Published: November 23, 2009
President Obama Names Xerox CEO to White House Initiative on Science, Technology, Engineering and Math Education
NORWALK, Conn. - (BUSINESS WIRE) - President Barack Obama today named Ursula
M. Burns, chief executive officer of Xerox Corporation (NYSE: XRX),
to help lead a national program aimed at honing students' skills in
science, technology, engineering and math (STEM). The education
initiative is expected to help the country sharpen its competitive edge
in innovation and regain dominance in the technological revolution
sweeping the globe.
The project will be led by Burns; Craig Barrett, former chief executive
officer and chairman of Intel Corporation; Glenn Britt, chief executive
officer of Time Warner Cable and Sally Ride, former astronaut and
president and chief operating officer of Sally Ride Science, in
conjunction with the Carnegie Corporation of New York, and the Bill and
Melinda Gates Foundation.
"Companies like Xerox succeed through innovation,
collaboration and the fresh ideas of our people. If we inspire young
people today, we secure our ability to innovate tomorrow. Innovation is
central to our nation's overall growth, to our quality of life and to
our success in the global marketplace," said Burns, whose own personal
journey from the classroom to the C-suite reflects the benefits and
opportunities of a STEM education. Burns is a mechanical engineer who
joined Xerox as student intern nearly 30 years ago and progressed
through the company in a variety of engineering, product development and
management roles. She was named president of Xerox in 2007 and became
chief executive officer of the company on July 1.
An important first national step to improve math and science
achievement, the initiative plans to broaden job opportunities and
quality of life for more Americans. The team is expected to work at a
rapid pace similar to the space race 50 years ago and focus on
mobilizing the resources needed to raise the level of math and science
learning for all students. The program will explore how new
technologies, social networks and other resources can be used to connect
teachers with professionals and companies and improve student
performance in science, technology, engineering and math education.
Burns serves on the board and works with a number of institutions and
organizations that are advancing STEM
initiatives. Among them are the National
Academy Foundation, MIT, and the University of Rochester. Burns is
also a member of the advisory board for FIRST
- (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology), an
organization that, through robotic competitions, fosters student
interest in innovation and engineering. Xerox was a founding member of
FIRST and continues to support the organization today.
In addition to FIRST, Xerox traces a 50-year commitment to the power of
education, investing in a number of programs. The Xerox
Science Consultant Program is one of the longest running
industry-education partnerships in the country. For the past 40 years,
Xerox scientists and engineers have worked in the class room to make
science fun for hundreds of thousands of elementary students.
Xerox has also invested several hundred million dollars in educational
grants to fund programs and scholarships at universities and science
centers throughout North America. Thousands of students have received
educational assistance through Xerox's
Technical Minority Scholarship Program.
About Xerox
Headquartered in Norwalk, Conn., Xerox Corporation's 54,000 people
represent the world's leading document
management, technology and services
enterprise, providing the industry's broadest portfolio of color and
black-and-white document
processing systems and related supplies,
as well as document
management consulting and outsourcing
services.
Note: For more information on Xerox, visit http://www.xerox.com
or http://www.xerox.com/news.
For open commentary, industry perspectives and views from events visit http://www.facebook.com/xeroxcorp,
http://twitter.com/xeroxcorp,
http://twitter.com/xeroxevents,
http://www.xerox.com/blogs
or http://www.xerox.com/podcasts.
Xerox and the sphere of connectivity design are trademarks
of Xerox Corporation in the United States and/or other countries.
Xerox Corporation
Carl Langsenkamp, +1-585-423-5782
Carl.Langsenkamp@xerox.com
or
Bill
McKee, +1-585-423-4476
bill.mckee@xerox.com
Copyright © 2012, Business Wire, Inc., All rights reserved.
Copyright © 2012, NewsBlaze,
Daily News