    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2003, Book II)]
    [November 7, 2003]
    [Pages 1485-1490]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    [[Page 1485]]

    Remarks in a Discussion With Students and Faculty at Forsyth Technical
    Community College in Winston-Salem
    November 7, 2003

        The President. Yes, Gary. First, I want to
    thank you very much for being a host. It's not easy to host the
    President and his entourage. [Laughter] But we have an interesting
    opportunity to have a discussion for the country. It's a discussion
    about the importance of education and jobs. It's a discussion about the
    importance of making sure the education system is flexible enough to
    help train people for jobs which exist today and will exist tomorrow. So
    I really want to thank you for hosting this. This is an important
    dialog.
        The economy has obviously taken its toll on parts of North Carolina:
    The manufacturing sector has been hit; the textile industry has been
    hit; people have lost work. And yet in other sectors of the economy,here
    in North Carolina, are growing. And we've got to make sure we're able to
    match the skills and talent and drive of North Carolina citizens with
    the jobs of the future. And a great place to do that is at the community
    colleges here in North Carolina and all around the country. And that's
    really what we're here to herald.
        So I want to thank you for giving me the chance to visit. I look
    forward to hearing our panelists. I want to thank you all for taking
    time out of your day to come and help educate the country about this
    fantastic program and effort you've got right here. So, Dr.
    Green, you're a good man for hosting us, and I
    appreciate it.

    [The discussion continued.]

        The President. That's what I was going to ask. It's very important
    for this type of education to be demand-driven.
        Lucas Shallua. That is correct.
        The President. I remember the old days in Texas. There would be job
    training programs; they really didn't care whether the jobs actually
    existed. All they want to do is make sure you're trained. [Laughter] So
    you end up with, like, 1,500 hairdressers for 25 jobs.
        And so my question to you is--first of all, let me make it clear. On
    the grant, what we're talking about is a $754,000 grant to Forsyth Tech.
    The Congressman gets a lot of credit for
    arranging this because we were very aware that certain sectors of the
    country were losing jobs, see. The job mix is shifting. The economy, as
    it grows, sometimes there's a different shift in the type of jobs
    available. You hear a lot of talk about productivity increases; you
    mentioned productivity increases. A lot of the manufacturing sector is
    seeing job loss because the worker is more productive. In other words,
    an hour of a person's time yields more product, and unless demand
    outstrips productivity, it's a pressure on the job base.
        But productivity increases, by the way, are going to mean higher
    paying jobs. It's important for our economy to have productivity
    increases, because in the long run, it makes a lot of sense. In the
    short run, it creates some dislocation for workers. We're going to hear
    from some in a minute. And the job grant program recognized that this
    part of the world had had some job losses and yet there were some
    wonderful workers and wonderful people who were anxious to be able to
    employ their skills in a field that was actually growing.
        And so my question to you is, is that as you--and the doc here--as
    you have a curriculum change, explain to people how it is demand-driven,
    the curriculum change--in other words, a curriculum that's actually
    relevant to the job base here in the local communities.

    [The discussion continued.]

    [[Page 1486]]

