INTEL Chairman Barrett to Lead Achieve Board

Thursday, April 3, 2008Printer-friendly version

NEWS RELEASE

CONTACT:
Sandy Boyd, Achieve, (202) 419-1540, sboyd@achieve.org

WASHINGTON – April 3, 2008 – Intel chairman Craig R. Barrett will co-chair the board of directors of Achieve, Inc., the Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit announced today. Barrett, a long-time board member and outspoken advocate for improving U.S. education, succeeds Arthur Ryan, retiring chairman of Prudential Financial, Inc. who is stepping down from Achieve’s board this spring. During Ryan's tenure, Achieve launched the American Diploma Project (ADP) Network.  

The ADP Network was launched at the 2005 National Education Summit on High Schools when 13 states committed to ensuring that all high school graduates are ready for college and career. Today the ADP network has grown to 32 states, educating 75 percent of the nation’s public schoolchildren.  Also during that time, Achieve spearheaded a multi-state assessment in Algebra II that will be administered for the first time this spring and launched work in international benchmarking. 

“We are extremely grateful for the leadership Art Ryan has provided our organization as a director and as co-chair of our board,” said Mike Cohen, Achieve’s president. “He has helped us make college and career readiness the centerpiece of our work and a national priority.  Art leaves a stronger Achieve, one that is better positioned to help students, educators and schools.” As Ryan steps down, Craig Barrett, Chairman of Intel, will take over as co-chair of Achieve's board.  

Barrett, a materials scientist and former Stanford University faculty member, was CEO from 1998 to 2005 and currently serves as Chairman. He has been a strong advocate for education, serving on the National Governors Association “Innovation America” Task Force and the National Commission on Mathematics and Science Teaching for the 21st Century. Barrett is currently serving as chair of the National Academy of Engineering.  According to Barrett, “Achieve plays a strategic role in ensuring that U.S students have the knowledge and skills they need to compete in an increasingly flat and complex world. By focusing policymakers and educators on raising academic standards and creating diplomas that count, I am confident that Achieve’s efforts will help significantly more high school students reach their potential in college, career and life.” 

In addition to Barrett, Achieve board officers include North Carolina Governor Michael F. Easley (co-chair), Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty (vice chair), and Washington Mutual chairman and CEO Kerry Killinger (vice chair). Additional members of the board are: Governor Donald L. Carcieri (Rhode Island), Governor Jennifer Granholm (Michigan), Governor Edward G. Rendell (Pennsylvania), Jerry Jurgensen, CEO, Nationwide and Edward B. Rust, Jr., Chairman and CEO, State Farm Insurance.  

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Created by the nation's governors and business leaders, Achieve, Inc, is a bipartisan, non-profit organization that helps states raise academic standards, improve assessments and strengthen accountability to prepare all young people for postsecondary education, careers and citizenship. Achieve was founded at the 1996 National Education Summit and has sponsored subsequent Summits in 1999, 2001 and 2005. At the 2005 Summit, Achieve launched the American Diploma Project Network, a coalition of 32 states committed to aligning high school expectations with the demands of college and the workplace. For more information, please visit www.achieve.org.