11 Black Presidents Under 50 & Their Presidents’ Day Advice for Obama

11 Black Presidents Under 50 & Their Presidents’ Day Advice for Obama


Name: Richard Buery
Organization: The Children’s Aid Society
Title: President and Chief Executive Officer
Age: 40

What makes him an effective President:

Mr. Buery is not only the first African-American leader of the Children’s Aid Society but he also holds the distinction of being the youngest since Charles Loring Brace founded the agency in 1853. Prior to joining the organization, Buery graduated from Harvard College and the Yale Law School. From there he co-founded three nonprofit organizations, including Groundwork, Inc., Mission Hill Summer Program and iMentor, which are all focused on enriching the education and quality of life of children in disadvantaged communities. Buery’s honors include the Extraordinary Black Man Award for Humanitarianism from the United Negro College Fund and the inaugural outstanding alumnus award from the Phillips Brooks House Association at Harvard University.

My advice for President Obama:

“I would recommend a strategy that eradicates the educational achievement gap between rich and poor. First, we need to develop a national indicator to measure the educational, economic, physical and social-emotional health of our children–a Children’s Index. Next, I would urge President Obama to propose a massive expansion of head start programs. Each and every child in America should have access to affordable, high-quality early childhood education. And finally, we must make every school in America a community school. The community school model is a proven strategy that ensures the academic success of children by developing schools with three building blocks required: strong teaching and school leadership, expanded learning opportunities through quality partnerships and student and family supports to reinforce learning and eliminate barriers to success.”

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