[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 38, Number 19 (Monday, May 13, 2002)]
[Pages 767-772]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Remarks at Logan High School in La Crosse, Wisconsin

 May 8, 2002

     The President.  Thank you. Okay, here we go. Thank you all very 
much. It's----
     Audience member. We all love you!
     The President.  Your mother may be watching; behave yourselves. 
[Laughter]
    I'm honored to be here. I want to thank the citizens of La Crosse, 
Wisconsin, for such a warm welcome. I'm--great to be here in Logan High 
School. It's a great place.
     So I was being briefed about Logan High School. I'll tell you what 
impressed me the most. I was impressed by the fact you've got a great 
baseball team. I was impressed you've got a great girls basketball team. 
But I was most impressed when I saw that the school raised a banner for 
the academic superstars. I'm at this school, of course, to talk 
education, but I'm also here to herald excellence. And we have found 
excellence at Logan High School, and thanks for giving me a chance to 
come by.
     I appreciate the Secretary of Education traveling with me today. 
You know, we've got

[[Page 768]]

a lot of people who like to theorize in Washington, DC--kind of 
philosopher types. I'm kind of a roll-up-your-sleeve-and-get-it-done 
type guy. And that's what I want the people--and I picked that kind of 
man as our Secretary of Education as well. This is a fellow who's been 
on the frontlines of education. I had the honor of meeting your 
superintendent here in La Crosse. They were able to talk superintendent 
talk. [Laughter] They know how to get things done. And so I've got a 
really good man who's joined me in my administration to help make sure 
that no child in America--and we mean no child--is left behind when it 
comes to education.
     I want to thank Logan High grad, class of '81, Congressman Ron Kind 
for joining us today. Thank you, Ron. I really appreciate you coming 
today. I'm honored you're here. I also want to thank your Governor, 
Scott McCallum, for traveling with me today as well. I want to thank 
Michael McArdle, who is the president of the La Crosse School Board, for 
being here. I want to thank all the school board members. I appreciate 
Thomas Downs, who's your superintendent. Interestingly enough, he showed 
me a picture of he and my dad when he was--I think, a teacher, he said, 
in Iowa. I really want to thank Scott and the staff and the teachers for 
making this visit possible. You know, one of the things I've learned, as 
Governor and now President, is that when you find a good school, you 
also find a good principal.
     There's going to be some folks here graduating, I understand, 
pretty soon.
     Audience members.  Yes!
     The President.  Don't take it for granted. [Laughter] But you'll be 
the first high school class that has graduated with America under 
attack. We got under attack in September, and you're graduating in a 
time of war. And I want to talk to you a little bit about what that 
means for America, what it means for our country, what it means for a 
nation to fight for what it believes in.
     I can't imagine what went through the minds of our enemy when they 
attacked us on September the 11th. You know, they must have thought 
America was so self-absorbed, so materialistic, so selfish that we would 
cower in the face of a challenge; well, we might file a few lawsuits or 
two, but that would be all we would do. But that's not the America I 
know, and that's not the America you're a part of. This is a country 
that when it comes to defending that which we believe in, when it comes 
to defending our freedoms, we are patient; we're deliberate; and we are 
plenty tough.
     You're graduating in a time of war, right here in America, but a 
war that your textbooks really haven't been able to describe before. 
It's a new kind of threat to our country. Now, you need to know right 
off the bat that our enemy are nothing but a bunch of coldblooded 
killers. And they hate America because of our freedoms. They cannot 
stand the thought that we worship freely, that we've got freedom of the 
press, that we debate freely. They can't stand that. It bothers them. 
And therefore, they're out to hurt us again.
     Now, you need to also know that we're doing everything we can to 
protect the American people. My most important job is the security of 
the American people. I learn that every day when I walk into the grand 
Oval Office. In the morning, I walk in there, and first thing I do, of 
course, is--after I bring the First Lady a little coffee--[laughter]--is 
take Spot and Barney down, let them work the South Lawn for a while. 
[Laughter] Spot was born in the White House. She's 13 years old. She 
understands the decorum of the Oval, so she gets to go in. But Barney is 
only a year and a half and we got a new rug, so he doesn't. [Laughter]
     Every morning I read about threats to America. I read about the 
enemy wanting to inflict some more harm on us. And every morning it 
reminds me that I will do everything in my power to protect the American 
people.
     Our law enforcement officials are talking better amongst each 
other; we're sharing information a lot better way now. The Federal 
Government is in better communications with State and local governments. 
And anytime we get a hint or anytime we get kind of a sniff that 
something might be fixing to happen, you need to know we're acting. 
We're acting within the confines of the United States Constitution, but 
we're acting.

