[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2004, Book I)]
[February 13, 2004]
[Pages 213-219]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]
Remarks in a Discussion on Parental Options and School Choice
February 13, 2004
The President. Thank you, John.
Listen, I'm thrilled to be here. I love to come to centers of
excellence. This high school is a center of excellence. It is a school
that--I was so pleased to hear that 98 percent of the senior class will
be going on to higher education. That is a--I would say that's what's
called dashing false expectations, is the best way to put it.
See, I would suspect that prior to coming to a place that demanded
high standards and high excellence, people would say, ``Well, these
certain kids can't learn.'' See, there's an attitude in our society that
maybe certain children can't learn, so therefore let's have a system
that just shuffles them through. But not at this school. This school
believes in the worth and value of every child, that every child can
learn. And therefore, this school is not afraid to raise expectations
and set glorious heights and demand excellence. And as a result, you've
achieved a startling achievement: 98 percent of the high school seniors
are going to higher education.
I want to congratulate you and congratulate Jim, congratulate the teachers, congratulate the parents
but, most importantly, congratulate the students. I appreciate you
setting goals and making the right choices to achieve those goals.
This is a fabulous high school. It's a great place to come and talk
about the expectations of our society. It's a great place to come and
talk about how we can encourage people to achieve new heights. It's a
good way to--it's a good place to come and talk about how you challenge
the status quo when the status quo is promoting mediocrity. So thank you
for letting me come.
I appreciate so very much the Secretary of Education being here. He's going to say some words in a minute. You
know, when I was looking for a Secretary of Education, I wasn't
interested in finding a theorist, somebody who talked about the
philosophy of the education or talking about somebody--trying to find
somebody who has actually done it. And he was the superintendent of
schools in Harris County, which is Houston, Texas. He understands the
philosophy behind the law that we just passed a year ago, a law I'm
going to talk a little bit about. He's doing a great job. He's a good,
sound man. I've known him for a long time. I'm proud that he's serving
us. Thank you for coming, Rod. I'm glad you're here.
I noticed Tom Davis and Rodney
Frelinghuysen, who are with us today,
Members of the United States Congress, who pushed for the initiative I'm
going to
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describe. They're educational entrepreneurs. This is good legislation.
I'm really proud of the work that you two gentleman have done on behalf
of citizens and parents of this--of Washington, DC. It's really good
legislation, and I want to thank you for your efforts.
The Lieutenant Governor from Maryland, Michael Steele, is with us. He's a graduate of this fine high
school. I appreciate you coming, Michael.
I appreciate his Excellency Kevin Farrell for coming, and please give Cardinal McCarrick my very best. There's no finer person in
our country than Cardinal McCarrick, and I'm proud to call him friend.
He's a decent, decent man. The bishop said that he was in Kosovo, and--
spreading love and American good will. No better person to do so than
Cardinal McCarrick, by the way.
Patty Weitzel-O'Neill is the
superintendent. Thank you, Patty, for your hospitality. Elfreda
Massie is the interim superintendent of DC
public schools. Elfreda, thank you for being here. I want to assure you
that the message you're going to hear today is one that says that all
systems can achieve excellence. I believe that. I think it's very
important for us to work not only in DC but around the country for a
public school system that promotes excellence for every single child.
And I want to thank you for your leadership and your willingness to take
on a tough assignment. I appreciate you coming.
And I want to thank the chairman of the board of the school. One of
the toughest jobs in America is to be on the school board. You get all
the complaints and none of the glory. But thank you and the board
members for being here.
I, again, want to thank the students so very much. We passed an
interesting piece of legislation a couple of years ago called the No
Child Left Behind Act. I love the sound of that because that's what I
believe society must strive for. No child should be left behind. That
kind of says some child or children may be being left behind, doesn't
it? If the admonition is ``no child left behind,'' maybe some are, and I
think they have been. And one of the reasons I think they have is
because I don't think we've set the bar high enough.
This society of ours must challenge what I've called the low--the
soft bigotry of low expectations. That means when you lower the bar,
when you don't believe in the human potential of a person, you're likely
to get lousy results. So I think we need to raise the bar everywhere,
just like you've done here at Archbishop High, to challenge every child.
Then I think you've got to measure. See, I don't know how you know
whether or not you're achieving excellence if you're not willing to
measure. I hear people say around the country, ``I don't like tests.''
