[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 42, Number 17 (Monday, May 1, 2006)]
[Pages 798-801]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Remarks Honoring the 2006 National and State Teachers of the Year

April 26, 2006

    I was going to say, thank you, Laura, for those kind remarks. 
[Laughter] Please be seated. Thank you all. Welcome.
    This is one of the great afternoons for Laura and me. We love to 
recognize our teachers. We really appreciate you coming. Actually, this 
is an annual event started by Harry Truman. And I'm glad to be a part of 
a tradition here at the White House, saying thanks to our teachers.
    I admire teachers and like teachers so much, I married one. 
[Laughter] Laura is a

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great advocate for literacy and a strong supporter for America's 
teachers, and I'm really proud to have her by my side during these 
unbelievable times and this great experience of serving our country--
other than being a fine introducer. [Laughter]
    The thing I like about teaching is, teaching is such an optimistic 
profession. I know when teachers look out at their classrooms, you see 
more than a child at play or at study. You're able to see a child with 
big dreams and big hopes. You see future doctors and scientists and 
entrepreneurs and inventors, and I hope you see even a teacher or two.
    You dedicated your lives to the formation of young minds. You're 
giving our children the skills they need to succeed in life and equally 
important, the courage and the drive to realize those dreams. Our Nation 
is grateful for your hard work. We appreciate what you do, and we are 
honored you're here at the White House.
    I want to thank our Secretary of Education, Margaret Spellings. 
She's been a long-time friend. She believes strongly in the classroom 
teacher, and she believes in the potential of every child.
    I'm pleased to recognize Senator Sam Brownback, for the State of 
Kansas. Welcome. I'm glad you're here--and his wife, Mary; thank you for 
coming. As well as Congressman Dennis Moore from Kansas and Stephene, 
thank you all for taking time to honor the teachers who are here.
    I appreciate the National Teacher of the Year Finalists: Sam Bennett 
from Florida--say hello to the Governor--[laughter]--Ron Poplau of 
Kansas--no wonder you all are here--and Susan Barnard of Washington 
State. We're really glad you're here. Congratulations on setting such a 
fine example.
    Everybody here has been introduced to Kim Oliver, but you haven't 
met her parents, Vincent and Veronica. Thank you all very much--
brothers, cousins, and significant other. [Laughter]
    I want to thank all the Teachers of the Year from around our country 
who are here. I really--Laura and I really enjoyed having our picture 
with you. It's just a brief moment to say thanks. But nevertheless, it's 
thanks from the bottom of our hearts. And it really means a lot you're 
here.
    I thank Dr. Tom Houlihan, who is the executive director of the 
Council of Chief State School Officers. That's one of the sponsoring 
organizations. Thank you for your service, Tom.
    Margery Mayer, of the Scholastic Education--Scholastic Inc. I want 
to thank Margery for being here. That's also a sponsoring organization 
of this event.
    Kathleen Murphy is the president of ING, is here with us, as well as 
Tom Waldron, who is the executive vice president. These are the 
sponsoring groups of this important occasion.
    I also want to thank the chief state school officers who are with 
us. Good to see you all. Nice going. Hiring and promoting good teachers 
is a really important part of your job. I want you to know that we know 
that being a teacher is difficult work. It's a hard job. It's a job that 
requires compassion and determination and extraordinary patience. And as 
Laura hinted, or maybe didn't hint, I was probably one of those kind 
that tested your patience. [Laughter]
    You're helping young people to learn the basics of reading and 
writing and adding and subtracting. You're serving as mentors and, 
probably most importantly, as role models. You help kindle young 
imaginations, and you inspire a love of learning. It's a pretty 
significant job description, when you think about it. And the teachers 
we honor here today are excelling at that job.
    Your daily efforts help young Americans grow into successful adults. 
In other words, you're building the future for the country. We ask a lot 
of our teachers, and we owe you a lot in return. Education is my top 
domestic priority. And when I first came to office, I worked with 
members of both political parties--believe it or not, it's possible here 
in Washington to occasionally do that--to increase funding from the 
Federal level but also to pass the No Child Left Behind Act. The spirit 
of the No Child Left Behind Act basically says, society has a deep 
obligation to challenge the soft bigotry of low expectations, that we 
believe every child can learn, and therefore, we believe it makes sense 
to determine whether or not every child is learning. And if not, there 
ought to be extra help so that no child in our society is left behind.

