    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2002, Book II)]
    [August 29, 2002]
    [Pages 1502-1509]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks at the Parkview Arts and Science Magnet High School in
     Little Rock, Arkansas
    August 29, 2002

        Thanks for receiving me. I'm honored to be here at Parkview. I
    appreciate the Patriots band playing. I'm sorry I missed it. They tell
    me it's one of the best in the State.
        I want to thank my friend Mike Huckabee
    for introducing me. I appreciate his leadership. As you'll hear here in
    a second, we've got some interesting initiatives taking place in
    Arkansas, because of the determination by this State and by this
    Government to set high expectations for every child.
        I want to thank very much Rod Paige
    for his leadership. You know, when I was

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    trying to determine who to pick as the Secretary of Education, I wanted
    somebody who actually had been an educator. They've got a lot of
    theorists in Washington. I wasn't interested in theory; I was interested
    in results. And Rod was running the largest school district in our
    State, the Houston Independent School District. And he did a fine job,
    and I figured if he could handle the Houston Independent School
    District, the Department of Education was nothing. [Laughter] And so I
    want to thank Rod for being here. I appreciate his leadership. He
    understands the role of principal and superintendent.
        Speaking about principal, I want to thank Dr. Brown, Linda
    Brown, for her hospitality and all the folks at
    this fine school for making this event--or setting up this event, giving
    us a chance to come. I fully understand the Presidential entourage can
    be a burden sometimes. But you handled it well. And Linda, thank you
    very much--appreciate you.
        I want to thank Senator Tim Hutchinson
    for coming; Congressman Vic Snyder and
    Congressman John Boozman, three members of the
    Arkansas Federal delegation. I appreciate you all being here today.
    Thanks for your hospitality. I appreciate so very much Lieutenant
    Governor Win Rockefeller for joining us here
    today as well. I want to thank your mayor, Jim Dailey, for being here. Mr. Mayor, thank you for your
    hospitality. I appreciate so very much Ray Simon,
    who's the director of the Arkansas Department of Education; Dr. Steve
    Franks, who's the director of the Arkansas
    Workforce Education; and Ken James, who's the
    superintendent of Little Rock schools.
        We had the honor--I had the honor of meeting them and talking to
    them and visiting about how best to implement a strategy that not only
    encourages every child to learn but a strategy that continues to raise
    the standards, that raises the bar. I found the visit to be extremely
    worthwhile, and I hope they did as well.
        I'm here to talk about education. Before I do so, I want to remind
    people we've got a lot of challenges ahead of us here in America. One of
    the things that's very important as we confront those challenges is to
    never forget about education. See, the big challenge we have now is to
    make sure the enemy doesn't hit us again. That's a big challenge. I want
    the students to understand here why someone would want to hurt America
    in the first place. And it's because your country loves freedom; that's
    why. We love freedom. We love the freedom to worship. See, we value the
    idea of being able to--people being able to worship freely an almighty
    God. That's what we value in America. And we're not going to change.
        We value the idea of people being free to succeed. See, each life
    matters in America; everybody has worth. And yet the enemy, they hate
    what we love. They don't--they don't respect innocence. Life doesn't
    mean anything to them. They've hijacked a great religion in order to
    spread their hate. So long as we love freedom, there's going to be this
    enemy out there.
        And so my biggest job, my most important job as your President, is
    to secure our homeland, is to do everything we can, everything in our
    power, to make sure that you're safe and your families are safe. But
    it's even more than that--to make sure you can grow up in a free
    society, to make sure that you have the same freedoms that I enjoyed
    when I was growing up. That's the job at hand.
        And let me tell you what we're doing about it. We're working at all
    levels of government to run down any lead, any hint, any evidence that
    somebody might be fixing to try to do something to America. There's a
    lot of really fine people at the Federal and State and local level who
    are working hard to protect you, working hard to do anything we can to
    disrupt what might be a plan to hurt America or Americans.
        I've asked the Congress recently to help me meet this task by
    setting up what we

