Expanding Opportunities for American Students and Workers
Parkersburg South High School
Parkersburg, West Virginia
12:58 P.M. EDT
THE PRESIDENT: Thank you all very much. Thanks for coming.
Please be seated. First, thanks for the invite. You all got the best
seat in the house. (Applause.) At least you got the best view of me.
(Laughter.) I really want to thank you all for coming. I want to
thank our panelists for being here, because we're about to have a
discussion on how to make sure every person in America can realize
their dreams. That's what we're here to talk about -- dreams and how
they can be realized. How to make sure the education system works the
way every mom and dad, every teacher, every principal, every concerned
citizen wants it to work.
And this is a perfect place to come and have a discussion about
education, because Parkersburg South is educating the kids. They're
doing a fine job here. Tom, I want to thank you. (Applause.) I've
spent a lot of time at schools, and there's always a common denominator
in excellent schools, and that is you've got a good principal, see --
somebody who is -- listens to the teachers, somebody who interfaces
with the parents, but somebody who sets high standards, somebody who
believes in the best for every child. And I appreciate you taking on a
tough job, and I appreciate you doing it well.
I want to thank Bill Niday, as well. He's the superintendent here
in Wood County. I know something about superintendents, and I know how
important they are for education. See, I picked a superintendent of
schools to run the Department of Education, the superintendent from
Harris County, which is Houston, Texas. I mean, the superintendent is
on the front line of education. They're involved with all aspects of
local education. So I picked a man who understands how it works. And
the reason I brought a superintendent in from Texas to Washington,
because I believe in local control of schools. I want the people at
the local level running the schools. (Applause.)
I appreciate Barbara Fish, from the State Board here in West
Virginia, for coming. Where are you, Barbara? Thank you for coming.
I'm honored you are here. I appreciate -- (applause) -- I appreciate
what you said. Barbara said to me -- I'm going to talk a little bit
about No Child Left Behind here in a second. She said, I love the
spirit of No Child Left Behind. See, I love the spirit of Barbara who
understands that by setting high standards and measuring, and making
curriculum works, and making sure your dollars are well spent, that we
can make sure no child is left behind in America. So, thank you for
your vision and thank you for your -- your care. (Applause.)
They're telling me Jimmy Columbo is here, the Mayor. Where are
you, Mr. Mayor? There you are. (Applause.) I appreciate you coming.
Who you got with you? There he is. We'll try to get you a better seat
next time, Mayor. (Laughter.) But thank you for being here. I'm
proud you're here. I really appreciate so many of the citizens of this
good city coming out and waving. It means a lot to me. And, Mayor,
the fact that you're here means a lot, too. I appreciate you serving
your community. Just make sure you fill the potholes. (Laughter and
applause.)
I appreciate the Patriots. All of the Patriots are here. Thank
you for hosting us. I want to congratulate the seniors who are getting
ready to graduate. Make sure you don't take the foot off the gas pedal
too soon -- isn't that right? Keep studying until the final bell
rings. But good luck to you.
Today I had the honor of meeting Heather Stout. She came out to
the airport. She's a sophomore at West Virginia University in
Parkersburg. I'll tell you why I mention her. Where are you,
Heather? She's somewhere. Oh, there you are, right there. I'm sorry,
I beg your pardon. You know what? The reason I bring her up is she's
a tutor. She is a math tutor for 4th grade students. Here's a person
going to college who has taken time out of her life to help children
learn math.
Listen, we talk a lot about the strength of our country, and I'm
going to spend a little time talking about the strength of our -- a lot
of the strengths of the country. But the true strength of this country
is the hearts and souls of the American people. That's the strength of
America. (Applause.) We're strong because there are good people
willing to teach. We're strong because there are good citizens willing
to love a neighbor just like they'd like to be loved themselves. See,
there are people who hurt in our country. But that hurt can change as
a result of a loving citizen saying, what can I do to help? See,
societies change one heart, one soul, one conscience at a time. That's
how societies change. And that happens when people like Heather, and
I'm sure people here in this crowd, are willing to take a little time
to love and spread compassion.