[[Page 769]]

     But the best way--and I want the students to understand this--the 
best way for me and our Government to protect the homeland is to chase 
these killers down one by one and bring them to justice. And that's what 
we're going to do. And it's going to take a lot longer than people want; 
it's just going to take a lot longer than people want. We're not dealing 
with an organized government with the Al Qaida network. We're dealing 
with people who, on the one hand, send youngsters off to kill 
themselves, and they themselves try to hide in caves. That's the way 
they are.
     It's important for you to know as well that when your country 
speaks, we're going to do what we say. And we told the Taliban, ``Since 
you're harboring those terrorists, you're just as guilty,'' and we ran 
them out of business. Thanks to the United States military and a mighty 
coalition, we ran them out of business.
     Our country doesn't seek revenge. I want the high school kids here 
to understand: We don't seek revenge; we seek justice; that's what we 
seek. And when we went into Afghanistan, I want you to remember--and 
history will record--that this Nation, this decent, kind Nation 
liberated a group of people from the clutches of barbaric people who 
would not even educate young girls. We went in not as conquerors but as 
liberators. And I'm proud of our Nation, and I'm proud of our heart.
     Now, it's going to take a while--it's going to take a while. But 
much to the chagrin--I guess to the chagrin--I haven't spent a lot of 
time talking with the enemy, but I got the feeling they're going to be 
disappointed to hear that we're going to remain united as a country and 
that we're resolved and we're patient and we're plenty tough; that they 
think they can hide, but they can't. Our strategy has been not only to 
disrupt the government that harbored these people; we're destroying 
their training camps; we're disrupting their finances. We're chasing 
them down. We're denying them sanctuary in other parts of the world. 
Listen, these are the kind of people that if they can find a soft spot, 
they'll light. If they can find somewhere where there may be a weak 
government, they'll try to move in. And that's why, when I look at some 
of these leaders and send a message, ``Either you're with us, or you're 
with them,'' they understand that we mean what we say. And we're 
beginning to deny sanctuary.
     No, it's going to take a while. But the people in this high school, 
the kids in this high school have got to understand, it is worth it. I 
will not let--your Government's not going to let people destroy the 
freedoms that we love in America. We fight for civilization, and they're 
going to find out what this country is made out of. This country is 
going to defend our values to the core, and we're going to win.
     But not only do we work to make our country and the world safer; we 
also got to work to make it better, a better place. And it starts with 
making sure every child in America gets educated. I--there's been a lot 
of talk about this bill I was able to sign--by the way, worked on by 
both Republicans and Democrats. It was a--it was a refreshing change of 
what sometimes takes place in Washington, or a lot of times, where 
people are in there just trying to promote their own political party 
without worry about the Nation. This is a piece of legislation where we 
worried about the Nation and not our political parties, and the Nation 
is better off for it. I want to thank Ron for his vote on this piece of 
legislation, by the way.
     But here's what--here's what--let me tell you the philosophy in the 
bill. It first starts off by saying, in order to achieve educational 
excellence around the Nation, we must have high expectations and high 
standards. It starts with the belief that every child can learn. If you 
have low expectations--in other words, some can't learn--you're going to 
get bad results. It starts with a mindset. See, I believe every child 
can learn, and I expect every child to learn. We have raised the bar of 
expectations.
     And in order to make sure that's happening, we're insisting that 
people show us it's happening. See, if you believe it can happen, then 
you want to know if it's happening. If you don't believe it can happen, 
you don't care. If you have low expectations for students, if you have 
low standards, you don't care whether they're learning, because you

[[Page 770]]