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    call a Department of Homeland Security. So when you hear talk about the
    Department of Homeland Security, it's really meant to make sure that we
    coordinate at the Federal level all these agencies involved with some
    sense of homeland security. See, prior to September the 11th, we never
    really had a focus for securing our homeland; now we do.
        And the best way to make sure everybody involved with homeland
    security is focused on this number one priority is to put them under one
    Department. And it's moving along okay. Seems to be a few roadblocks in
    the way--some are more interested in their own political turf than they
    are in the security of the American people, and they're worried about
    special interests as opposed to the security of the people. But I'm
    confident that by working together, that we'll get us a Homeland
    Security Department that will actually function, that will have
    flexibility, that will allow us to move people to where they need to be.
    I mean, we need to enforce our border in this new day. We need to
    understand who's coming in, what they're bringing, and whether they're
    leaving when they say they're leaving, for the sake of homeland
    security. And I need the flexibility to be able to do that. And I want
    to be able to report to you that we do have the capacity to do
    everything in our power to protect you. It's my number one priority.
        But you all have got to understand the best way to protect the
    homeland security is to chase these killers, these people down one by
    one and bring them to justice, which is precisely what our Government is
    going to do. I say ``justice'' because we don't seek revenge; we seek
    justice. We seek justice. And you need to know that when we go into a
    country to enforce a doctrine--see, there was a doctrine that said: ``If
    you harbor a terrorist, if you feed a terrorist, if you hide a
    terrorist, you're just as guilty as the terrorist.'' But when we went to
    enforce that doctrine, this great country didn't go in as conquerors; we
    went in to liberate, and we liberated a country from the clutches of a
    barbaric regime. It's hard for any American to understand this, but many
    young girls never went to school because of these people. And now,
    thanks to America and our friends and allies, they're going to school.
    We're liberators, not conquerors, here in America. Every life matters,
    whether it be an American life or the life of an Afghan girl.
        And we've got a lot of work ahead of us. See, you all are growing up
    in an era with a different kind of war. You used to be able to tell the
    strength and size of the enemy by counting his tanks or his airplanes.
    These haters are the types that, since they don't value innocent life,
    are willing to bomb indiscriminately. And they hide in caves and send
    youngsters to their suicidal death. That's the nature of the enemy.
        But they have picked on a country which is a strong country, a
    country which, because we love our freedoms, is a country that's patient
    and tough and resolved to do what it takes to define history in a way
    that is--that values your life and your freedoms. And that's what this
    country is going to do.
        We've got a big task at hand. I just wanted you to know. I want to
    give you an update so that when you read the newspapers or watch
    television about this war, that it's a different kind of war. The war
    goes on, and it's a war the United States is going to win.
        These are big challenges for our country. These are big challenges
    for this great Nation, but we'll meet the challenges. And we've got
    another big challenge--is to make sure every child gets educated. That's
    a huge and significant challenge for our country. And notice I said
    ``every child''; I didn't say just a handful of children here or maybe
    just those who go to suburban school districts. I said ``every child,''
    and I mean every single child in America. And it starts with setting
    high standards. It starts with believing that every child can learn.