The reason I mention Heather is because I want people in this good
part of the country to do everything they can to help the lonely, to
feed the hungry, to find shelter for those who are looking for a place
to stay. Heather, thanks for the example you set; thanks for having
such a good heart; and thanks for following your heart. (Applause.)
One of the things that I'm so proud of is the United States
military. I'm proud -- (applause.) Thank you all for coming. Thank
you all. Corporal Ferguson, where's -- there he is. Lance Corporal
Ferguson -- excuse me. He just came back from Iraq. He was one of
over 200,000 men and women who have served this nation. And the reason
I bring him up -- I want to say a couple of things -- thank you, go
ahead and be seated. I appreciate you being here. Thank you for your
service. (Applause.) And that's Joe Ellison -- yes, Lance Corporal
Ellison is with him, too. I didn't mean to leave you out. But thank
you for your service, too. (Applause.)
Let me say a couple of things that you need to know. First, our
men and women are serving in historic times. We have a duty never to
forget the lessons of September the 11th, 2001, and when we see a
gathering threat -- (applause) -- when we see threats, we can no longer
hope they go away. We can't hope for the best. We've got to take
action. Now, action doesn't necessarily mean use of military. Action
can mean using diplomatic pressure, all kinds of pressures. But the
enemy declared war on us. And we must be strong, and we must be
diligent, and we must be focused. We must do everything we can to
protect our homeland. We've got brave soldiers doing just that.
(Applause.)
And we're being tested, see. We're being tested because there are
people who cannot stand the thought of free societies growing up in a
part of the world that is used to hatred and tyranny. We're being
tested because there are cold-blooded killers that cannot stand the
thought of freedom becoming the norm.
And yet, we know something here in America. We know the power of
free societies. See, freedom equals peace. Free societies will be
peaceful societies. And we also know that freedom is not America's
gift to the world. Freedom is the Almighty God's gift to each man and
woman in this world. (Applause.)
I want these Marines to know that they are serving in historic
times. The world is changing for the better. The world will be more
free and more peaceful, thanks to the United States of America and our
military. These are historic times.
I'll tell you an interesting story to try and put it in
perspective. I was having dinner with Prime Minister Koizumi in
Tokyo. Laura was with me, by the way. She's doing a great job,
fabulous person. (Applause.) And here I was talking to the Prime
Minister of a former enemy. My dad, like many of your relatives,
fought in the Pacific in World War II, and here I was talking to the
Prime Minister of the country against whom we used to fight, a country
that had attacked us. And we were talking about how to keep the
peace. We were strategizing about how to make sure the Korean
Peninsula is nuclear weapon-free.
It was a very interesting conversation. First of all, I like the
guy a lot, and secondly, it was a positive conversation, an important
conversation, to help keep the peace. Had we not gotten the peace
right after World War II, it might have been that I wouldn't be having
the conversation with Prime Minister Koizumi. As well, during the
conversation, I thought about what it would be like for a future
American President to be talking to a duly-elected leader of Iraq, a
free Iraq, a peaceful Iraq, a democratic Iraq, about how to deal with
problems future generations will face. (Applause.)
No, these are historic times. We're being tested. People are
testing our mettle. And I will not yield to the whims of the few.
(Applause.) Thank you all. I won't yield because I believe so
strongly in what we're doing, and I have faith in the power of freedom
to spread its wings in parts of the world that desperately need
freedom.
I want to say one other thing about our troops. Like you, I have
been disgraced about what I've seen on TV, what took place in the
prison. The actions of a few do not reflect on the fantastic character
of the over 200,000 men and women who have served our nation.
(Applause.)
One other thing. Before we talk about education, it is really
important for this country to be wise about how we use our natural
resources. And I have asked the Congress to pass a national energy
policy so we become less dependent on foreign sources of energy.
(Applause.) I've asked the Congress to quit playing politics and get a
bill out of the United States Senate to my desk that includes the use
of clean coal technologies to make sure we are less dependent.
