Obama extends minority youth outreach

President Obama will ask members of his administration to commit to tutoring at-risk youth as he releases a new White House report outlining ways the government and private sector can help young men of color.

Obama will make the call to action during a Cabinet meeting Friday, and point interested Americans to a new White House website that will connect them with mentoring opportunities in their communities. 

{mosads}The push is the latest part of Obama’s “My Brother’s Keeper” initiative, a bid by the president to improve outcomes for minority men who are more likely to live in single-parent homes, be born into poverty, or have negative interactions with the criminal justice system.

In February, Obama announced $200 million in philanthropic commitments designed to improve child development and school readiness, parenting and parent engagement, third grade literacy, and school discipline reform. 

He also ordered a 90-day review, which concluded earlier this week, asking top administration officials to recommend ways government and the private sector could help at-risk youth.

Those recommendations include eliminating suspensions and expulsions in preschool and other early learning settings, public and private initiatives to increase reading time outside of school, improving access to Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate courses, and increasing awareness of youth summer employment opportunities. 

White House Director of Domestic Policy Cecilia Munoz called the report “a call to action really to every sector” and said it reflected an intensive review process at every level of the federal government.

Senior White House adviser Valerie Jarrett said the coming weeks would also see “a series of announcements from the philanthropic community, the business community, the non-profit community” supporting goals outlined in the report.

“America prospers not only when hard work and responsibility are rewarded, but when we all work together,” Jarrett said.