Shakira Joins Obama Administration

by uInterviewOctober 7, 2011, 12:00 amNews >

Shakira, the Colombian singer whose full name is Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll, has been appointed by President Barack Obama to the President’s Advisory Commission on Educational Excellence for Hispanics, a release sent out by the White House stated Wednesday. Shakira, 34, was an advocate for early childhood education long before she founded the Barefoot Foundation in 1995, which directs funds for the purpose of building schools in Colombia, Haiti and South Africa.

Her activism for education reform did not stop there. The multiple Grammy-winning artist, known in the U.S. for such hit songs as "La Tortura" and "My Hips Don't Lie," is also a founding member of Latin America in Solidarity Action and was named a Goodwill Ambassador for UNICEF (United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund) in 2003.

Obama, who also named other leading Hispanic education activists to the committee, praised the likes of Shakira for their dedication to a very worthy cause. “I am grateful that these impressive individuals have chosen to dedicate their talents to serving the American people at this important time for our country," Obama said. "I look forward to working with them in the months and years ahead."

Shakira expressed gratitude for the ability to become further involved in a cause that she believes is urgent. "This is a tremendous honor for me. I am humbled that my philanthropic experience could be helpful or that my voice can be used to amplify the message and work of the President and this Commission," she told The Huffington Post. "Latino youth are the fastest-growing group in America, yet more Latino children are living in poverty — 6.1 million in 2010 — than children of any other racial or ethnic group. As I have seen in my own Foundation work, the only road out of poverty is education."