President and Mrs. Laura Bush traveled to Zambia and Botswana this past week where they helped refurbish and reopen a clinic in Zambia...
President and Mrs. Laura Bush traveled to Zambia and Botswana this past week where they helped refurbish and reopen a clinic in Zambia and expanded the reach of Pink Ribbon Red Ribbon, a partnership to expand the availability of cervical cancer screenings to women in Africa. In 2011 Zambia became the first partner country with Pink Ribbon Red Ribbon. The trip also included visits to an orphanage and preschool in Zambia and Botswana. Read more news coverage of the trip and see pictures and videos here. (Voice of America) Today's newly released jobs numbers brought bleak news with the June employment numbers revealing that while economists projected a 100,000 rise in employment, only 80,000 jobs were added. Growth in private payrolls was the weakest in 10 months and stocks fell today with the latest economic news. Bush Institute Executive Director James K. Glassman commented on the new jobs numbers and the Bush Institute's 4% growth project. (Bloomberg BusinessWeek) Also this week, the Dallas Morning News reported that DISD 2011 graduation rates jumped nearly 3 percentage points from the 2010 rate. Even better is the sustained pattern of improvement that puts the 2011 graduation rate nearly 15 percentage points higher than the 2007 rate. The completion rate — the measurement of students who either graduated on schedule or finished later by other means — is up more than 14 percentage points. Coupled with new DISD Superintendent Mike Mile’s focus on improved leadership, Dallas schools are proving to be an ideal laboratory for Bush Institute programs. (Dallas Morning News) On June 28 Thor Halvorssen attempted to address the United Nations Human Rights Council. Halvorssen's entire address, printed in this article, in protest of Venezuela's bid to join the Council, was interrupted and eventually ended by delegates of Cuba, Russia, China and Pakistan. In posting about this experience, Halvorssen points out the hypocrisy of including counties with documented human rights abuses on the Council. (HuffPost World)
