History of the U.S. Presidential Scholars Program & Foundation
The United States Presidential Scholars Program was established in 1964, by Executive Order of the President, to recognize and honor some of our Nation’s most distinguished graduating high school seniors. Each year, up to 161 students are named as Presidential Scholars, one of the Nation’s highest honors for high school students. In honoring the Presidential Scholars, the President of the United States symbolically honors all graduating high school seniors of high potential.
Starting with President Lyndon B. Johnson, the Presidential Scholars Program has honored more than 7,900 of our nation’s most distinguished graduating high school seniors. Initiated by President Johnson, the Presidential Scholars Program annually selects one male and one female student from each state (as well as the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and Americans living abroad) along with 15 at-large students and up to 20 students in the arts, and 20 career and technical education (CTE) students on the basis of outstanding scholarship, service, leadership, and creativity through a rigorous selection and review process administered by the White House Commission on U.S. Presidential Scholars and the U.S. Department of Education.
During the first National Recognition Week in 1964, the Scholars participated in seminars with Secretary of State Dean Rusk, Astronaut Alan B. Sheppard, and Chief Justice Earl Warren. President Johnson opened the first meeting of the White House Commission on Presidential Scholars by stating that the Program was not just a reward for excellence, but a means of nourishing excellence. The Program was intended to stimulate achievement in a way that could be “revolutionary”. President Johnson challenged the Scholars to dedicate their talents and time “in our land and in all lands to cleaning away the blight, to sweeping away the shoddiness, to wiping away the injustices and inequities of the past so that all men may live together in a great world community of decency and excellence.”
Over the next decade, several changes occurred in the U.S. Presidential Scholars Program. In 1969, the medallion design became the Great Seal of the Nation. In 1972, the National Teacher of the Year was invited to become a Commissioner. Alumni Scholars were invited to serve as Advisors to the program. A booklet of Scholars’ essays on issues facing the nation was issued by the Joint Commission on Arrangements for the Bicentennial in 1976.
In 1979, President Carter expanded the program to honor up to 20 students selected by the Commission through an artistic competition. The expansion sought to recognize Scholars who demonstrate exceptional talent in the visual, literary, and performing arts. In 1980, a compendium of Scholars’ essays, poems, and musical compositions was published, following a performance by the Scholars in the National Academy of Sciences’ auditorium.
In the 1980s the selection process was refined to emphasize the key elements of leadership and community service. The Horace Mann Learning Center produced a collection of Scholars’ essays on ways to improve the nation’s education system.
In 1981, the National Foundation for Advancement in the Arts was created and its Art Recognition and Talent Search program began to conduct the annual artistic competition.
In 1983, the Distinguished Teacher awards were created, and the twentieth-year celebration of the program included an alumni reunion and a performance by the Arts Scholars at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.
In 1989, U.S. Presidential Scholars Foundation was founded by General Motors Automotive Company, Vice President James Farmer, and White House Commission Member Sandy Nemitz, to raise funds from public and private resources to offer benefits and programming to former and yet-to-be recognized Scholars.
In 1994, The American Association for Gifted Children published its second working paper, “The Presidential Scholars: A Portrait of Talent and Its Development.” The theme that emerged from the study suggested that the talents of these Presidential Scholars came forth in part because of the encouragement of teachers and parents and in part because their experience built upon, rather than impeded, their abilities.
In 1998, the Distinguished Teacher Award was renamed the Presidential Scholars Program Teacher Recognition Award to serve as a means for rewarding good teachers for knowledge, skill, and performance.
In 2004, the Alumni Committee was launched by Matt Anestis ('91, CT) and Avery Gardner ('93, ME) with plans for an alumni database, the creation of chapters and alumni events, and a 50th-anniversary celebration with alumni presentations and a 50 Years of U.S. Presidential Scholars publication.
In 2014, The U.S. Presidential Scholars Program celebrated its 50th Anniversary with a special Summit in Washington D.C. Alumni and supporters gathered from around the country to celebrate this extraordinary program. Click here for the 50th Anniversary Book.
In 2015, President Obama signed an Executive Order expanding the U.S. Presidential Scholars Program, for only the second time in 50 years. The Executive Order called for a new category of outstanding scholars in career and technical education (CTE). An inaugural class of 20 CTE Scholars was honored in 2016.
In 2017, U.S. Presidential Scholars Foundation initiated a Seed Grant Program to support Scholar alumni as they give back to their communities, the U.S. and its territories, and the world at large. The Seed Grant Program contributes to this goal by funding specific projects led by Scholar alumni. The number of grants continues to grow; their progress and outcomes are regularly reported in the Foundation’s newsletter, The Medallion
Due to the pandemic associated with Covid-19, both the 2020 and the 2021 Scholar cohorts were unable to travel to Washington, DC to receive their Medallion and meet each other in person. The Foundation worked with Scholar Advisors and other Foundation leaders to offer virtual events and small group online chats to make introductions and build network connections. The Foundation also conducted a robust virtual welcome event.
Beginning with the 2022 Scholar cohort, the Department of Education has paused the in-person National Recognition event in Washington for a number of reasons. U.S. Presidential Scholars Foundation is expanding its efforts on behalf of new Scholars. We have created a new annual tradition, the Week of Connection for new Scholars, which is led by alumni and takes place each summer.
