Obama School Speech: Every Student Has Something To Offer

(AP) ARLINGTON, Va. — In a pep talk that kept clear of politics, President Barack Obama on Tuesday challenged the nation's students to take pride and ownership in their education – and stick with it even if they don't like every class or must overcome tough circumstances at home.

"Every single one of you has something that you're good at. Every single one of you has something to offer," Obama told students at Wakefield High School in suburban Arlington, Va., and children watching his speech on television in schools across the country. "And you have a responsibility to yourself to discover what that is."

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Presidents often visit schools, and Obama was not the first one to offer a back-to-school address aimed at millions of students in every grade. Yet this speech came with a dose of controversy, as several conservative organizations and many concerned parents warned Obama was trying to sell his political agenda. That concern was caused in part by an accompanying administration lesson plan encouraging students to "help the president," which the White House later revised.

Obama preceded his broad-scale talk with a meeting with Wakefield students, where at one point he advised them to "be careful what you post on Facebook. Whatever you do, it will be pulled up later in your life."

Obama, accompanied by Education Secretary Arne Duncan, met with some 40 students gathered in a school library before the speech carried on ESPN and on the White House Web site.

"When I was your age," Obama said, "I was a little bit of a goof-off. My main goal was to get on the varsity basketball team and have fun."

The uproar over his speech followed him across the Potomac River, as his motorcade was greeted by a small band of protesters. One carried a sign exclaiming: "Mr. President, stay away from our kids."

During his meeting inside, one young person asked why the country doesn't have universal health insurance. "I think we need it. I think we can do it," Obama replied. The president said the country can afford to insure all Americans and that doing so will save money in the long run.

Obama is not the first president to give such a school-opening talk, but his plans seemed to almost immediately get plunged in controversy. Critics accused him of overstepping his authority, and school districts in some areas decided not to provide their students access to his midday speech.

Duncan acknowledged Tuesday that some of the prepared guidance for school officials included a suggestion that students could compose essays stating how they could help support Obama – an idea the education secretary acknowledged was wrongheaded.

In his conversation with the Wakefield students, Obama said that not having a father at home "forced me to grow up faster."

One young person asked the president whom he would choose to dine with if he could make only one such selection.

"Gandhi," Obama replied. "He's somebody I find a lot of inspiration in. He inspired Dr. (Martin Luther) King" with his message of nonviolence.

"He ended up doing so much and changed the world just by the power of his ethics," Obama said of the inspirational leader Mahatma Gandhi. At another point, Obama told the students that "a lot of people are counting on me."

Obama proceeded later with the speech the White House had released a day early, virtually unchanged. The school he chose as the setting for his talk – Wakefield – is the most economically and racially diverse school in Arlington County, according to the Department of Education. Nearly 40 percent of graduating seniors pass an Advanced Placement test. That's more than twice the national average.

"There is no excuse for not trying" he said in the speech. He said students must be individually responsible for their education, and that it's important to work hard, pay attention in school and complete assignments.

"Whatever you resolve to do, I want you to commit to it," Obama said. "The truth is, being successful is hard. You won't love every subject that you study. You won't click with every teacher that you have."

"At the end of the day, we can have the most dedicated teachers, the most supportive parents and the best schools in the world, and none of it will matter unless all of you fulfill your responsibilities," the president said.

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Obama School Speech

 

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Comments

[TheAlchemist]

11:16 AM on 09/11/2009

Haven't watched this yet. Looking forward to it.

[wendynyc]

09:04 PM on 09/10/2009

r a c i s m - sad

[RayinDC]

02:31 PM on 09/10/2009

Comment in verse about GOP furor:

Florida GOP head Jim Greer,
You’re an obnoxious pain in the rear.
You make your career
Out of inciting fear.
In ignorance, you are without peer.

Obama’s wanted to “indoctrinate America's children to his socialist agenda"
(oh yes, you said it).
You condemned his speech
Before you even read it.

When the speech was released
Even you had to confess
There was nothing in it
That you could protest.

But it was political, you say with a sneer.
There was that line in the memo (later deleted)
Which you avowedly so fear.
And you say Dems were also critical of GB1
When he gave a school speech in 1991.

Yes, there was the memo to teachers drafted by a long-time Department of Education resident
Suggesting kids could “write letters to themselves about what they can do to help the president.”
You say that’s what caused you to rail
(I guess because you want Obama to fail).