(Applause.) I mean, we're seeing what it means to be hooked on foreign
sources of energy right now. And like you, I'm unhappy about it. But
I got a plan, if we can just get some cooperation, so we can make sure
we got more supply here at home. That's the way you relieve the
pressure from foreign sources -- you use what you have in a smart way.
And we can do this in this country. We can be wise about how we use
our resources, so that the people benefit. (Applause.)
You got a lot of coal here, and it's an important part of our
country's energy mix. And we can use technologies to make sure that
coal does what we want it to do, which is to power electricity so
people can have reliable sources of electricity for their homes and
their businesses.
One of the things we're here to talk about today is I ought to make
sure the work force is educated. But we'd better make sure we've got
an educated energy policy, too, so that we can have a work force that
expands. Now, the best way to make sure we got a work force that's
educated is to start early, before it's too late. The No Child Left
Behind Act changed the attitude about monies being spent out of
Washington.
Listen, we've increased the budgets out of Washington by 49 percent
since 2001. That is a healthy increase. Two things I want to say
about that: First of all, it's not the federal responsibility to fund
schools. It's state and local responsibility to fund. You don't want
the federal government running the school system here. (Applause.)
But we can help. We can help with Title I students; we can help with
Reading First programs. There are ways for the federal government to
help, and we are.
Make no mistake about it; we're increasing the budgets at the
federal level, but for the first time we have said, since we're
spending more money, why don't you show us whether or not the children
are learning to read, write, and add and subtract. Why don't you use
an accountability system to let everybody know that we're succeeding.
And that's what's changed. And this high school right here is using
the accountability system, and the students at this school are meeting
the accountability standards.
See, we're setting higher standards -- and by the way, if you set
low standards, guess what you're going get? You'll get lousy results.
If you had the attitude that certain children can't learn to read,
write, and add and subtract, sure enough, certain children won't learn
to read and write, and add and subtract. So we're raising that bar;
we're providing extra money; we're holding people accountable and we're
making sure there's local control of schools. See, the people of
Parkersburg can run the schools better than people in Washington, D.C.
can. That's for certain. (Applause.)
And we're making progress. The reading scores in West Virginia are
up. That's really good news. It means the teachers are doing what we
expect. And they're working hard, by the way. Being a teacher is a
difficult profession. And we need to praise our teachers and thank our
teachers. (Applause.)
The test scores are up. That must make everybody feel better. It
should. And the reason I can say that is because we're measuring.
See, if you don't measure, you say, I think the test scores are up, or
maybe the test scores are up. You don't know unless you measure.
We're measuring. And the results are good.
But let me tell you a statistic that troubles me. Sixty-eight --
of 100 9th graders nationwide, only 68 will go to college. We ought to
have a goal that says, every child, every high school student, finishes
high school and is capable of finding a job or capable of going on to
college. That ought to be the goal.
And so what we're going to talk about today is not how to make sure
elementary school children can read, but to make sure that the high
school programs raise the bar, intervene when necessary, make sure that
money is spent wisely, so that we're educating children that have got
the capacity to take over the jobs of the 21st century. And there's
some practical things we can do.
First, there needs to be intervention programs for junior high and
high school kids who have been shuffled through without the capacity to
read. And we've got a program called Striving Readers Initiative,
which is an intervention program based on a curriculum, designed out of
the University of Kansas, by the way. And it works. And I would urge
the good folks of the -- the planners here in West Virginia to access
the federal monies that I'm asking Congress to spend on making sure
that at the very minimum, a kid has got the capacity to read before
they get out of high school.
See, if you can't read, these jobs of the 21st century are going to
go begging. If you don't have the capacity to at least read, it's
going to be impossible for you -- not totally impossible, nearly
impossible to get the high-paying, high-productivity jobs that are now
being created in America.