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    It's a mindset that's essential for this country.
        See, if you believe that only certain children can learn--in other
    words, if you have low standards--you're going to get low results. If
    you set the bar low, that's exactly what you're going to get. You're
    going to get mediocrity. So the mindset has got to be that every child
    can learn. It's a mindset you have here in Arkansas, by the way. You do;
    you believe it. I can feel it. I've been to this--this isn't my first
    time to go to an Arkansas school. Certainly you've got it at this
    school. The Patriots believe every child can learn.
        That starts with the leadership of the principal. Really fine
    schools have always had a fine principal. It starts with the
    understanding of your teachers. And for the teachers who are here, I
    want to thank you for teaching. It's a noble profession and an important
    profession.
        It also is a mindset necessary for the moms and dads of Arkansas and
    America. The moms and dads have got to understand that they should
    expect the best for their children. They ought to set high standards.
        There's another part of this philosophy that matches what I just
    said, and that is, who best to trust when it comes to meeting those
    standards. See, I've learned something firsthand--I kind of always knew
    it, but not all the smart people in the world live in Washington--
    [laughter]--a lot of smart ones right here in Little Rock. As a matter
    of fact, the people who care more about the children of Little Rock,
    Arkansas, are the citizens of Little Rock, Arkansas. And therefore, the
    cornerstone of good education policy ought to be to trust the citizens
    of Little Rock, Arkansas, to chart the path for excellence for every
    child. That's called local control of schools.
        This new bill I had the honor of signing--and by the way, I reminded
    some people earlier, I was traveling the country with Senator
    Kennedy of Massachusetts. We were an odd
    couple in some people's mind. [Laughter] But nevertheless, we both share
    the same vision of high standards and trust in the local people. He was
    a supporter of this bill. And I had the honor of signing it. I pushed it
    as well.
        And a secondary--a third part of the philosophy is this, and this is
    a very important part of the philosophy. It says: If you believe every
    child can learn, then you want to know whether every child is learning.
    See, if you believe every child can learn, then it's important to have
    an accountability system which tells us whether every child is learning.
    I've heard it all. I'm sure--some of the students are saying, ``All he
    wants to do is test us all the time. I don't like tests.'' Well, too
    bad. [Laughter] We want to know. How do you know whether or not every
    child is learning unless you measure? You got to measure in order to
    know. In order to correct problems early, before they're too late, you
    must measure.
        See, accountability will serve as confirmation as to whether or not
    the curriculum is working. It will serve as confirmation as to whether
    or not your teacher-training programs are working. It will serve as
    confirmation as to whether or not children are learning the basics of
    education.
        And so we have--we say, ``In return for Federal money, show us. Show
    us whether or not kids are learning to read and write and add and
    subtract. Show us whether or not the minimum is being met,'' because
    every child matters in America. Every child matters, and--as we named
    this bill--no child should be left behind. The name of the bill is No
    Child Left Behind, and I meant no child.
        And so, therefore, we've got this philosophy in place that the
    Governor has been working on, and your States
    have been working on, and there's--in an accountability system there are
    consequences. If the State is unable to meet standards, if a school
    can't meet State standards after a period of time, something has to
    happen. In other words, you can't leave children trapped in schools that
    won't teach and won't change. And so one of the things

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    that's going to happen is public school choice or after-school tutoring.
        In other words, every child matters, and therefore, when a child is
    trapped in a school that's not changing, the parents have got to know
    something is going on. There's a consequence. It's not meant to punish
    anybody. It's meant to save lives. Every child counts. And so,
    therefore, what Arkansas is beginning to do as they develop standards
    and accountability--a scorecard to let us all know who's succeeding and
    who needs improvement--you've got an after-school tutoring program
    that's cranking up. And I want to thank the Governor for that. And I want to thank the commissioner of
    education for that. It is a way to assure the parents and enforce to the
    children that somebody cares about them. If you're deficient, you need
    help, and this good bill we passed provides that help for the State of
    Arkansas. And you all are on the forefront of that.
        You know, one of the interesting things, one of the initial grants
    we gave out was for reading. Reading is a civil right. See, reading is
    the new civil right in the 21st century. It's important for our citizens
    to understand that if you can't read, it's going to be hard to make it
    in America. If you cannot read, you've got a problem. And if you can't
    read in the fourth grade, it's likely you're not going to be able to
    read in the eighth grade. And we've got to get it right, folks, early,
    before it's too late. Accountability will tell us whether or not the
    curriculum you're using makes sense.
        And there is a science to reading. It's not an art. It's a science.
    We know what works and what doesn't work. And so part of this no child
    left behind--we have what we call the Reading First program, with
    significant grants to States, to get people up to speed, to get them to
    the starting line. To make sure the accountability system has got merit,
    every child has got to be reading early.
        And the State of Arkansas has got a reading program based upon sound
    research and a reading program that has been proven to be effective. And
    so you've got one of the first Reading First grants in this State, by
    the way. And it's going to make a huge difference in the lives of your
    children. And I want to appreciate very much those who are working on
    making sure that the minimum is met--no child is left behind. But the
    minimum is not good enough for America. See, we don't believe in the
    minimum in this country; we believe in the maximum.
        We've got to aim higher. We need to challenge every student--I don't
    mean just the top 10; I mean every student needs to be challenged. We've
    got to make sure that people understand, starting with the parents, by
    the way, that they ought to challenge their children to take the
    toughest classes possible. That's what we have to do. You can get people
    up to the minimum, but that's not good enough. We've got to provide
    people to continue to challenge themselves.
        I talked to three fine students today, two from this school and one
    from another school, talking about the need to be challenged. We heard
    from--we heard that many times parents don't really understand the
    significance of challenging--of having their students taking challenging
    courses, that many students--and maybe you all are some of them here--
    say, ``Well, I don't want to take a tough course. See, I can't pass
    that. Only the really smart people take the tough courses, and I don't
    happen to be all that smart. Therefore, I'm not going to take it.'' I
    doubt that's the case in this school, but there are schools where that's
    the case.
        Or you hear students saying, ``Don't take the tough courses. It will
    make you a nerd.'' [Laughter] You're missing out if that's the way you
    think. See, you're missing an opportunity. It's an opportunity lost. It
    is not in your self-interest that you think for such low standards. And
    I want the parents of this State and across the country to understand
    that the minimum isn't acceptable for

