08 September 2009
Obama Urges America’s Students to Fulfill Responsibilities
Washington — Drawing from his own life experiences, President Obama urged America’s schoolchildren to take responsibility for their education and take advantage of the opportunities that an education offers.
“We can have the most dedicated teachers, the most supportive parents, the best schools in the world — and none of it will make a difference, none of it will matter unless all of you fulfill your responsibilities,” Obama said in a September 8 national address to students.
Most public high schools and elementary schools in the United States have already opened from summer vacation or were just starting their school year the day after the U.S. Labor Day holiday weekend.
“Every single one of you has something you’re good at. Every single one of you has something to offer. And you have a responsibility to yourself to discover what that is. That’s the opportunity an education can provide,” the president said.
U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan said on early morning television news shows that one of the president’s greatest concerns is that the United States has a 30 percent high school dropout rate. Something needs to be done to aggressively stem those losses, he said. The president believed it was critically important to speak directly to America’s students to attempt to improve their academic performance, Duncan said.
“The president is really challenging every single child to step up and build a positive life for themselves,” he added.
One of the challenges facing this country is that every year 1.2 million students in city schools, rural schools and suburban communities drop out, Duncan said.
“We need every single one of you to develop your talents and your skills and intellect so you can help us old folks solve our most difficult problems,” Obama said at Wakefield High School in Arlington, Virginia, near Washington. “If you don’t do that — if you quit on school — you’re not just quitting on yourself, you’re quitting on your country.” His speech was broadcast by satellite to schools nationwide.
Obama recounted for students how his mother, a single parent, would teach him extra school lessons every school day beginning at 4:30 in the morning. It was at a time when he and his family were living in Indonesia for a few years and his mother did not have the money to send him to a school that other American children attended.
“I wasn’t too happy about getting up that early. And a lot of times, I’d fall asleep right there at the kitchen table,” Obama said. “But whenever I’d complain, my mother would just give me one of those looks and say, ‘This is no picnic for me either.’”
Obama called on students across the country to set their own goals for their education, no matter how great or how small, and do everything possible to meet them. He told students that people succeed because they understand they cannot let failure define them. Let failures teach you, the president said.
The full text of the president’s remarks is available on America.gov.
What foreign affairs decisions should President Obama consider? Comment on America.gov’s blog Obama Today.
