White House Council on Women and Girls
| Agency overview | |
|---|---|
| Formed | March 11, 2009 |
| Headquarters | White House |
| Employees | 10 |
| Agency executives |
|
| Parent agency | Office of Intergovernmental Affairs |
| Website | The White House Council on Women and Girls |
The White House Council on Women and Girls is a council, which forms part of the Office of Intergovernmental Affairs, established by Executive Order on March 11, 2009 with a broad mandate to advise the United States President on issues relating to the welfare of women and girls. The current chair of the council is Valerie Jarrett.
Barack Obama signed this Executive Order. The Order was enacted so that the US federal government will be involved in issues that affect women and girls in the US.
In his Executive Order , signed on March 11, 2009, President Obama stated:
Also in the Executive Order, Obama stated that progress has been made in eliminating barriers to success for women, particularly during the past generation. Obama recognized that attendance of women at colleges and graduate schools is at a record number. He further recognized that there are many women in the workforce, including executives of corporations and owners of businesses. Serving in all areas of government, including the highest levels, are women, stated Obama.
That stated, Obama also recognized that there are inequalities that continue regarding women. He stated that the average American woman earns "78 cents for every dollar men make." He further stated that women are not significantly represented in career fields that include science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM). Obama's Executive Order additionally stated that "too many women lack health insurance,...[and that] "violence against women and girls remains a global epidemic." Guaranteeing equal opportunities in education for girls and women continues to be challenging; and women have experienced serious affects of America's economic crisis that began in 2007.
Obama further stated that these issues that affect women are not solely the concerns of women.
Regarding the affect of the issues on women and others, Obama further stated in his Executive Order :
All of these reasons and more are those for establishing the Council.
The Council on Women and Girls works with Federal "executive departments and agencies to provide a coordinated Federal response to issues that have an impact on the lives of women and girls," including providing assistance to women-owned businesses, and working "to increase the participation of women in the science, engineering, and technology workforce, and to ensure that Federal programs and policies adequately take those impacts into account."
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