        The President. First of all, I thank you for the credit, but you get
    the credit, see. You're the person that made the decision that you want
    to do something with your life. I can't make that decision for you.
    That's your call to make, and you get the credit. And for that, I
    really--I appreciate that a lot.
        Let me say something about one of the interesting innovations, and
    it's an important innovation, is these one-stop centers that the
    community college system is plugged into. A one-stop center is a place
    where a person such as Scott can go and say,
    ``I've got this interest. What's available?'' You called it up on the
    web, or you used the high-tech world to help bring information to your
    screen. And the one-stop centers are really kind of a innovative idea to
    allow for people to not only find what may be available. In other words,
    they have a look to judge demand for jobs themselves. They say, ``Oh
    look, these people are looking for work here; this industry is looking
    for work here.'' But it also helps people find job training programs.
    It's very important for the community colleges to be plugged into these
    one-stop centers because they become the bridge to the job, become the--
    help create the skill set necessary for someone to access a job. And as
    well one-stop centers have got, like, resume help.
        And so for those out there who are interested in doing what
    Scott and the others up here have done, I
    suggest you go to your regional one-stop centers. You'll find a lot of
    help. The job of the people there is to help you find--match your
    interests or your inclinations with jobs that actually exist.
        I appreciate you bringing it up, Scott. You
    made the decision. You made the decision to go back to school, which
    isn't easy, particularly for an old guy like you, and--[laughter].
        Scott Hiner. Well, there is a lot of
    government help out there. You just have to go find it----
        The President. Yes.
        Mr. Hiner. ----and like I said, I really appreciate it being out
    there.
        The President. Well, I appreciate you saying that. We--as the
    economy changes, as technology changes, the slowest part of change is
    the workforce. And we've just got to understand that we've got to make
    sure our workers--who are the most productive in the world, the hardest
    working people in the world, the finest people in the world--have the
    skills necessary to move on with their lives, and I appreciate the
    example you've set.

    [The discussion continued.]

        The President. Yes. So if somebody is listening right now and they
    say ``biotechnology field,'' how would you describe that? Give somebody
    a sense for what it means. I'm sure there's a lot of people frightened--
    ``biotechnology'' is a long word. It sounds--[laughter]. They may say,
    ``Well, I don't know if I'm smart enough to be in biotechnology,'' or
    ``It sounds too sophisticated, to be in biotechnology.'' It didn't
    frighten you. Why?
        Sandra Moser. Because I was thinking
    pharmaceuticals and things like that, and they're going to teach me. You
    know, they're going to teach me what I need to know. They're not going
    to let me out of there until I know it. [Laughter]
        Gary Green. That's right.
        The President. And how is your education being paid?
        Ms. Moser. Through the TAA.
        The President. Yes, good. Good. TAA is a program like the Pell grant
    program. The good doctor here mentioned Pell grants. People ought to
    take a look at Pell grants. Many of the community college students in
    our country have their education funded by Pell grants. We've
    dramatically increased the funding of Pell grants. It's up to about
    $12.7 billion now on an annual basis, which means people can be able to
    find a grant. These are grants, not loans, by the way.

    [[Page 1487]]

    That's why they're called Pell grants. Otherwise, you know, it's Pell
    loans. [Laughter]

        But the budget is up quite dramatically over the last couple years,
    by 45 percent. The reason I say that is, it's important for people to
    know, as both our friends here have mentioned, that there is a way to
    make sure that you get your--your education is funded if you work hard,
    if you look hard. There's money available, and that's important for
    people to know.

        Thank you. Good job.

    [The discussion continued.]

        Jan Robertson. When you go, like, into a
    doctor's office or something, you get to dictate what the doctor says
    and put it on the computer, and then you get to put it in the file for
    the patient, whatever, so they can understand them, because--have you
    ever seen them write? Do you understand--[laughter].

        The President. Yes, I have. Some people say my writing is worse than
    the doctor's. [Laughter] But I won't take it personally.

        Ms. Robertson. So they need a little help.

        The President. Tell us why are you--what were you doing before you
    came here?

        Ms. Robertson. I was in a textile plant,
    and it went overseas. And I wanted to get--to better myself, so I went
    to the medical field.

        The President. You're a mother?

        Ms. Robertson.  Yes.

        The President. How old is your child?

        Ms. Robertson.  Five.

        The President. Single mom?

        Ms. Robertson.  Yes.

        The President. You've got the toughest job in America.

        Ms. Robertson. Yes.

        The President. Yes, you do. That's good. And so have you started
    class here?

        Ms. Robertson.  Yes, this fall.

        The President. You making all A's?