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    your children. And there's a way to achieve--there's a way to achieve
    something significant in this State, and I want to talk to you about an
    interesting program that we actually tried in Texas that worked.
        But it's to the citizens' advantage not only that we raise standards
    and challenge students--you've got colleges where they're teaching
    remedial reading--not only colleges in Arkansas but around the country.
    That's not right, see. You don't want your higher education systems to
    be remedial education systems. If you want the best for your citizens--
    and I presume everybody in this State does--then we've got to get it
    right early and make sure that we continue to challenge our students.
    One reason I came here is because this is a school that challenges the
    students in two incredibly important subjects, math and science and, of
    course, the arts as well.
        But today I want to talk about what we're creating in Arkansas,
    called the Center for State Scholars. It's the first of five States that
    had been chosen. Again, you were chosen because you've got a Governor
    who cares; you've got people who care; you believe in setting high
    standards. And here's the way it works. The first thing that happens is
    that the business community, which is--and the catalyst will be what
    they call the Business Roundtable, which is a national group of large
    employers--comes together, and they start becoming involved in the
    school--Little Rock school district, for example. And they start
    interviewing children in eighth grade about their ambitions and
    explaining reality. If you don't have any ambitions, the minimum wage
    job isn't going to get you to where you want to get, for example. In
    other words, ``What is your ambitions? And oh, by the way, if that is
    your ambition, here's what it's going to take to achieve it.'' It's kind
    of a reality check.
        And again, I'll repeat to you, the meetings don't take place with
    just A students. Every student--every student is going to be contacted.
    Every student is going to be involved. And then what happens is, is that
    they start promoting advance courses. In other words, it's a practical
    application of reality to what must take place in the classrooms.
        It sounds so simple, but it works, by the way. We've seen it work in
    Texas. I mean, thousands of students have been challenged to take AP
    courses. Thousands of students who didn't really realize the value of
    raising the bar have gone--taken extra credits and have learned new
    language. I mean, it is an effective way to spread the word to parent
    and student alike that if you're interested in your future, raise the
    bar. Take the toughest courses. That, in itself, has a positive effect
    on the schools.
        See, I believe teachers want the very best. I believe they love the
    thought when students say, ``Teach me more. Raise the standards for me,
    please.'' This is going to be a positive thing for the State of
    Arkansas, I can assure you. The Texas Scholars curriculum score--Texas
    Scholars score 102 points higher on the SAT than their counterpart. By
    the way, this is thousands of students, not just a handful. Those who
    have completed physics and pre-calculus are now up by 50 percent since
    the program was started 10 years ago. It works, and it's going to be
    implemented here in Arkansas.
        One of the reasons I've come is not only to herald the need for good
    education but to talk about this center right here in your State. I call
    upon your business community to participate. The grants that we're
    issuing from the Federal Government will help kind of bring people
    together, help people understand what it takes to make this program
    successful. It takes business participation. It takes a willing school
    district. It takes a State that's willing to facilitate. It takes
    parents who care, and it takes students willing to listen. And it's
    going to happen here in Arkansas. And as a result of this program, I
    firmly believe when you implement it, your great State is going to