And it’s true, some Dems took Bush 1’s speech as an affront
Saying the appearance was a political stunt,
And maybe it was, since one has to say
That he did announce his candidacy for reelection the next day.

But noone called Bush 1 a socialist or fascist dictator.
(Rush Limbaugh, why are you such a hater?)
Noone accused him of trying to set up his own Hitler Youth
(Glenn Beck et. al., why are you so uncouth?)

(continued -- see MySpace.com/Newsericks)

[RayinDC]

06:01 PM on 09/10/2009

(...cont'd)

No parents demonstrated in front of schools
Or kept their kids home (flouting truancy rules).
And when Bush 1 said “Write me a letter… about ways you can help us achieve our goals”
Noone proposed raking him over hot coals.

Republicans, if you keep up this bent
Our country’s prospects are dim.
We’ve only got one President
And Jim Greer, you ain’t him.

Obama’s our duly elected President
So show some respect.
And stop saying things
So wildly incorrect.

(www.MySpace.com/Newsericks blog)

[igorvitch]

05:22 PM on 09/09/2009

The Democrats may have overreacted to Papa Bush's speech to the kids but it was AFTER and because it was very partisan, like a campaign speech. A little lesson plan asking the kids how they would help the elected leader of their country pales entirely against the partisanship in Bush's speech. i also recommend you go to Reagan's speech to the kids. It reads like a litany of Republican priorities and talking points. They are both online: see if you can read them and be objective enough to come to an honest conclusion about who actually proselyltized and who didn't in his speech. There's no contest here about who should get the highest grade for keeping personal agendas and politics out of his speech. As a former teacher, I give Obama an A ; Bush a B-, and Reagan a D-. Maybe Democrats remembered that Reagan piece of blatant propaganda and were not about to be hoodwinked again by Bush, Sr.

By the way, as an educator who sees freedom of speech and the exchange of diverse ideas as a key to opening minds and helping them come to their own conclusions, I would not agree to censor any of the three speeches. It is a decision totally destructive to the free speech our Constitution grants to every American, even to a President elected by the majority of the people. Such suppression is characteristic of tyrannical societies like those who produced the terrorists with whom we are at war.

[FloridaLady131722]

03:15 PM on 09/09/2009

I was watching The View on yesterday when Whoopi said she never seen anyone get so crazy because a President wanted to talk to the school kids. DUH!!!!!!!!! HE IS A BLACK MAN! It is so obvious that people are angry because we have a black president, you people should be ashamed of yourselves. I am a bi-racial woman, born to an Italian mother and a Jamaican Dad. Sometimes I am ashamed to be part caucausian because they are the most hateful and racist race in the entire world. Get off of yourselves, you bleed, you poop and you will die and stink or burn one day. You are no better than my black side. This is all about race. The healthcare, the school, the war. everything. Bush made a mess of this country and all I hear about is how Obama is messing things up. SHUT UP and get off your high racist horses and support this President just like you supported the ignorant Bush. I am so SICK of it!!

[Janetshusb]

01:53 PM on 09/09/2009

The loonie fringe is still at it. Limbaugh, Beck and our local host are saying that the original guide to activities required students to write a letter telling how they could help the president carry out his agenda. They are implying the suggested activities were required and they are adding the phrase 'carry out his agenda'. Furthermore, they are threatening to sue the Secretary of Education for providing the guide because, they say, it is unconstitutional meddling in curriculum. The loonies fail to mention the guide was a list of optional activities for schools and teachers that wanted or needed ideas. THESE PEOPLE ARE A TINY MINORITY AND THEY HAVE DIFFICULTY WITH LOGICAL THINKING. WHY DO WE PUT UP WITH THEM????

[take10]

12:22 PM on 09/09/2009

I just watched a bleach blonde on CNN attempt to explain why she removed her child from a school in Texas to keep her child from hearing and seeing the President's speech. Texas is as big on stupidity as anything else. What an ignorant person who couldn't even come close to a rational reason for her action. I believe she did it just to get on TV. I am amazed that CNN has spent so much time on the negative people while nearly completely ignoring the greater percentage of people who were delighted in having the President address their children. Sensationalism and ratings is what are more important to them than doing the right thing. Al-Craquer is growing in stupidity and overtness. For a child to be made to miss out on a teaching moment such as this is proof that rednecks live by a code of racism and bigotry which can't be overcome. This crap has been spun as an attempt to take over the minds of the white children. As ridiculous as this is, these people have the nerve to display their stupidity of CNN and other media as if they are doing a noble thing. No one can make this chit up. These people are going insane! Now, I have a much better grasp on why they have so much fun tossing cow chit and pig calling!