Secondly, we need to make sure we get more math and science
graduates. It's really important that we emphasize math -- besides
literacy, math and science -- and we're going to talk a little bit
about that here in a minute -- because math and science programs will
be necessary to make sure the skill level is good enough for these new
jobs that are being created, that people will be able to fill those
jobs, as well. And so I've got a plan that provides federal grants to
develop teaching programs, in other words, help schools develop
effective math teaching programs.
Thirdly, we need an adjunct teacher program to encourage
professionals and experts from math and sciences to teach. In other
words, once somebody has finished their career, or maybe is looking for
a career adjustment, to allow them and encourage them to get in the
classroom to spread their skills. We need engineers teaching in high
schools; we need scientists teaching in high schools; we need people
who have been in the military that have had some engineering experience
to come out and teach in high schools. And we -- I'm asking Congress
to pass a $40-million program to encourage the recruitment and training
of such teachers.
As well, we need to be raising that bar. We're going to talk about
advanced placement here in a minute. Advanced placement programs are
essential programs for challenging every child. We need to keep
raising the standards. We've got to constantly strive to set big goals
so people are reaching for those goals, and helping schools make sure
that the programs work.
Advanced placement is -- I love the program. We're about to talk
to an advanced placement teacher who I suspect loves it, as well. But
there are some difficulties. I think the federal government should be
spending money to help train teachers to teach advanced placement.
See, a lot of school districts say, well, I'm interested, but it just
doesn't meet our needs right now. Well, it should meet the needs. And
therefore, there's federal money available for teacher training.
And one other aspect: It costs $80 to take a advanced placement
test. Now, that's high for a lot of families. Low-income families
will say, you know, I'd rather spend my $80 somewhere else than taking
a test. And there's a lot of missed opportunity. I think the federal
government ought to help low-income students pay for the fee to take
the AP test. (Applause.)
I'm getting there. Our panelists are about to fall out, wondering
-- all right. As the old guy said, you're just not a potted plant.
(Laughter.)
I think we ought to enhance Pell Grants for students who take --
who take rigorous academic courses. Or, as I say, if you're taking a
rigorous course load in high school, and you qualify for Pell Grants,
you ought to get an extra $1,000 on your Pell Grant. We're spending
money at the Pell Grant, and Pell Grants are good things. (Applause.)
We ought to use the Pell Grant system to encourage people to keep
raising their -- raising their sights.
We're going to talk about ways to make sure the Perkins Act, which
is a vocational training act, work better. I mean, this act was passed
in 1917; we spend a billion dollars a year. The attitude has got to
change from 1917. It kind of -- it has some. But as a part of the
vocational training courses, there need to be a rigorous focus on
English and math and science. We've got to make sure the children have
got, oh, yes, the skills that may be taught at the Perkins Programs,
but they need the basics, too.
And so in order to make sure the high school programs work all the
way around, we need to reform the Perkins Program. We're going to talk
about the community college system. I'm a big believer in the
community college system. Community college system is a way to --
(applause) -- community college systems are ways to help high school
students achieve big goals. And we're going to talk about that. The
community college systems are also important to taking older folks that
have been in one field, and training them for another field.
We've spent a lot of money at the federal level to make sure that
we're able to match skills with jobs available. I mean, I think -- one
of the stories I tell is I went to the Mesa Community College in
Arizona, and I met a woman who had been a graphic design artist for
over a decade. And she then went back to the community college, got
help from the federal government, and got her associate degree. And in
her entry-level job in a high-tech field, she made more in her first
year than she had made in her last year. In other words, education
will not only help somebody become employable, education will help
somebody become more productive, which means higher -- higher wages,
better job, better availability for work. And that's what we're going
to talk about. (Applause.)
So here we go. Big Tom, are you ready?
MR. ESCHBACHER: I'm ready to go. (Laughter.)
THE PRESIDENT: He has got a program here called High Schools That
Work. And we're going to spend some time talking about that. It is a
way to introduce a rigorous course schedule into the high school
curriculum to challenge people. You may want to talk about that, and
you may want to not talk about that, but let her go.