Well, I didn't like them either--[laughter]--you know? But that's just
the way it is. If you're going to try to figure out whether a child can
learn to read and write and add and subtract early in life, you better
measure. You better find out early, before it's too late.
A society that doesn't want to leave any child behind is a society
which says, ``Show me whether or not the curriculum is working. Show me
whether or not the school is doing what it's supposed to be doing.'' I
suspect Archbishop High is good because it not only sets the bar, but
you're willing to measure. And when you find a child that needs help,
you provide that child help.
That ought to be the--that ought to be the paradigm, to use a fancy
word, for every school district in America. We need to raise the bar.
And so what we said here in Washington, DC, is we're willing to spend
more money, particularly on Title I students. But for the first time,
the Federal Government is asking the question, ``Can you show us whether
or not we're achieving objectives?''
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You see, we're tired of children being just shuffled through. It's
time now to determine whether or not we're meeting the goal of, for
example, every child reading at grade level by the third grade. That's
not too much to ask, is it, for a society, to be able to read at grade
level by third grade?
So we set the goal. Now it's up to the school district to show us
whether or not we're meeting the goal, and if not, there's extra money
available to make sure that no child is left behind. But at some point
in time, in order to challenge mediocrity where we find mediocrity,
parents have to be given other options.
And so the No Child Left Behind Act has got an interesting way of
providing that for parents. We say, ``We measure. We post the scores. We
look at results, and if the results don't measure up, a parent has got
the ability to take extra money for tutorial work at a private
institution or a public institution, or a parent can send a child to
another public school.'' It's the beginnings of what's called school
choice.
But I didn't feel like, and Congress didn't feel like, and I know a
lot of parents here in Washington didn't feel like that was enough. So
we worked on a new initiative. It's an initiative that says, ``Here in
Washington, we want all aspects of schools to work, so there's money
available for the public school system.'' And I want to thank the
Mayor, by the way, for his involvement
in this project. And he said, ``As you're talking about school choice,
make sure you don't forget the other schools as well, see.'' And so
we've got money available to make sure public education can do the best
it can possibly do. There's money available for the charter school
movement, which provides parents interesting options.
But there's also a new approach here in Washington that I want to
talk about today. It's an approach that says there are school systems
that are capable of meeting expectations, and when a parent has a child
trapped in a school that won't teach and won't change, we've got to
liberate that family, got to give them options. So the Congress wisely--
and I might say with administration nudging or insistence--said, ``Why
don't we provide a $7,500 scholarship for parents whose children go to--
low-income parents whose children go to schools that aren't working, so
that that scholarship can follow the child to a place like Archbishop
Carroll High School.'' And there's $14 million, some of it for
administrative purposes, but 90 percent of it is going to go to the
families.
This is an historic moment for education. It's the first time ever
where the Federal Government has recognized that school choice is a
viable alternative for parents. It's an opportunity for us to say to a
mother or a dad, ``Here's your chance to achieve your expectation for
your child.'' You see, a society that is responsible is one in which a
mother and dad love their children with all their heart and all their
soul. And a parent who does that wants the very best--the very best--for
their children.
And so this initiative is one that's the beginning of what I hope is
change all across the country. It's the beginning of a go-by for other
school districts and other communities. It says, ``Look, we want our
public schools to succeed. We want them to do well, but we're going to
raise the bar and raise expectations. And when we find children trapped
in schools that will not change, parents must be given another viable
option.'' And so here in DC, for the first time, hopefully starting this
fall, parents will be given an option. When parents are dissatisfied,
they will now have a chance to take scholarship money to send their
child to a school of their choice.
We've got some people here who understand what I'm talking about.
We've got some grandmothers and moms and school-choice agitators. Well,
I don't know, that's a little harsh, isn't it? Okay, advocates,
advocates. Before we begin, I might ask the leader here about expectations. When a child comes to this school,
tell me how
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you achieve 98 percent graduates going to college.
[John T. Butler III, president, Archbishop Carroll High School, made
brief remarks.]
The President. I appreciate the attitude. He's challenged the soft bigotry of low expectations by
setting the bar high. You mentioned AP. You know, one of the things we
need to do in America is to spread AP programs--that's called advanced
placement programs. Those are high-quality, high-expectation, high-
achievement programs. Too often, though, in our communities, a parent
will take a look and say, ``I don't--I'm not so sure I want to pay for
the AP exam. My budget can't afford it.'' I think Government ought to
help people pay for the AP exam. Low-income people ought not to fear
their child taking an advanced placement exam because they can't afford
the fee. That doesn't make any sense. Plus I think we need to have money
available to help teachers teach the advanced placement program. It's
one thing to aspire to advanced placement, but if you don't have a
teacher who knows how to teach advanced placement, it's not going to
become a reality.
