Bobby's blog home

Recent Entries

• Take the Nonprofit Stress Test
• A New Era for Philanthropy?
• No, Not A Retreat!
• Dogging Questions
• Cleansing and Renewal

Recent Comments

• By Ellen Ende from the entry 'Take the Nonprofit Stress Test'
• By David from the entry 'American Pride'
• By Mary from the entry 'American Pride'
• By Car Accident Claim from the entry 'American Pride'
• By love me from the entry 'American Pride'
• By Cash Gifting from the entry 'American Pride'
• By sergio from the entry 'American Pride'
• By Victor from the entry 'American Pride'
• By Road Accident Claim from the entry 'American Pride'
• By Kathline from the entry 'American Pride'

May I please have 14 minutes of your time? I promise to say something inspirational and relevant. Will you grant me that privilege?

On the other hand, assume I am the President of the United States. Assume that I want to motivate America’s children to work harder. To take personal responsibility for their education. To find their unique talent. To overcome obstacles. To persevere, not only for their own good but for the good of the country.

Now would you grant me that same privilege?

Local, state and the national government pour billions and billions of dollars into education. Parents save for years to pay for their children’s education. Philanthropists give more to support private and public education than for any other charitable purpose.

Yet, ultimately it is the children who have to make education work. Without their motivation, all of these dollars spent, all of the volunteer time parents and others invest are for naught.

On Tuesday, the first day of the new school year for many, President Obama delivered a teachable moment. Many children who heard him were inspired. I listened to his address online, and I was inspired.

How much money do we spend every year to inspire our children? How many motivational speakers do we pay for? How many assembly sessions bring athletes and luminaries to encourage children to aspire and achieve? How many multiples of 14 minutes do we allow for these activities? And isn’t every one of those minutes worth it if it motivates a child?

Tuesday’s motivational speech was free. It came from the President of the United States. It came as students begin a new year and have the opportunity to create success where there may once have been failure. The speech could have been shown to every student in this country, in just 14 minutes. And, it could have leveraged the immense investment of our educators, volunteers, donors and parents in this generation of children.

There was another teachable moment on Tuesday. Some parents fussed about wasting 14 minutes of their children’s precious time on the first day of school. Some teachers complained that a 14-minute address from the President was not relevant to the Standards of Learning. Some school leaders caved into this pressure and either refused to show the President’s speech or taped it and made it available in the library. These people taught children something as well.

The objectors didn’t want their children to hear these words:

“But at the end of the day, we can have the most dedicated teachers, the most supportive parents, and the best schools in the world – and none of it will matter unless all of you fulfill your responsibilities. Unless you show up to those schools; pay attention to those teachers; listen to your parents, grandparents and other adults; and put in the hard work it takes to succeed. “

Or these words:

“Every single one of you has something you’re good at. Every single one of you has something to offer. And you have a responsibility to yourself to discover what that is. That’s the opportunity an education can provide.”

Or these words:

“We need every single one of you to develop your talents, skills and intellect so you can help solve our most difficult problems. If you don’t do that – if you quit on school – you’re not just quitting on yourself, you’re quitting on your country.”

Has life in this country become so politicized that we can’t rally around the President when he wants to do his part to help inspire the next generation of Americans? Have we lost our sense of patriotism and our respect for the Office of the President?

For those of us in philanthropy who work so hard to facilitate education – through tax dollars, through contributions and through volunteer time – the President’s leadership was welcome. It was important. It should be repeated by this President and by future Presidents of any political party.

Education is the single most important key to the future of our children and the future of this country. We need leadership at every level to do our best. Leadership begins at the top.

Tuesday was a teachable moment, indeed. Some children heard the President’s inspiring message. Other children heard a different message, which I very much regret.