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323150704
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Arrival Statement 9/28/89 [OA 4390]
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323150704
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document
title
Arrival Statement 9/28/89 [OA 4390]
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13504-012
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Records of the White House Office of Speechwriting (George H. W. Bush Administration)
Speech Draft Files
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Originally Processed With FOIA(s):
FOIA Number:
S
FOIA
MARKER
This is not a textual record. This is used as an
administrative marker by the George Bush Presidential
Library Staff.
Record Group/Collection:
George H.W. Bush Presidential Records
Collection/Office of Origin:
Speechwriting, White House Office of
Series:
Speech File Draft Files
Subseries:
Chron File, 1989-1993
OA/ID Number:
13504
Folder ID Number:
13504-012
Folder Title:
Arrival Statement 9/28/89 [OA 4390]
Stack:
Row:
Section:
Shelf:
Position:
G
25
6
5
3
THE WHITE HOUSE
Office of the Press Secretary
For Immediate Release
September 28, 1989
REMARKS BY THE PRESIDENT
UPON ARRIVAL AT THE WHITE HOUSE
The South Lawn
4:37 P.M. EDT
THE PRESIDENT: Thank you, Mr. Secretary. And thank you
especially for your key role in this educational summit. And to all
of you, our special guests, welcome to the White House.
Let me first wish a happy birthday to the Executive
Director of the Council for American Private Education, Joyce McCray,
who is here someplace. (Applause.) And we have here today the proud
representatives of 218 secondary schools -- America's best. And some
are private, some are religiously affiliated, some are public -- a
mixture of middle, junior and senior high schools from 42 states, the
District of Columbia and Puerto Rico.
But you all have one thing in common -- a determination
to excel. And I am especially impressed by the 22 schools receiving
this award for the second time. You did not take your first win as a
reason to relax; you took it as a mandate for continued success. And
this clearly shows that all the schools here today have a commitment
to quality that is unwaivering and true. And so, returning from the
summit, Barbara and I just wanted to say congratulations to all of
you.
As you know, this was an historic summit on education
with the nation's governors there in Charlottesville. And one of the
first points that we all agreed on was the need for schools and
communities to work together. And this is what Douglas Molzahn of
Lincoln High in Manitowoc, Wisconsin, meant when he said that this
honor is not a spotlight on his school, but a floodlight on his whole
community.
Every school here today represents a successful community
of businessmen, businesswomen, civic groups and parents. And no one
had to tell you how to do this -- not Washington, not your state
government. You set your own high goals and then you met them.
These ideas dominated the discussion at this national
summit. The governors and I agreed that education is central to the
continued prosperity of our country, so nothing less than an educated
work force will do the job. But education has always been and must
remain a state responsibility and a local function.
So for the first time then in American history we
reached the following agreements: to establish a process for setting
national education goals; to seek flexibility and enhanced
accountability in the use of federal resources to meet these goals
through both regulation and legislative change; to undertake a major
state-by-state effort to restructure our education system; and then
to report annually on progress in achieving these goals. I am going
to stay engaged and use the bully pulpit of the White House to do my
part working with these governors to achieve educational excellence.
By doing this, we will be truly walking in the footsteps
of Thomas Jefferson. In fact, we've already started down the path by
entering into this new compact -- a Jeffersonian compact to enlighten
all of America's children.
MORE
- 2 -
But let me say it again. No one will impose these goals
on your schools. It's up to every community, every principal, every
teacher to accept the challenge of national goals. And can it be
done, you might ask. Well, yes. In fact, it has been done -- in 218
different ways, along 218 different paths to one goal --excellence in
education.
America desperately needs every school to match your
determination. There are more than 40 million Americans who have
never graduated from high school and there are more than 17 million
Americans who cannot read at all.
Benjamin Franklin was once asked what was the most
pitiful thing in life, and he replied, "A lonesome man on a rainy day
who does not know how to read." Because of your schools, thousands
of children will never suffer this singular form of loneliness; they
will be readers. And they will be accomplished in many subjects,
will possess the skills that our changing economy will demand. And
there is no secret to the way in which you're achieving this, no
secret to your success.
Danford Sakai of Waiakea High School put his academic
philosophy in alliteration -- commitment, caring, common sense,
communication and courage. And that's what you bring to your
schools, your students, and to the future of our great nation.
So thank you for what you're doing. Keep up the good
work. Congratulations, and God bless you all. Thank you very much.
END
4:40 P.M. EDT