Ausin, TX, November 16, 2008 – The Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) is proud to announce the 2008 recipient of its most prestigious award. The Council’s Distinguished Service Award (DSA), given annually to a person or persons outside its membership who have shown leadership and/or contributed to the advancement of education, was presented to Alma Powell at CCSSO’s Annual Policy Forum and Business Meeting in Austin, Texas.

“I feel privileged and also humbled to be in included in the company of so many great leaders who were previous recipients of this honor; governors, senators, teachers, and others that have devoted their careers to public education,” said Powell. "Together with the Council of Chief State School Officers, and more than 230 other partner organizations representing every sector; business, education communities, non-profits, foundations, the faith community, we are proven that we accomplish more for children through collaborative efforts than any of us can achieve as individual entities.”

Powell sits on the boards of several educational, cultural, charitable and civic organizations. She is the chair of the board of America's Promise Alliance, whose mission is to mobilize people from every sector of American life to build the character and competence of youth. Mrs. Powell also chairs the advisory board for the Pew Center for Civic Change.

CCSSO Executive Director Gene Wilhoit said, “We are delighted to honor Alma Powell with the Distinguished Service Award. Building on the legacy of the Alliances’ founder, General Colin Powell, America’s Promise is forging strong and effective partnership alliances committed to seeing that children experience the fundamental resources they need to succeed. We look forward to presenting Mrs. Powell with the award at our Legislative Conference in April.”

Mrs. Powell is the recipient of an Honorary Doctor of Human Letters from Emerson College, an Honorary Doctor of Humanities from Shenandoah University, and the Civic Change Award from the Pew Partnership for Civic Change. She has also been honored by Washingtonian magazine as Washingtonian of the Year and is the recipient of the Leadership Award from the Women's Center in Virginia.

For 47 years, the Council has presented its Distinguished Service Award to outstanding Americans. Previous recipients include Virginia Governor Mark Warner; President Bill Clinton; The Milken Family Foundation; Bill and Melinda Gates; Standford Professor Linda Darling-Hammond; U.S. Senators Edward M. Kennedy (MA) and James Jeffords (VT); former North Carolina Governor James B. Hunt; former U.S. Representative William F. Goodling; former American Federation of Teachers President Albert Shanker; and former U.S. Secretary of Education Richard W. Riley.

The Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) is a nationwide, nonprofit organization of public officials who head departments of elementary and secondary education in the states, the District of Columbia, the Department of Defense Education Activity, and five U.S. extra-state jurisdictions. CCSSO provides leadership, advocacy, and technical assistance on major educational issues. The Council seeks members’ consensus on major educational issues and expresses their views to civic and professional organizations, federal agencies, Congress, and the public.