* * * * *
THE PRESIDENT: That's why you're no longer the band director.
(Laughter.)
MR. ESCHBACHER: I was pretty good at that --
THE PRESIDENT: What were you, tuba?
MR. ESCHBACHER: I'm a sax player.
THE PRESIDENT: Sax player, right.
Dr. Becky Daniel is with us. She is a AP English teacher. First,
Becky has been teaching for 29 years, which is a great credit to you,
to be in the classroom for that long. (Applause.) You might want to
tell people about the advanced placement program. I suspect some
people don't even know what we're talking about -- why it's important,
how you got into it. Let her go. Thanks for coming.
* * * * *
THE PRESIDENT: Good job, Becky. Thank you. I love her spirit.
See, I like teachers that challenge the soft bigotry of low
expectations. In other words, she said, I'm going to keep raising that
bar, I'm going to keep challenging. And it must make you feel great to
see people achieve what you want them to do. Yes, it's got to.
And I agree with you, I think we need to make sure AP is available
for all kids. Part of it is the teacher training; part of it is the
fee. I mean, I'm sure you've run into kids who say, my mother and
daddy don't want to spend the money on the fee. And that's not a good
enough excuse. We've got to encourage -- by the way, AP -- listen to
what she said -- if you pass the AP, you get through college faster.
And that takes a lot of the financial pressure off. I mean, it's not
only good in terms of your brain, it's good in terms of your wallet.
And so, thanks for doing what you're doing, Becky. I appreciate your
spirit.
We've got another teacher with us today. Dave is with us. He is a
physics teacher. Here's a guy who was trained to be a chemical
engineer? Yes. Then he decided to be a teacher -- and both of them
noble professions. But here he is now, imparting knowledge, turned
down what I bet was a pretty good career in this part of the world;
said, I want to teach. And he's a physics teacher.
Tell us what you're seeing, tell us what you're hearing about
sciences. It's essential that people take science in high school.
This job base of ours is changing, it's in transition. We're creating
new jobs all across the country, and people are going to have to be
prepared to succeed in these jobs. These aren't the jobs like we've
had in the past. These are better-paying jobs, steady work that
require the use of your brain. And part of that base, to be ready for
these new jobs, is a science base.
And that's why we have Dave here. Thanks for coming.
* * * * *
THE PRESIDENT: So, are kids interested? I mean, how do we -- are
people interested in sciences and math now, do you find?
MR. FOGGIN: What I like to do -- and Tom can probably attest to
this -- all in the name of science, he says. I'll take kids in the
hallway and we'll push them on scooters and talk about force and
acceleration. We'll go to the gym and throw medicine balls in the air
and talk about potential energy, kinetic energy. We swing on ropes and
talk about pendulums and harmonic motion. I try to make things active
and fun, and keep science fun. And sometimes you don't even realize
you're learning.
THE PRESIDENT: Yes, practical. With a practical application.
One of the things he's talking about is going to businesses -- we
call them state scholar programs. We're going to talk about how we get
other businesses involved here in a minute. But what businesses are
interested in is they want high schools to be ready to -- be capable of
training people so they can hire them. That's what they want. And so
we've got what's called state scholar programs, which is a
collaborative effort between high schools and school districts and
businesses, to encourage rigorous curriculum that matters.
That's kind of what you were doing when you went to the plant. You
had business executives say, let us help -
MR. FOGGIN: -- employers all around this area and asked them, what
do you want from employees; let's see some of your employees. And we
spent about a week with them to see exactly it is they do, what skills
they need, and then we all got back together at the end and say, hey,
everything we saw was --
THE PRESIDENT: See, that's a smart way to run a high school. It's
a practical way to run a high school. It says, look, we're going to
make sure that kids who come out of here not only can read and write,
but they're going to have the basis so they can become employees. As
this job base expands, and it's expanding, as new jobs are being
created, we've got to get it right here in high school.
