Former Vice President Walter F. Mondale Steps Down as Board Chair of Panasonic Foundation

SECAUCUS, N.J., May 14 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Panasonic announces that Walter F. Mondale, who served his country as Vice President; Ambassador to Japan; Senator from Minnesota; and Democratic Party candidate for President, is stepping down from the chairmanship of the Panasonic Foundation. Succeeding Mondale, Dr. Robert ("Skipp") M. Orr, who recently retired as President of Boeing, Japan, will lead the Panasonic Foundation, and drive its mission to help improve American public schools.

(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20070514/NYM165 )

"Helping to advance the educational climate in our urban school systems is a mission that Panasonic is immensely proud to be a part of," says Dr. Orr, whose book The Emergence of Japan's Foreign Aid Power was published by Columbia University Press in 1990 and was honored with the 1991 Masayoshi Ohira prize for the best book on the Asia/Pacific Basin. "Personally, being able to follow such a great American as former Vice President Walter Mondale in this post is a profound honor."

Dr. Orr, who earned his Ph.D. in political science from the University of Tokyo in 1988, is also Vice Chair of the National Association of Japan-America Societies. Prior to being President at Boeing Japan, Dr. Orr was Vice President and Director of European Affairs for Motorola in Brussels, Belgium. Dr. Orr also taught at Temple University Japan and was director of the Stanford Japan Center.

"The focus of our partnerships is systemic improvement aimed at breaking the links between race, poverty, and educational outcomes," says Larry Leverett, Panasonic Foundation Executive Director. The Foundation is currently partnering with nine urban school districts across the country - from Highline, Washington outside of Seattle to the Atlanta Public Schools in Georgia.

Dr. Orr joins the Foundation at a time when it is poised to initiate a powerful new approach to philanthropic accountability and to launch a three- way partnership in Connecticut with Stamford Public School system and the Connecticut Center for School Change.

About Panasonic Foundation

Panasonic Foundation was established in 1984 by a $10 million endowment from Panasonic Corporation of North America, the principal North American subsidiary of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. (MEI). The Foundation, which aims to improve public education in the United States, was later strengthened by MEI with an additional endowment of $10 million. The Panasonic Foundation is recognized as a leader in education reform with the mission to help public school systems that serve high percentages of children in poverty to improve learning for all students to become productive, responsible citizens.

About Panasonic Corporation of North America

Based in Secaucus, NJ, Panasonic Corporation of North America markets a broad line of digital and other electronics products for consumer, business and industrial use. The company is the principal North American subsidiary of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. of Japan, and the hub of Panasonic's U.S. branding, marketing, sales, service and R&D operations. Additional company information for journalists is available at http://www.panasonic.com/pressroom.