member of the National Skill Standards Board since 1995. He received an A.B. degree from Oberlin College and a J.D. from Yale Law School.

The National Skill Standards Board (NSSB) is building a national system of voluntary skill standards that will enhance the ability of the United States to compete effectively in a global economy. These skills are being identified by industry in full partnership with education, labor, civil rights and community-based organizations. The standards will be based on high performance work and will be portable across industry sectors.

The President appoints twelve members of the National Skill Standards Board to terms of three and four years. The United States Congress appoints twelve additional members and the Secretary of Labor, Secretary of Education and the Secretary of Commerce serve as ex-officio members.

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