        Ms. Robertson.  Not quite, but I'm getting
    there. [Laughter]
        The President. People are listening. [Laughter] And so you're
    studying medical transcription.
        Ms. Robertson.  Yes.
        The President. And are you good on the computer?
        Ms. Robertson.  I'm getting better.
        The President. That's good. So that's part of the curriculum.
        Ms. Robertson. Yes.
        The President. And so what has happened here is that they've come
    and they've helped this education institution develop a curriculum that
    is actually practical, so you believe that once you finish the
    curriculum you'll be able to walk right out and sign up for work.
        Ms. Robertson.  Yes, and also it helps you
    where you can do it at your own--at your home.
        The President. Oh, good, so you can do your first job, the most
    important job, which is to be a mother----
        Ms. Robertson.  Yes.
        The President. ----and then be a student.
        Thanks. Congratulations. How is your kid doing, learning to read?
        Ms. Robertson.  Oh, yes.
        The President. That's the most important thing you can do right now,
    is teach your child. Get them to read more than they watch TV. Sorry to
    all the TV cameras out there. [Laughter]

    [The discussion continued.]

        The President. Well, I appreciate you bringing that up. We had a
    recent report out which--this is the beginning of good news for
    jobseekers--over the last 3 months, the economy, the entrepreneurs, the
    private sector, and others, have driven the job base up by 285,000 jobs,
    new jobs, which is good. So in other words, things are beginning to
    brighten up for people looking for work, which is positive. And
    therefore, we must make sure that people are trained for jobs that
    exist.

    [The discussion continued.]

    [[Page 1488]]

        The President. And by the way, as these jobs get more sophisticated,
    in other words, the training level is higher, no question about it. But
    the pay is better. And that's what productivity increases do in a
    society. As our society, particularly North Carolina economy, shifts
    from textiles to biotechnology, the pay gets better. And all we've got
    to do is bridge from the textile sector to the biotechnology sector with
    smart education practices. And that's what we're here talking about.
        It requires--a smart education system requires a community college
    which is flexible in their curriculum. If they're rigid, this good man
    here wouldn't be designing a curriculum. If they were rigid, they
    wouldn't be listening to the employers of the community say, ``Listen,
    this is what we need. We need this kind of person or that kind of
    person.''
        And the reason I'm here is because this is a model for others to
    follow. In other parts of the country there's also workers being
    displaced. And yet, there's great hope and opportunity because there's
    wonderful job opportunity, so long as the training facilities are modern
    and active and not rigid.
        And I want to thank you for understanding that, and I want to thank
    you for listening to people that are looking for workers. But they're
    not looking for just the average worker, they're looking for a trained
    worker. And so therefore, job training programs are essential.
    Government spends about $15 billion a year on job training programs.
        I've got to tell you, though, we need a little help from the
    Congress--Congressman--to make sure that
    there's some flexibility, not on how much money we spend but how we
    spend it. Because these job training programs--he listed about three of
    them already, and for every job training program there's kind of a
    Government prescription with it, which means that the more prescriptive
    programs are, the less flexible they are. And the less flexible job
    training money is, it makes it very difficult to be able to meet the
    needs of the local community.
        And therefore, I'm trying to work with Congress, Doc, to make sure
    that these monies coming out of Washington are able to have enough--have
    as few strings attached as possible, so that the States and the local
    community colleges can apply that money to meet the needs of the local
    employers. And then we'll be able to say for certain that the job
    training initiatives are meeting the needs.
        Yes, but thanks for--thanks for being an entrepreneur.

    [The discussion continued.]

        The President. The job of the Government is to make sure that the
    entrepreneurial spirit of America is strong, to make sure that people
    feel comfortable in taking risk, that they're willing to start a small
    business and grow it to a big business. And one of the interesting
    aspects of making sure the entrepreneurial spirit is strong is tax
    policy. And there's been a lot of talk--you've heard, I'm sure, the talk
    about the tax relief. Hopefully, you've seen some of it in your pockets,
    like increasing that child credit for your 5-year-old. But what's
    interesting is that most small businesses are sole proprietorships or
    Subchapter S corporations. That's when they're startups. I'm sure you've
    seen that here in North Carolina. And as a result, when you--these are
    companies that pay tax at the individual income tax rate, so that when
    you cut taxes on the individual, you're also providing capital infusion
    into small businesses.
        And one of the very important things for our Government to do is to
    also understand there needs to be certainty in the Tax Code. If you're a
    planner, an entrepreneur, in any field, you've got to know that the tax
    policy today is likely to be the tax policy tomorrow, because
    uncertainty creates--difficult to plan, and therefore, makes it
    difficult for people to hire.
        And so one of the things I'm going to ask Congress to do is make
    sure all this

