    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George H. W. Bush (1991, Book I)]
    [June 3, 1991]
    [Pages 599-601]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks to the National Education Goals Panel
    June 3, 1991

        Well, thank you very much, Governor Romer. And what I really wanted
    to do is to come over and join my colleagues from the Department of
    Education--particularly our Secretary--in thanking this busy and
    distinguished group of Governors who are taking the lead on our
    educational reform.
        Roy, at the outset, thank you, sir, as chairman. And let me say, we
    are enthused over your concept of this interim council--very much so--
    and delighted that you and Carroll are willing to undertake that
    commitment.
        I'm pleased to be here with the National Education Goals Panel as
    you tackle tough work on behalf of the entire country. And all of us
    feel that you're doing a great job. And I want especially to thank the
    Governors who spent so much of the past year traveling--as Roy said--
    around the country and traveling to Washington to deal with this
    challenging assignment. We all owe a great debt to Governor Romer and to
    his colleagues for their important work on this panel. And so, thank you
    all very, very much.
        You know, there are only a few moments in our lives when we are
    called upon to join a crusade, and I honestly believe this is one of
    them. We have a crisis in American education, and we've simply got to do
    something about it.
        I just came from a meeting with the National Federation of
    Independent Businesses, NFIB. And I talked to them about economic
    growth--something we can't achieve without an educated, motivated work
    force. Education is vital to everything we are and everything we can
    become. But look at the facts. Eight years ago, the National Commission
    on Excellence in Education published its powerful indictment of our
    schools. And yet today, ours is still, remember, a ``nation at risk.''
        And at the same time, we remain devoted to education. If you talk to
    parents, you'll hear that nothing is more important. No nation on Earth
    believes as deeply as we do in the value and the importance of
    education. People from coast to coast have begun the hard work of
    educational reform.
        I had an inspiring day with Lamar out in Minnesota the other day.
    You could just feel their commitment to revolutionary new methods in
    this one little corner of our great country.
        The nonpartisan Federal-State--and let me emphasize that word again,
    nonpartisan--Federal-State partnership brought this issue to the
    forefront of the national agenda a couple of years ago. And we brought
    the Nation's Governors together, or they came together with us for an
    unprecedented education summit at the home of Thomas Jefferson, a true
    education President. The Governors weren't worried about their place in
    history. They came to work. And as they did, a compact emerged, one that
    rests not on flowery promises but on a challenge to raise our
    expectations and achieve concrete results.
        We resolved then to become an America of tougher standards, higher
    goals, and bigger dreams. And 5 months later, after reaching out to
    educators and parents and civic leaders, the Governors and I adopted six
    national education goals for the year 2000. This audience is familiar
    with them, but let me click them off: readiness for school; school
    completion; student achieve-

    [[Page 600]]

    ment and citizenship; science and math supremacy; adult literacy and
    lifetime learning; and safe, drug-free schools.
        And these goals were in our minds as we developed one of the
    administration's most exciting initiatives, a comprehensive educational
    reform challenge known as America 2000. America 2000 calls for a
    revolution in American education. It challenges all Americans to raise
    expectations, to pledge genuine accountability, and above all, to create
    a new generation of American schools. It sets out to transform a nation
    at risk into a nation of students. And it urges everyone to make our
    communities places where learning will happen.
        And now we're here with a team that figures prominently in the
    America 2000 game plan, the National Education Goals Panel. The panel's
    charge is to hold us accountable. It will report on the Nation's and the
    States' progress toward meeting our education goals. In meetings with
    educational experts and in regional forums across the country, this,
    again, nonpartisan panel has already launched a national dialog about
    how to measure our own educational progress.
        I know that the members were hard at work earlier today, defining
    the first education report card to the Nation. And they'll issue that
    report in September, on the second anniversary of the education summit.
    This and subsequent reports will do more than simply monitor our
    progress. They will use our new national standards. They will supply
    clear direction to our efforts. And they will help promote
    accountability and promote excellence.
        This panel's work will hold a mirror up to the Nation and force us
    to take an honest look at ourselves and at our schools. And when we look
    in that mirror, we'll see that our actions can and will make a
    difference.
        So, that's where we are right now, poised to rise to the challenge.
    But there's something else. National Assessment of Educational Progress,
    known as NAEP, is about to release a report. It will tell us what we
    already know, that we have work to do. It will show that the level of
    student performance varies widely across the country and that we're not
    measuring up.
        I want to talk directly to every parent, student, teacher, and
    administrator, and elected official in this country. When you see the
    NAEP--N-A-E-P--when you see the NAEP report, view it as evidence that we
    need high national standards to serve as an incentive for every student.
    View it as a personal call to accountability and to action. This panel
    will. It will use this assessment as its benchmark, a reminder of what
    we must achieve.
        It will take a long time. For instance, this panel's charge is for a
    decade. And it will take a lot of tough work. It will take energy and
    determination and imagination. But those are the building blocks of the
    American spirit.
        But we're armed for this battle. Fortunately, our kids give us a
    great secret weapon. They are the best natural resource of any nation on
    Earth. We've seen our young people perform in the Persian Gulf, and
    we've seen what they can do. And they inspire us to reinvent our
    educational system. We must forge a system worthy of them. We've got to
    create a system that will help them compete in the world of the 21st
    century and one that will let them be the very best in that world. They
    can be the best, and they will be the best.
        Teachers--bless them--also provide an incredible resource, like
    teacher Danford Sakai of Waiakea High School. He summed up what we need
    in this battle when he called for ``commitment, caring, common sense,
    communication, and courage.''
        I really, Governor Romer, want to thank this panel on behalf of the
    country. Your meeting certainly makes this an important day, a concrete
    beginning and pledge of commitment. You are our navigator, guiding us
    toward this new world of standards of excellence in education.
        And as we prepare to confront what may be the most pressing crisis
    of our society, a favorite quote comes to mind: ``Whatever you can do--
    or dream you can do--begin it. For boldness has genius, power, and magic
    in it.''
        We can respond to that call together. We can dream bold dreams and
    unleash the power and magic that are, indeed, the genius of the American
    spirit. And that's how we can reinvent American education.

    [[Page 601]]

        Thank you all very much for giving your time to your country in this
    manner. We are very, very grateful to you. And may God bless our
    country. Thank you so much.

                        Note: The President spoke at 1:30 p.m. in the
                            Independence ``A'' Ballroom of the Grand Hyatt
                            Hotel. In his remarks, he referred to Gov. Roy
                            Romer of Colorado, chairman of the panel;
                            Secretary of Education Lamar Alexander; and Gov.
                            Carroll A. Campbell, Jr., of South Carolina, a
                            member of the panel.