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    be better off. You'll shine. You'll be a beacon for others to see what
    is possible.
        I want to talk about one other thing, if you don't mind. Here's how
    I think. Out of the evil done to America is going to come some
    incredible good. And I want our students to hear that. Out of the evil--
    and make no mistake, what was done on September the 11th was evil--is
    going to come some good. I believe the world will be more peaceful. And
    you just need to know that that's the game--that's the goal, is peace in
    this world, not only peace here at home but peace in parts of the world
    where people have quit on peace, peace in parts of the world where
    people have said peace is impossible. I think it is. That's the vision I
    have. And I know by leading in that direction that we can achieve peace.
    I believe that.
        And here at home we can have a more compassionate America. I don't
    know what went into the minds of the people that attacked us. They
    probably said, ``Well, this country is so self-absorbed and so
    materialistic and so selfish that nothing would happen. Oh, they may
    file a lawsuit or two, but other than that, they're so weak, nothing
    would happen''--is what they probably thought. And they're learning
    something else about America. See, they're learning the true character
    of the country.
        Not only are we tough when we need to be tough, not only are we
    patient when we need to be patient, but we're a compassionate country.
    That's what they're learning. See, people understand that being a
    patriot is now--now they understand is more than just putting your hand
    over your heart. See, a patriot is loving a neighbor just like you'd
    like to be loved yourself. If you want to join the war on terror, do
    some good.
        There are pockets of despair and hopelessness and addiction in this
    good country. There just are. And when one of us hurts, we all hurt.
    Now, my view of Government is, Government can hand out money--and it
    can, and it does quite often, I might add --[laughter]--but what it
    cannot do is put hope in people's hearts or a sense of purpose in
    people's lives. That happens when a loving soul says, ``I love you,'' to
    somebody in need. That's when that happens. It happens when somebody
    puts their arm around a child and says, ``What can I do to make your
    life better? How can I mentor you? How can I help?''
        My call to the seniors and juniors and sophomores here is to
    understand that serving something greater than yourself in life is a
    part of being an American. And when the enemy hit us, a lot of good
    folks stepped back and said, ``What is life worth? What do we need to
    do? How can I help? How can I serve?'' Service is a part of being a
    responsible citizen. Service to somebody in need is part of being a
    whole person.
        Today I had the honor of meeting Connie Melton, who greeted me at Air Force One. She's a graduate of
    Parkview Arts and Science Magnet School. She is the founder of the
    Arkansas affiliate for Dress for Success, which provides suits and
    business attire to low-income women trying to enter the workforce. I met
    her at the airport. I said, ``How are you doing?'' She said, ``We've
    helped over 100--100--people already.'' She's been in business, I think
    she said, a little over a year. One hundred lives have been changed, she
    said, through the simple act of providing somebody with some decent
    clothes to help them out.
        You see, our society hurts in many places, but it can change. It can
    change, one heart, one soul at a time. And while we all realize one of
    us can't do everything, one of us can do something to be a part of
    helping change those hearts and souls. Connie Melton, citizen, soldier in the army of compassion, didn't
    need a Government law to tell her to step forward. She listened to a
    universal call, something much higher than Government. And she's
    affecting the community in which she lives in such an incredibly
    positive and hopeful way.

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    Connie, thank you for coming--appreciate you being here.
        The reason I appreciate so very much Connie coming is, I want all of us, older and younger alike,
    to realize one person can make a difference. And I hope you do. I hope
    the youngsters here aim high and shoot high. I hope you set high
    standards for yourself and work hard. I hope you make the right choices
    in life. But I also hope you understand that here in America, helping
    somebody in need doesn't take all that much, but by doing so, you can
    help set the true face of compassion for this great Nation.
        It is my honor to come to this wonderful school. I wish you all the
    best. May God bless you all, and may God bless America.

    Note: The President spoke at 2:55 p.m. in the school's auditorium. In
    his remarks, he referred to Gov. Mike Huckabee of Arkansas. The Office
    of the Press Secretary also released a Spanish language transcript of
    these remarks.