    [[Page 1489]]

    tax relief we pass is permanent. See, it goes away. She, unfortunately,
    is going to have to pay--receive less money in her child credit if they
    don't make the tax relief permanent. The small-business owner, if they
    don't make the tax relief permanent, will have to pay a inheritance tax
    or death tax on the business they've created, which I don't think is
    fair. I think you should only be taxed once, not twice. The marriage
    penalty relief is--it's going to go away. And it's important that there
    be certainty in order to make sure this economy continues to grow.
        I want to thank you for bringing up the entrepreneurial spirit.
    That's the thing that makes America such a wonderful place, the kind of
    place where people, if you have a dream, are able to realize your dream.
    That applies not only to the business owner, the person coming to the
    Research Triangle, the person who thinks they've got a better idea than
    their neighbor and is willing to put a little something out there, time
    and capital, on the line. It also applies to our workers, people who
    have got their own dreams, their own set of dreams, the dream of making
    sure the child grows up in a wonderful little comfortable, peaceful
    household. And our job in the Government is to help people realize their
    dreams. That's really what it is. We can't make people dream, but we can
    help people once they start to dream.
        And I thank you all for the compliments on the Government. But the
    compliments really belong here. See, you're doing what needs to be done.
    And that's why I've got such wonderful optimism about our country. I'm
    very optimistic about the fact that we'll keep the peace. I'm very
    optimistic about the fact that people will find work, because there's a
    wonderful spirit here in America.
        I met this guy right there. See him? Put
    your hand up. He's a volunteer firefighter. Well, not you, Burr. [Laughter] He's a volunteer firefighter. He came out
    to the airport to say hello. It's an interesting concept, isn't it,
    volunteer firefighters, people volunteering to put their lives on the
    line in order to save lives.
        I recently went out to California. I explained it to him when I was
    at the airport. A lot of people on the frontlines in the fire out there
    were volunteers. The reason I bring that up is, it should remind us that
    the strength of the country is not our military, is not our pocketbooks;
    it's the heart and soul of people. The entrepreneurial spirit is the
    strength of the country. The willingness for people to volunteer in a
    fire department is the strength of the country. And once you realize how
    strong this country is in spirit, you can't help but be optimistic about
    the future.
        Thank you for having me here, Doc. Listen, I want to thank you all
    for sharing your stories. It's not easy to stand up in front of all
    these cameras. I know. [Laughter] Although the cameramen are fine
    people. But it's--you were able to help us make a point, that people who
    have lost work should have hope, that with a little initiative, a little
    ingenuity, a little drive, there's help for you. The economy's growing,
    new jobs are being created. And we--there's an opportunity, and I hope
    you seize it. I hope you seize it, because there's a wonderful,
    wonderful future ahead for people who may at this moment think their
    days are--the future is a little dark. And we've got three citizens
    right up here who are willing to see the--can see that bright light. So
    thanks for coming.
        Thank you all for coming.

    Note: The discussion began at 1:05 p.m. Participants in the discussion
    included: Gary M. Green, president, Lucas D. Shallua, biotechnology
    program coordinator, and Scott Hiner, Sandra Moser, and Jan Robertson,
    students, Forsyth Technical Community College; Richard Dean, president,
    Wake Forest University Health Sciences; and William Dean, president,
    Idealliance. In his remarks, the President also referred to
    Representative Richard Burr of North Carolina; and Brian

    [[Page 1490]]

    Koontz, fire chief, County Line Volunteer Fire Department.