But I appreciate the AP program. AP programs work. The AP program is
part of a challenging curriculum. And once you pass the AP, you're--
there's very little you can't accomplish, by the way. It means that
you've excelled. I know you've got a lot of AP students here.
Mr. Butler. We do. The faculty are
really important in that regard as well. We are fortunate to have
dedicated faculty who sacrifice a lot, and they give long hours to
ensure that students are getting what they need. And they go beyond the
call of duty, frankly, on a daily basis to ensure that they're providing
support--even to today, we have students who are at Harvard, as a matter
of fact. Our debate team is at Harvard.
The President. Oh, I don't know what's so good about that.
[Laughter] But----
Mr. Butler. Well, I understand that
you've spent some time there as well.
The President. Well, I mean, I thought he was going to say Yale. But you know, that's all right.
No, that's good, they're at Harvard. Yes. [Laughter]
Mr. Butler. It is.
The President. Yes, I went there, okay--much to the shock of some of
the press corps. [Laughter]
Mr. Butler. But I think giving our
young people opportunities to get out of the building and get to
universities in this community but outside of this community as well
really helps to reinforce that. It also helps, too, to have alums such
as Michael Steele--I'm glad he's with us today--to hold up as an example
of what happens when you work hard.
The President. Michael, good. Listen,
Rod, why don't you share some thoughts.
Rod took--I told you, he took on a tough assignment. And I will tell you
the children in Houston, Texas, benefited from his leadership. And he's
a good, solid citizen.
[Secretary of Education Roderick R. Paige made brief remarks.]
The President. I appreciate you--thank you, Mr. Secretary.
Local control of schools is important because innovation oftentimes
takes place in spite of government. Archbishop Carroll, obviously, has
been able to survive without government telling them what to do, and
you're doing what's right.
But the other thing about local control of schools is the more power
there is at the local level, the more parents have an opportunity to
change things. And so one of the key components of the No Child Left
Behind Act is that it's up to you to chart the path to excellence. We
just want to know, see? That's all we're asking.
The Federal Government is finally saying, ``Show us whether or not
you're achieving the objectives, but you figure it out.'' And it's
amazing what happens when parents decide to get involved. A lot of
parents
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think everything is fine with their school until the test scores show
up, until there's comparison, until they take a look at--across
boundaries. Say, in DC, I bet there's a lot of folks wondering why my
school doesn't have a 98 percent college attendance with the seniors. So
information is important, but empowering parents is important.
Virginia Walden-Ford is with us
today. She is--she is a great citizen in that she's willing to seize the
moment to try to effect change. She's a tireless worker on behalf of
children and parents. She's somebody who has made a difference. I want
to welcome you here, Virginia. Tell us about your family. Tell us about
what you're doing. Tell us about how you got involved with the Parents
for Choice. She's the executive director, by the way, for Parents for
Choice in DC movement.
[Virginia Walden-Ford, executive director, D.C. Parents for School
Choice, made brief remarks.]
The President. One person can make a difference. Now
Virginia has got to make sure that the
parents who want to learn how the program works can find a resource. I
know you will. There's--this--for example, this might stimulate a few
phone calls. I suspect there's going to be some mothers and dads wanting
to contact you to find out how the program works. How do you apply for
the $7,500 scholarship? What does it take to be eligible? And how do we
get the scholarship money out? We'll help. I know you got an advertising
campaign getting ready to go.
Mrs. Walden-Ford. We do. We have a
bus campaign that begins on Monday. This past week, we spent time
sending out forms, just asking parents to call for information,
thousands of them. So we are in the field. We are activists. And I'm not
embarrassed about being called----
The President. I said ``agitators,'' don't change it. [Laughter]
Mrs. Walden-Ford. Oh, okay--I'm not
embarrassed. Well, I was----
The President. That's not a bad word.
Mrs. Walden-Ford. Look, look,
Congressman Davis, I think I was a little bit of an agitator too.
[Laughter] But when you believe in something, you fight for it, or you
raise your voice and get on--and I know we got on Congressman's nerves.
I know we did. But that was okay because we got it done.