[CJWebber]

05:52 PM on 09/09/2009

I think I found the blonde:

http://www.thepantaloon.com/

[michyh]

11:47 AM on 09/09/2009

I am a teacher whose students watched with wide eyes beaming.

I can only conclude that as in the musical "South Pacific" it states "You have to be carefully taught to hate."

and for me, if you don't want every student to make it, there's a reason: you like things the way they are and have been. hmmm... what could that possibly mean?

[Tanisa Samuel]

11:43 AM on 09/09/2009

President Obama made such a wonderful speech, I just can't understand why people were fighting against it.

[daedelus]

12:33 PM on 09/09/2009

They were afraid it would be like a speech that one of theirs would have given.

[take10]

12:49 PM on 09/09/2009

The Taliban keep their children out of school in Afghanistan. Al-Craquer keep their children out of school in America. Taliban grow Poppy, Al-Craquer manufacture Methamphetamine. I Told you so! There is not much difference between the two and that includes Al-Qaeda! Ignorance and hatred is all they know. Al-qaeda hates us for our lifestyle, and Al-Craquer hates minorities for their progress, in spite of everything they have done to us to prevent it. They are angry and not worthy of coexisting with people whose concerns of color are confined to matching their attire and their TV picture. I used to pity them, but, they don't deserve that either! Backwoods mentality on a backward spiral. It's almost as if they are trying to win an ignorance trophy.

[take10]

11:33 AM on 09/09/2009

I just watched a bleached blond on CNN attempt to explain why she removed her child from a school in Texas to keep her child from hearing and seeing the President's speech. Texas is as big on stupidity as anything else. What an ignorant person who couldn't even come close to a rational reason for her action. I believe she did it just to get on TV. I am amazed that CNN has spent so much time on the negative people while nearly completely ignoring the greater percentage of people who were delighted in having the President address their children. Sensationalism and ratings is what are more important to them than doing the right thing. Al-Craquer is growing in stupidity and overtness. For a child to be made to miss out on a teaching moment such as this is proof that red necks live by a code of rac ism and bi gotry which can't be overcome. This crap has been spun as an attempt to take over the minds of the white children. As ridiculous as this is, these people have the nerve to display their stupidity of CNN and other media as if they are doing a noble thing. No one can make this chit up. These people are going insane! Now, I have a much better grasp on why they have so much fun tossing cow chit and pig calling!

[jag97PC]

10:09 AM on 09/09/2009

I am glad to hear Obama's speech not include any politics, but stand on an inspirational message to students. I don't doubt that this was his intention all along, and I think the backlash was a little excessive, but understandable.

Before you argue with that, think of the following:
What if you worked for a company that manufactures plastic, and someone who opposed plastics wanted to schedule a speech for you and your coworkers, but didn't tell you the content of what they were going to say? What if they gave you a workbook that asked you how you are going to help the speaker? Would you not assume that it may go with the speaker's positions? or would you assume that this one speech would exist in a vacuum free from other attitudes of the speaker?

Obama could have solved this issue very easily, with something that he ALREADY promised... TRANSPARENCY!

Again, try to follow the whole arguement... the problem was not his willingness to speak, it was not his inspirational message... it was the WORKBOOK, and it was the unwillingness to divulge the content of the speech. Parents can get what the lesson plans are at the beginning of the school year, and if they don't, they should.

That being said, I would have my kids watch, then talk to them about it afterward, agree or disagree, that is how we raise children to be open-minded and able to form their own opinions and decisions.

[brashier]

11:18 AM on 09/09/2009

The speech was released one day in advance, as planned. You can't release a speech earlier than it was written. I don't know of one school in the entire country that didn't allow parents to opt their children out of participation or never showed the speech to begin with.

This was released well in advance of the speech--actually right when it was announced that there'd be a speech at all: "The President will challenge students to work hard, set educational goals, and take responsibility for their learning. He will also call for a shared responsibility and commitment on the part of students, parents and educators to ensure that every child in every school receives the best education possible so they can compete in the global economy for good jobs and live rewarding and productive lives as American citizens."

