As first lady, I鈥檝e spent a lot of time talking with young people all across the country about education. I鈥檝e heard about their hopes of going to college, getting good jobs, and one day starting families of their own. And I鈥檝e also heard about the challenges they鈥檙e facing鈥攖he rising costs of tuition, their overstretched school counselors, and the insecurities and fears that come along with being first-generation college students.
My message to these young people is that while all of us adults鈥攖eachers, administrators, and policymakers鈥攈ave to do a better job of giving them the best schools and opportunities for their future, at the end of the day, they also need to step up and take responsibility for their education themselves.
On her experience as a first-generation college student at Princeton University, Michelle Obama wrote:
It was really a culture shock for me. When I first arrived at school, I didn鈥檛 know anyone on campus except my brother. I didn鈥檛 know how to pick the right classes or find the right buildings. I didn鈥檛 even bring the right size sheets for my dorm-room bed. Once I discovered the campus cultural center, things started to turn around. I started making friends, and the staff there understood what I was going through and helped me when I was frustrated or when I was too embarrassed to ask a question of anyone else. And soon enough, I realized that I had the support structure and community I needed to succeed in college.
So my advice to other first-generation students is to realize that the transition to college is going to be tough鈥攁nd when it is, you鈥檝e got to make sure to reach out for help. You鈥檝e also got to remind yourself that you absolutely have what it takes to overcome whatever obstacles you鈥檙e facing.
You鈥檝e already shown such grit and determination just to make it to college, and those skills will serve you well as you work to complete your education.
That means going to class every day, setting their goals high, and working like crazy to achieve them. That鈥檚 been the story of my life and my husband鈥檚 life, so when I talk to these young people, my hope is that they see that our story can be their story, too鈥攁s long as they鈥檙e willing to dedicate themselves to their education.
Early last month, I officially gave this effort a name and an aspiration鈥�. And that鈥檚 really the goal: to inspire young people to reach higher to complete their education beyond high school so that they can own their futures. We鈥檙e focusing on things like financial aid, college counseling, academic and summer planning, and college visits. Our objective is to ensure that every student in this country understands how to pursue and complete their education, whether it鈥檚 at a traditional four-year college or a community college, or via a professional certificate or degree.
We鈥檙e doing all of this because we know that these days, a high school diploma simply isn鈥檛 enough. To get a good job and compete in the global economy, our young people need something more. And that鈥檚 true for our country as well鈥攚e need a highly trained, highly educated workforce to compete in the 21st century. And all across America, we need communities that truly value and promote education for our children from Day One.
We need a highly trained, highly educated workforce to compete in the 21st century. And ... we need communities that truly value and promote education."
I saw the power of cultural norms around education in March, when I visited China. As I traveled the country, whether I was talking to kids or adults, whether I was in big cities or rural areas, I was struck by the strength and depth of people鈥檚 commitment to education. I heard about parents making unbelievable sacrifices so their kids could attend school. I heard about students studying day and night in the hopes of getting a good job or being accepted into a university. I know that that鈥檚 true in many other countries around the world as well.
And the truth is, it wasn鈥檛 all that long ago that our country was setting those kinds of standards for the rest of the world. A generation ago, America had the highest percentage of college graduates in the world. But today, we鈥檝e in terms of young adults. That鈥檚 simply not acceptable, and that鈥檚 why my husband set his 鈥攖hat by the year 2020, we will once again have the highest college graduation rate in the world. Already, through initiatives like Race to the Top, we鈥檙e seeing states and school districts across the country make real improvements for our kids, and today, our high school graduation rate is the highest on record.
But while we should be proud of these gains, we鈥檝e still got plenty of work to do to reach that North Star. It鈥檚 going to take all of us to inspire our young people to reach higher. That means more parents pushing their kids and demanding more from their kids鈥� schools. It means creating more partnerships between high schools, colleges, and businesses so that young people can learn the skills they鈥檒l need for their future careers. It means cultivating a new generation of world-class teachers and school leaders. And, of course, it means young people stepping up to take responsibility for their futures as well.
The good news is we know that all of this is possible. Every day, we鈥檙e seeing examples of communities stepping up to support their young people in places from California to Iowa to New York. A few weeks ago, I saw one of these efforts firsthand in San Antonio, where they were celebrating their fourth annual college week. I had a chance to speak at their college signing day, which is a huge rally with thousands of high school seniors who publicly announce their plans to attend and graduate from college.
But it wasn鈥檛 just the graduating seniors who were involved鈥攅veryone in San Antonio wears their college T-shirts on signing day. And all week long, the community holds college-application workshops for high schoolers and gives middle school students guidance and advice on getting to college. They even have prekindergarten kids create college-themed art projects, because it鈥檚 never too early to start talking about higher education. Everything they鈥檙e doing in San Antonio is helping to support the dreams of so many promising young people. They鈥檙e young people like Rocio Alvarado, a remarkable young woman I met on my visit. Rocio鈥檚 family came to the United States when she was a child, and they lived together in one tiny, crumbling room. Her father worked long hours for low wages, and when they needed money to pay for her mother鈥檚 medications, Rocio helped sell homemade tamales outside her school. But Rocio鈥檚 family believed deeply in the power of education, and they pushed her to study as hard as she could. So Rocio rose from English-as-a-second-language classes all the way to Advanced Placement classes鈥攁nd next fall, she is heading off to the University of Texas at San Antonio to pursue her degree.
There are young people just like Rocio in every community in this country鈥攜oung people with so much promise and so many skills like grit and resilience that will carry them to success. All they need is a little extra support from folks like us. So we鈥檝e got to make the sacrifices and investments that will inspire every child to reach higher and give them an opportunity to fulfill their boundless potential. If we do that, then I am confident that we can give all our kids the bright futures they so richly deserve.
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