The President. I do too, occasionally, myself, you know? [Laughter]
[Mrs. Walden-Ford made further remarks.]
The President. Good job, thank you. Catherine Hill is with us today. Catherine is raising a niece, a nephew,
and two grandsons. She is a--thank you for being here, Catherine. Would
you mind sharing with us some of your thoughts?
[Catherine L. Hill, aunt and grandparent of DC students, made brief
remarks.]
The President. Catherine made a
decision early on that one of your nephews--was it your nephew or
grandson?--went to school in Maryland. So that's what we call school
choice. [Laughter] In other words, she said, ``I'm not satisfied. I've
got high expectations for my loved one.'' And evidently, the
expectations weren't being met, so you made a decision.
Now, what we need to do is make sure the decision is closer to home.
She's a resident in Washington, DC. She
lives here. It's important that decisions be made more readily available
for parents.
I want to say something that Rod said,
and it's very important. As you make those decisions, somebody might get
the message and say, ``Wait, we're not doing something right. We must
earn Catherine's support by raising
expectations.'' Why--somebody ought to be asking the question, why is
Catherine making a unbelievably tough call to drive hours to another
State or out of this District to a State? And hopefully that causes
somebody to say, ``Maybe we're not
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doing something right. Maybe we ought to work harder to win the
confidence of Catherine Hill or the Catherine Hills of the world.''
That's what Rod was talking about. You see, when a parent makes the
decision, votes to move a child, hopefully that will cause the response
to be, we've got to do something better or something different. The
customer is Catherine Hill and her children.
And so I want to thank you for your story. More importantly, I want
to thank you for setting such an unbelievable example. Imagine
Catherine raising a niece, nephew, and two
grandsons. That in itself is an overpowering job. And yet at the same
time, you keep that clear vision about what is best, and I'm going to
appreciate your example.
Ms. Hill. And I also want to say that
he graduated in June of 2003. So that's a blessing.
The President. That is.
Elizabeth Stallans is with us. I
oftentimes tell people the toughest job in America is being a single
mom. That's the hardest work in our country. And it's important for our
school systems to make that job easier, not harder. And I appreciate you
coming, Elizabeth. Thank you for being here. We look forward to hearing
your story.
[Elizabeth Stallans, parent of a DC student, made brief remarks.]
The President. Thank you, Elizabeth.
Very good. Thank you, Elizabeth. There's strong testimony. Thank you
both.
Listen, John, thanks for having us.
I've got to say something about the Catholic schools in America. The
Catholic school system provides an incredibly important service in our
country. They serve as a model. They also take on a lot of students that
are the so-called hard-to-educate but always do a good job. They're
willing to help with the financially disadvantaged parent. Catholic
schools are an incredibly important part of the fabric of our country,
and I want to thank the educators who are here. I want to thank you for
the service you provide.
I know you share with me a deep desire that all schools do well, all
school systems achieve the national objective, which is excellence for
every child, regardless of their background. There's no doubt in my mind
we can achieve it. In order to achieve it, you've got to have the right
mindset, and you must be willing to challenge the status quo when it's
failing. This society must be willing to never accept mediocrity when it
comes to the education of our children.
You know, the President has got a pretty big microphone. I've got a
chance to spotlight success. And by coming here today, I am spotlighting
success, this success that we want to be a success all over the District
of Columbia. We want people to be able to compete with you,
John.
Mr. Butler. I look forward to that.
The President. Yes, sir. I know you do, because you love children--
--
Mr. Butler. I do.
The President. ----from the bottom of your heart. So do I. Thank you
all for coming. I want to wish the seniors all the very best. I want to
congratulate you. Would the seniors stand up, please?
Thank you for letting us come. Thank you for letting me come.
Remember, your senior year isn't over until you graduate. [Laughter]
Good luck in college. Good luck whatever you decide to do.
May God bless you. May God bless this high school. And may God
continue to bless our great country.
Note: The President spoke at 1:49 p.m. at Archbishop Carroll High
School. In his remarks, he referred to James Mumford, principal,
Archbishop Carroll High School; Bishop Kevin J. Farrell, Auxiliary
Bishop of Washington; Theodore E. Cardinal McCarrick, Archbishop of
Washington; Patricia Weitzel-O'Neill, superintendent of schools,
Archdiocese of Washington; Lavern
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Chatman, chair, Board of Trustees, Archbishop Carroll High School; and
Mayor Anthony A. Williams of the District of Columbia.