President Obama made his commitment to science, technology, and education very clear in his remarks on the State of the Union on January 25, 2011: "No country has more successful companies, or grants more patents to inventors and entrepreneurs. We’re the home to the world’s best colleges and universities, where more students come to study than any place on Earth. What’s more, we are the first nation to be founded for the sake of an idea -– the idea that each of us deserves the chance to shape our own destiny. That’s why centuries of pioneers and immigrants have risked everything to come here. It’s why our students don’t just memorize equations, but answer questions like “What do you think of that idea? What would you change about the world? What do you want to be when you grow up?” The future is ours to win. But to get there, we can’t just stand still. As Robert Kennedy told us, “The future is not a gift. It is an achievement.”
In the First Lady’s Box in the U.S. Capitol, four remarkable science students from across the country joined Michelle Obama and other guests during the President’s State of the Union Address:
Amy Chyao, High School Junior (Richardson, TX)
Amy won first place at the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair for her work in developing a new cancer drug and met the President at the White House Science Fair. A self-starter, she taught herself chemistry over the summer prior to beginning her research, which is now being looked at by pharmaceutical researchers from Texas and other states.
Brandon Ford, High School Junior (Philadelphia, PA)
Brandon is a leader of the West Philadelphia High School Hybrid X team that competed in the global Progressive Automotive X Prize competition with their Ford Focus that got an official 65.1 MPGe. Brandon spends several days a week working on projects with the Hybrid X team, which was mentioned in the President’s September “Change the Equation” speech.
Diego Vasquez, Community College student (Phoenix, AZ)
Diego was a member of the Cesar Chavez high school team that won a grant through the Lemelson-MIT Program’s InventTeams initative for its design of a motorized chair for medically fragile individuals. The team decided to design the chair after watching a disabled friend struggle at school. They had a tamale “bake sale” in order to raise money to travel to MIT for the showcase event. Diego met the President at the White House Science Fair.
Mikayla Nelson, High School Freshman (Billings, MT)
Mikayla helped lead her middle school team to a first place finish at the National Science Bowl for its design document for a solar car, as well as a 5th place finish at the Department of Energy’s Junior Solar Sprint. She is currently taking flying lessons in hopes of attaining her pilot’s license, building a 1932 Pietenpol Sky Scout airplane, and restoring a 1967 VW Beetle. She also works at a local hobby store to help cover the cost of her school tuition and hopes to one day attend the U.S. Air Force Academy and major in mechanical engineering.
The extraordinary placement of so many young achievers in science and technology in this prominent location during tonight’s historic Address reflects a core theme for the President, and one echoed in his remarks—that science and technology, which have been responsible for so much of this Nation’s economic growth in the last century, will be key to America’s global leadership and security in the new century as well.
So when you look up at the balcony during the President’s remarks, look for four young faces who studied hard, pushed against the frontiers of science and technology, reached for first place and achieved it.
At about the 23:40 mark is the President's statement which forms the title of this post:
Maintaining our leadership in research and technology is crucial to America’s success. But if we want to win the future -– if we want innovation to produce jobs in America and not overseas -– then we also have to win the race to educate our kids.
Think about it. Over the next 10 years, nearly half of all new jobs will require education that goes beyond a high school education. And yet, as many as a quarter of our students aren’t even finishing high school. The quality of our math and science education lags behind many other nations. America has fallen to ninth in the proportion of young people with a college degree. And so the question is whether all of us –- as citizens, and as parents –- are willing to do what’s necessary to give every child a chance to succeed.
That responsibility begins not in our classrooms, but in our homes and communities. It’s family that first instills the love of learning in a child. Only parents can make sure the TV is turned off and homework gets done. [23:40] We need to teach our kids that it’s not just the winner of the Super Bowl who deserves to be celebrated, but the winner of the science fair. (Applause.) We need to teach them that success is not a function of fame or PR, but of hard work and discipline.
Our schools share this responsibility. When a child walks into a classroom, it should be a place of high expectations and high performance. But too many schools don’t meet this test. That’s why instead of just pouring money into a system that’s not working, we launched a competition called Race to the Top. To all 50 states, we said, “If you show us the most innovative plans to improve teacher quality and student achievement, we’ll show you the money.”
Race to the Top is the most meaningful reform of our public schools in a generation. For less than 1 percent of what we spend on education each year, it has led over 40 states to raise their standards for teaching and learning. And these standards were developed, by the way, not by Washington, but by Republican and Democratic governors throughout the country. And Race to the Top should be the approach we follow this year as we replace No Child Left Behind with a law that’s more flexible and focused on what’s best for our kids. (Applause.)
You see, we know what’s possible from our children when reform isn’t just a top-down mandate, but the work of local teachers and principals, school boards and communities. Take a school like Bruce Randolph in Denver. Three years ago, it was rated one of the worst schools in Colorado -- located on turf between two rival gangs. But last May, 97 percent of the seniors received their diploma. Most will be the first in their families to go to college. And after the first year of the school’s transformation, the principal who made it possible wiped away tears when a student said, “Thank you, Ms. Waters, for showing that we are smart and we can make it.” (Applause.) That’s what good schools can do, and we want good schools all across the country.
Let’s also remember that after parents, the biggest impact on a child’s success comes from the man or woman at the front of the classroom. In South Korea, teachers are known as “nation builders.” Here in America, it’s time we treated the people who educate our children with the same level of respect. (Applause.) We want to reward good teachers and stop making excuses for bad ones. (Applause.) And over the next 10 years, with so many baby boomers retiring from our classrooms, we want to prepare 100,000 new teachers in the fields of science and technology and engineering and math. (Applause.)
In fact, to every young person listening tonight who’s contemplating their career choice: If you want to make a difference in the life of our nation; if you want to make a difference in the life of a child -- become a teacher. Your country needs you. (Applause.)
Of course, the education race doesn’t end with a high school diploma. To compete, higher education must be within the reach of every American. (Applause.) That’s why we’ve ended the unwarranted taxpayer subsidies that went to banks, and used the savings to make college affordable for millions of students. (Applause.) And this year, I ask Congress to go further, and make permanent our tuition tax credit –- worth $10,000 for four years of college. It’s the right thing to do. (Applause.)
Because people need to be able to train for new jobs and careers in today’s fast-changing economy, we’re also revitalizing America’s community colleges. Last month, I saw the promise of these schools at Forsyth Tech in North Carolina. Many of the students there used to work in the surrounding factories that have since left town. One mother of two, a woman named Kathy Proctor, had worked in the furniture industry since she was 18 years old. And she told me she’s earning her degree in biotechnology now, at 55 years old, not just because the furniture jobs are gone, but because she wants to inspire her children to pursue their dreams, too. As Kathy said, “I hope it tells them to never give up.”
If we take these steps -– if we raise expectations for every child, and give them the best possible chance at an education, from the day they are born until the last job they take –- we will reach the goal that I set two years ago: By the end of the decade, America will once again have the highest proportion of college graduates in the world. (Applause.)