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    We're beginning to see good results, thanks to our Nation's 
teachers. The 2005 Nation's Report Card showed America's fourth graders 
are posting the best scores in reading and math in the history of the 
test. African American and Hispanic fourth graders set records in 
reading and math last year. America's eighth graders earned the best 
math scores ever recorded. Eighth grade Hispanic and African American 
students achieved their highest math scores ever. We're making really 
important strides toward closing an achievement gap in America, and I 
want to thank our teachers for your hard work.
    There's more work to be done, obviously. I've recently launched the 
American Competitiveness Initiative, which will help our students do 
better in math and science. We need to train 70,000 high school teachers 
to lead AP courses in math and science. I know we've got some AP 
teachers here, and I want to thank you for that.
    We need to bring 30,000 math and science professionals into our 
classrooms to send a message to our children: It's okay to be a 
mathematician or a scientist--as a matter of fact, it's cool. We want to 
make sure that we help students who struggle with math get extra help to 
make sure that--to make sure they have a chance to be able to earn the 
high-wage jobs of the 21st century. If we ensure that America's children 
have the skills they need to succeed in life, we will make sure America 
succeeds in the world.
    Improving the quality of education for young Americans requires good 
laws and good policies, but ultimately it depends on good teachers. And 
that is why we're here on the South Lawn, to honor really good teachers.
    The Teacher of the Year, Kim Oliver, teaches kindergarten at Broad 
Acres Elementary School in Silver Spring, Maryland. Broad Acres is 
Montgomery County's highest poverty school, a place where 90 percent of 
the children qualify for federally-subsidized meals and about 75 percent 
have parents who do not speak English at home.
    It's a school filled with the kind of students that inspired Kim 
Oliver to become a teacher. Kim decided to become a teacher at a young 
age. It's really interesting for teachers to hear what she said. She 
said, ``As a young child, I loved and admired my day care teacher, Mrs. 
Chandler. I wanted to be just like her. Mrs. Chandler made me feel 
special, as if I were the only child in her class.''
    Kim Oliver had many friends growing up who came from unstable and 
impoverished homes. She says, ``I watched so many of my friends live up 
to the low expectations that were set for them. To this day, I find 
myself wondering, what if my disadvantaged friends had 12 years worth of 
Mrs. Chandlers in their lives?'' Kim went on to say, ``I chose to become 
a teacher to motivate and inspire the neediest students, who many have 
written off, and let them know they can achieve and succeed in life 
regardless of what the statistics may show.''
    I love that attitude. I think you're beginning to get the drift of 
why she's the Teacher of the Year. When Kim Oliver arrived at Broad 
Acres in 2000, the school was threatened with forced restructuring by 
the State as a result of poor academic performance. Ms. Oliver took a 
leadership role at the school. That's what good teachers do; they take 
the lead. She became a teacher-leader and helped lead a collaborative 
effort to improve the curriculum, instruction, and assessment. She 
helped establish instructional planning sessions and formal procedures 
to examine student work and improve student performance.
    She noticed that many parents at the school lacked the language 
skills to be able to read to their children and to be able to help with 
their school work. And so she and her colleagues purchased cassette 
players and recorded books on tape for the students to take home and 
share with their families, which made it a lot easier for parents who 
struggle with English to help their children.
    Kim Oliver also organized a regular ``Books and Supper Night,'' 
where families could check out books from the library and read together 
before sharing a dinner, which fostered learning and family involvement 
in their children's education. She knows what good teachers know: If you 
can get the parents involved in the child's education, you have a much 
better chance of succeeding. She set high expectations. Good teachers 
set

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high expectations. She provided needed assistance. She involved 
families, and she helped turn that school around.
    Within 2 years of her arrival, kindergarten students at Broad Acres 
were mastering early reading skills at higher rates than other schools 
in the district. After 3 years, Broad Acres students were meeting or 
exceeding all requirements of the No Child Left Behind Act. There were 
dramatic increases in reading and math scores for the school's second 
graders.
    The Superintendent of Schools in Montgomery County says this about 
the impact Kim Oliver has had: ``She has a rare gift for touching hearts 
and minds, inspiring in her students to aim high and believe in their 
potential.'' A Broad Acres parent says, ``She knows how to talk to the 
children so they will listen.'' And all her students know that she cares 
about them. She made them all feel like they were smart and could learn 
anything. One of her colleagues says, ``When you walk into Ms. Oliver's 
classroom, one cannot help but notice that this is a special place.'' 
She is dedicated to her school community and committed to excellence, 
and she has been an instrumental force in improving student achievement 
at her school.
    Kim says the reason her students are achieving is simple: ``I have 
high expectations for each of them. I teach them that they can 
accomplish anything with hard work and persistence.''
    Kim Oliver understands that the key to helping children succeed is 
fighting the soft bigotry of low expectations. When a teacher believes 
that a child can learn, it's amazing what happens--a student believes 
that he or she can learn.
    America is blessed to have teachers like Kim Oliver. We're blessed 
to have teachers like all those who are gathered here at the White 
House. We thank you for the love and devotion you've shown our children 
each day.
    May God continue to bless your work, and may God continue to bless 
our country. Thank you for coming.

Note: The President spoke at approximately 1:46 p.m. on the South Lawn 
at the White House. In his remarks, he referred to Stephene Moore, wife 
of Congressman Dennis Moore; Gov. Jeb Bush of Florida; Margaret Mayer, 
executive vice president and president, Scholastic Education; and Jerry 
D. Weast, superintendent of Montgomery County Public Schools. The 
transcript released by the Office of the Press Secretary also included 
the remarks of the First Lady, who introduced the President.