It starts with making sure kids can read early. I mean, that's
what's happening. It will help when we have intervention programs all
around the country, to make sure that the literacy levels are high
enough to become -- so people can at least fill out the forms when it
comes to finding work. But we need to make sure we stay focused on
math and science.
And that's why I'm so -- I appreciate Dave being here. Thanks for
what you do. I love your both your spirits. And thanks for teaching.
Appreciate you coming. (Applause.)
We've got a man from Atlanta, Georgia, right here sitting next to
the President. Gene Bottoms. He is the senior Vice President of
what's called the Southern Regional Education Board. It is a -- well,
he can tell you what it is. But he is involved with working with
school districts around the country to encourage them to put in place
rigorous academic programs. Is that an accurate description?
MR. BOTTOMS: That's a big part of it.
THE PRESIDENT: All right. Well, tell them what you do.
* * * * *
THE PRESIDENT: Nationally, only 68 percent of the children who
start in the 9th grade will graduate from high school on time. In
other words, West Virginia is doing really well.
* * * * *
THE PRESIDENT: Thanks for coming. Good job.
We've got Joe Badgley with us. He is the Dean of Academic
Affairs. You still the interim president?
MR. BADGLEY: Yes, sir.
THE PRESIDENT: You're still the interim president, although he
named his successor yesterday, or today?
MR. BADGLEY: My successor was named yesterday.
THE PRESIDENT: Yes, we've got you coming and going. Anyway --
(laughter) -- thanks for coming. He is at West Virginia University at
Parkersburg. And tell us -- tell us about the program you've got
here. Just let us -- let her go.
* * * * *
THE PRESIDENT: So what does that mean for a mom or a dad, or what
does it mean for the student when that happens?
MR BADGLEY: Well, one of the great things about the program is
that many of the high schools choose to give graduation credit so that
the students are earning credits toward graduation from high school at
the same time they're earning college credit, which is why the program
is often referred to as dual credit. And it's important to note that
those courses are delivered at deeply discounted tuition rates, which
means that students can graduate from high school with as much as a
semester of college work completed at a substantial savings to
themselves and to their families.
THE PRESIDENT: Yes, that's a really smart idea. And how hard is
it for the high school students? I mean, if somebody is sitting out
there listening who says, gosh, I may want to get my child, who's a
sophomore in high school, to think about this -- is it -- is it a steep
hill to climb, or is it -- obviously, if 900 kids are going, they've
had pretty good success passing the courses.
MR. BADGLEY: It's a very popular program, and the students -- the
program is open to high school juniors and seniors who have a 2.8 grade
point average, and the recommendation of their principal or their
counselor to participate in the program.
THE PRESIDENT: Yes, that's neat. What are you doing for worker
training? Can you share some of the ideas with the citizens here in
this community about why you're important and useful and necessary?
* * * * *
THE PRESIDENT: I like to tell people the community college systems
are available, affordable, and they're flexible. In other words,
they're able to change their curriculum in order to meet the needs of
the job requirements, or the job needs here. And it's a really good
asset. And the thing that's so impressive about the utilization of
this good asset is they hooked up with a high school -- high schools
here. So people have got all kinds of opportunities.
Listen, I hope you're as optimistic about the future of the country
as I am. I am -- you just heard some, I think, incredibly positive
news about your community. You've got people who are raising the bar;
people who are making sure that the course load is relevant to the jobs
of the 21st century; people who are using the asset base, the education
asset base, in a wise way, to make sure that every child has got an
opportunity to realize the great promise of the country.
We live in the most fabulous nation on the face of the Earth. And
one of the reasons why is because we're a nation -- (applause) -- we're
a nation that believes in the worth of every person, regardless of
their background. We're a nation that believes in the potential of
every person. We want every child to learn to read, write, and add and
subtract. We want every child to have the curriculum necessary to be
able to realize his or her dreams. That's what we want in America.
We're also a great nation because we've got fantastic values. And
one of the values we hold dear is the value of freedom. We love our
freedom; we understand our freedom; we will never relinquish our
freedom.
Thank you all for coming. May God bless. (Applause.)