don't think they can. If you have high expectations, you care, and 
therefore, you want to see.
     And we want to know. We want to know through an accountability 
system, designed not by the Federal Government but by the good people of 
Wisconsin. That's who's going to design it. We want to know. We want to 
know. We want to see the scores. We want to post it for everybody to 
see, because we believe every child can learn. I know you don't like to 
take tests. Too bad. [Laughter] It is important. It's important. So what 
we're saying, that after a period of time, the State of Wisconsin must 
develop accountability, grades three through eight. If we spend Federal 
money, we're going to see some results. And so we want to know.
    And by the way, an accountability system is not meant to punish 
anybody; it's meant to be used as an information tool. And if things are 
going well, we ought to use the accountability system as a way to praise 
the teachers and principals for success. However, if we find out 
children aren't learning, there's a reason, and we need to know the 
reason. And we need to solve the problems early, before it's too late. 
This business about just shuffling kids through the system has got to 
end. This business about kind of promoting them out--[applause].
     But part of making sure that we also succeed is the understanding 
that one size doesn't fit all when it comes to public education. I mean, 
look, we don't want Federal--Washington, DC, telling you all how to run 
your schools. You've got plenty of good people here in Wisconsin. As a 
matter of fact, the people who love the children in Wisconsin are the 
people of Wisconsin. And therefore, we have passed a lot of power and 
authority out of DC to align responsibility and authority where it 
belongs, at the local level.
     Also, an incredibly important part of a successful school system, 
the thing that matters a lot, of course, is the teachers. And I want to 
thank the teachers here at Logan High School for doing what you do. It's 
an incredibly noble profession. It's an important profession. And it's 
one that I hope--I assume that you get a lot out of it by making sure 
that our children learn.
     The teaching profession needs to be heralded. And we've got a great 
person in my administration who's willing to do just that, a former 
teacher, my wife, Laura. When I married her, she was a public school 
librarian. And the truth of the matter is, she didn't particularly care 
for politics or politicians, for that matter. [Laughter] Thank goodness 
she said yes when I asked her to marry me. A lot of people now know why 
I asked her to marry me. A lot of people are wondering out loud why she 
said yes. [Laughter] But she's great. And she's going to go around the 
country reminding people that if you want to serve your community--
reminding young and old--if you want to serve your community, teach. 
Become a teacher. We've got a Troops for Teachers program for retired 
military to go in the classroom. We've got Teach for America programs. 
We've got all kinds of opportunities. When you go to college and you're 
looking for something to do and you're wondering about your career, 
think about becoming a teacher, to make a difference in the lives of our 
children.
     The bill we passed has got $3 billion additional dollars in there 
for teacher training, teacher recruitment, teacher retention programs. 
And that's good. But it's going to be up to the local districts, the 
States and local districts, to figure out how to spend that money to 
make it work for the teachers.
     But I'll tell you another piece of reform that's really important 
in this bill. One of the things that's important is for teachers to be 
able to control her classroom or his classroom. It's essential that that 
be the case. And for the first time, the Federal Government has limited 
liability for teachers and principals and school board members and 
superintendents when they enforce reasonable standards of conduct in 
classrooms.
     Let me see if I can put that a little more plainly. If you think 
you can disrupt your class, you're going to get booted out, and the 
teacher's not going to get sued. So don't disrupt the class. [Laughter]
     Parents have got a lot to do with whether or not schools in our 
communities succeed. The parents have got to make sure that young 
children read more than they watch TV. That's a hard thing to do. Oh, I 
know it's hard to turn off the TV and read to your

[[Page 771]]

child. But it's really important for a mom or a dad--if a mom or a dad 
wants their child to learn, get reading to them early and stay on it and 
click off the tube. Your children are going to learn a heck of a lot 
more.
     It's important for parents to come to the PTAs and to be 
interested. It's important for a parent to make sure that a child 
understands respect for teachers when they get in that classroom, that 
they have got a responsibility to be respectful. And one way to make 
sure parents are involved is to use the accountability system. A lot of 
parents in America feel like their school is doing just fine, until they 
see the results of the children's tests, until it's a comparative system 
like you do here in La Crosse.
     This man right here, he's not worried about comparing. He's a 
confident principal. He's confident in the teachers. He doesn't care if 
there's a comparison, because he knows he's going to do well. He's 
focused. He likes that idea of a good, healthy comparison.
     But in order to enhance parental involvement, parents need to know. 
It's amazing how many parents say, ``Everything is going just fine in my 
child's school,'' until they see the results. And if you want to enhance 
teacher--parental involvement, let them see whether or not their 
children are learning relative to the school across town. Just make sure 
that the scorecard is honest and open and transparent, and you'll get 
parental involvement and even more.
     This State has enacted public school choice, which basically says, 
if your child is trapped in a failed school, we're not going to tolerate 
that anymore. And if you're tired of it, you can move to another public 
school. I think that's a good, healthy reform. Our bill does just that. 
And not only that, if a child is trapped in a school that won't change, 
after 3 years there are what's called supplemental services. That means 
money, Title I money follows the child--a Title I-eligible child to 
tutoring services, summer school, after-school services. If you're 
interested in making sure no child is left behind and you find children 
trapped in schools that will not change and will not teach, we've got to 
make sure that they get extra help, and give parents additional choices.
     And that's exactly what this bill does. Parental involvement not 
only happens when there's care and love--I told people earlier today at 
our seminar, I can't make people love one another; that's not the role 
of Government. But we can provide the tools necessary for loving parents 
to become more involved. And one way to do so is for the results to be 
open and for parents to have different options.
     Now, we've got a good plan, but it's up to you to make it work. The 
Federal Government is not going to--the Federal Government is going to 
spend money, which we have; the Federal Government is going to provide a 
strategy. But it's up for the local folks, and that's why we've come to 
this school. This is a school in which the community takes great pride. 
Mothers and dads take great interest. The teachers take great time to 
make sure that every child gets educated. A better America is going to 
be an America that educates every child.
     I keep saying ``every child.'' The truth of the matter is, we're 
not educating every child right now. We're letting a lot of them just go 
on through, the tough-to-educate. ``If you don't speak English or the 
mothers or daddies don't speak English as a first language, let's just 
move them through''--that's going to quit, as far as I'm concerned. 
That's not the America I know.
     The public school system is a vital part of our democracy. It is 
absolutely essential that we have educational excellence if we want our 
democracy and our freedom and our system to flourish and thrive. And 
that's the kind of public school system I envision, and I know it's the 
kind you envision as well.
     I believe that out of the evil of September the 11th will come 
incredible good. I believe that we can achieve peace. That's my dream. 
Oh, it's going to be tough to get there; there's going to be some hills 
to climb. But out of this, by being firm and resolved, we'll achieve 
peace, and that's important for America. It's important for our 
children. It's important for our children's children.
     I also believe out of this evil will come some good, because 
Americans are such a compassionate and kind people. People ask me, 
``What can I do to join the war on terror?'' And my answer is, love a 
neighbor like