Do you honestly think the Whitehouse is so sinister as to bamboozle all of America and go completely off topic? Did it occur to you that whatever workbook you're referring to might have something to do with the preset topic of the speech?

I'm guessing the only people surprised about the content of the speech were people with their noses pressed to the screen as Fox news.

[jag97PC]

01:25 PM on 09/09/2009

"I don't doubt that this was his intention all along, and I think the backlash was a little excessive, but understandable."

Over the past few administrations, we have seen politics spill over into a lot of other areas, and it seems to go even further today. Whole Foods Boycotts for an Op-ed piece?

The fact is that any administration will face questions from the opposition. The fact that politics are infiltrating other parts of life, how is it unfair to ask for the detailed content of the speech? Like I said, it is a fair question, and the backlash was excessive. I understand the speech wasn't written, so the skepticism was unfounded, but not unreasonable. I think it called attention to what the topic should be, a focused message on the importance of education. Again, I don't think Obama planned anything sinister, but is it wrong to not advise him away from that possibility?

Remember when your parents said, "Be careful", " Wear your seatbelt", "put on a sweater"? They were anticipating things they weren't sure we, as kids, would account for. The backlash and assumptions of indoctrination were wrong, the quest for the content was not.

[wendy82551]

01:09 PM on 09/09/2009

The workbook was apparently a pr mistake (although Bush I did the same kind of thing), but they withdrew that pretty quickly. Be serious: it wasn't the lesson plan. It was the fact that the yahoos in this country can't conceive of the possibility that a black democrat might NOT be a communist demagogue, intent on taking over the minds of youth. It's a combination of racism and stupidity, pure and simple. These people are spoon fed crap by Fox and Rove and all those a--holes and they're not bright enough to actually analyze what they're told, and actually think about it. They are obsessively frightened about the modern world, seeing pedophiles and atheists (in their minds, two of a kind) around every corner. Half of them aren't even old enough to know what a communist is, but some bozo on Fox yells Commie and they all wet their pants.

I've had it with people trying to put a logical spin on what is basically a combination of racism and stupidity. Look, when I was a kid, I used to watch "Big Brother Bob Emery." "Big Brother," okay? And every day, BIG BROTHER "made" us raise our glasses of chocolate milk in salute to a picture of the PRESIDENT, Dwight Eisenhower, and stand at attention while they played "Hail to the Chief." Now THAT is mind control!!!

[concernvoter]

09:45 AM on 09/09/2009

I think that was so stupid of the parents going against the president speaking to our kids about their education. The true color really came out yesterday. This don't make any sense. We need to learn to get along with each other and give respect to President Obama. Alot of people need realize who help they may need in the future. We should not teach our children to be negative toward blacks nor whites. The students today get along well in the classroom and the old biddies need to stay out of their way. It is time for the prejudice to STOP!!! We need to be there for one another and stop been selfish.

[daedelus]

09:40 AM on 09/09/2009

Bush 41 was a willing puppet installed by the Republican machine to insure that Reagan would avoid prosecution for Iran-Contra. His election was enabled by the sleaziest smear campaign ever waged in American politics. Why indeed would anyone have been skeptical of his motives?

[John Russell]

09:19 AM on 09/09/2009

And how did Dims react when Bush 41 addressed students in 1991?

There held a congressional investigation:

Rep. William Ford, then chairman of the House Education and Labor Committee, ordered the General Accounting Office to investigate the cost and legality of Bush's appearance. On October 17, 1991, Ford summoned then-Education Secretary Lamar Alexander and other top Bush administration officials to testify at a hearing devoted to the speech.

http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/blogs/beltway-confidential/When-Bush-spoke-to-students-Democrats-investigated-held-hearings-57694347.html


HYPOCRITES!

[wendy82551]

01:10 PM on 09/09/2009

Two stupid acts don't cancel each other out. They make two stupid acts.

[RadCenter]

07:08 PM on 09/09/2009

Bush 41 was using the pretext of a speech to children to get free airtime for his administration's education plan right before an election. Apples and oranges comparing this to Obama's speech.

[real1234]

09:16 AM on 09/09/2009

It's funny that watching conservative pundits on TV say now that people see how petty they are, they are now saying that the president altered his speech from the brainwashing message he originally had. These people are beyond ridiculous.