[[Page 772]]

you'd like to be loved yourself--that if you want to fight evil, do some 
good; that if you want to confront the evildoers that struck America, 
walk across the street and tell a shut-in that you love them. Mentor a 
child. Teach a child. Go to your church or your synagogue or your mosque 
and rally the compassion within the--within the halls there to feed the 
hungry. There are pockets of despair in America. There are pockets of 
hopelessness right here in La Crosse, Wisconsin. And if you want to 
fight evil, tackle those pockets of despair with love and decency.
     I met Dorothy Wetterlin today. Where's Dorothy? She's somewhere. 
Hey, Dorothy, stand up, will you? No? You don't want to stand up? Okay, 
don't stand up. Dorothy kindly came out to the airport to greet me. The 
reason why is because Dorothy is a soldier in the army of compassion 
here in La Crosse, Wisconsin. She is--helps victims of domestic abuse 
and violence. She started puppet shows for young kids in elementary 
schools to teach them how to make the right choices when it comes to 
drugs and alcohol. She's a person making a difference. She's a person 
who understands that one person can't do everything but one person can 
darned sure do something to help somebody in need.
     America is full of Dorothys. You've got them all across this 
country. And I want the young to understand that I believe you have an 
obligation as an American to help make this country a compassionate and 
decent place. I believe that it's important for you--I know it's 
important you go to college or whatever you're going to do after high 
school, go to work. But remember, if you're interested in fighting evil, 
do some good. Lend your heart; lend your talent to help somebody in 
need.
     And America is doing this. I am so optimistic about the future of 
our country, not only because we are strong and tough and resolved. I am 
optimistic about the future of America because we are decent and 
honorable and good people.
     I think the most telling event on September 11th, and one that I 
hope a lot of people remember, is what happened on Flight 93. Basically, 
what I'm saying is, it's important to serve something greater than 
yourself in life. It's important to serve a call greater than yourself 
and a cause greater than yourself. Flight 93, we had average citizens 
flying across the country, and they realized their plane was fixing to 
be used as a weapon on the Nation's Capital. They called their loved 
ones on the phone. They said a prayer and told them they loved them, 
said a prayer, and they drove the plane in the ground to serve something 
greater than themselves.
    That's the American spirit I know. That's that sense of sacrifice 
that makes this country so strong. And that's exactly what's happening. 
I want you to know when you get out of high school, you're going to 
college, and you're going to college in the greatest land, the greatest 
nation on the face of the Earth. And it is my high honor to be the 
President of the greatest country on the face of the Earth.
     Thank you for letting me come. May God bless.

  Note:  The President spoke at 1:05 p.m. in the school's gymnasium. In 
his remarks, he referred to Scott Mihalovic, principal, Logan High 
School. He also referred to Title I of the Improving America's Schools 
Act of 1994 (Public Law No. 103-382), which amended Title I of the 
Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (Public Law No. 89-10).