>> From the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C. [ Silence ] >> James Billington: Once again welcome. We are very honored to have Arne Duncan, who was appointed the U.S. Secretary of Education by President Barack Obama, confirmed by the senate on January 20, 2009. Prior to that he had served as the Chief Executive Officer of the Chicago Public Schools. The Secretary was an outstanding basketball player. He had been a great reader here on a couple of occasions with the First Lady, which we remember with great appreciation and admiration and he is a great leader in education, committed to finding diverse ways to get students engaged and excited about learning. Secretary Douglas is here today as part of the program Student Voices, a monthly discussion between the youth, Secretary Arne Duncan and other senior leaders. So he's here to find out first hand what impact poetry and creative writing has had for all of you. He's been working with the President's Committee on the Arts and Humanities, on finalizing a report about the importance of the arts and education for building creative lives like all of yours. Here to offer a preview of that report before we are privileged to have the Secretary with us is Rachel Goslin, the Executive Director of President Obama's Committee on the Arts and Humanities. The President appointed her to this position in 2009. She has had a distinguished career as a producer in arts management and film director of several documentary films that are used in high school curricula across the country. She's worked as an international copyright attorney and for the Office of Policy and International Affairs in the United States Copyright Office, which is part of the Library of Congress and one reason why we have so much here of the creativity of America. So, Executive Director Goslin, the floor is yours. [Applause] >> Rachel Goslin: Thanks, I'll be brief. As most of you know, this morning as part of a culmination of a 3-month poetry workshop series that we the President's Committee have been doing in partnership with the wonderful folks at 826DC and of course, these great D.C. public high school students that we have with us here today. The Committee does a lot of work in arts education policy as Secretary Duncan knows and he has been a great ally for us. On May 6th we'll be releasing a report on the challenges and opportunities in arts education today. As many of you in this room know, either as educators or as students arts education in the schools is a key strategy to getting kids engaged, keeping them in school, increasing academic success and building the kind of creativity and innovative thinking that we need in today's economy and today's work force. Today the educational system faces a lot of challenges. There's a drop out rate-- we have a drop out rate that reaches 50 percent in some demographics. There's an achievement gap in some communities that is ever widening and we have a narrowed curriculum in a lot of our public schools and as we, the President's Committee have traveled around over the last 18 months visiting schools and principals and organizations who are working in arts education in some of our most difficult and toughest neighborhoods, what we've consistently seen is that arts education is a low cost and successful strategy for solving some of these major educational challenges, not something that you do after you've solved them. So, we've been working at this sort of 30,000 feet policy level for a while, but then its also really helpful to talk to people and work with folks on the ground who are dealing with these issues in their day-to-day lives and to the see the way that bringing more of the arts into our schools really touches people, inspires people and brings out their creativity and passion. So that's what we've been so privileged to do with some of you guys in this room over the last three months. And I want to say that I'm really grateful for that experience and perspective, not only to the great folks at 826DC, Joe Callahan, Miriam Elsherwath [Assumed spelling] Kyle Dargon who's led this workshop with such panache and not only to PCH member Olivia Morgan who was the driving force and the spark behind this workshop series, but also the kids that we've gotten to know a little bit over the-- I know you probably don't like being called kids huh? The young adults, we've gotten to know over the last three months Louis, Tiashia, Rashanda, John all of you guys. You have reminded us every time we sit down on those Wednesday evenings why we're doing all this. And you've also reminded us that you're much better poets than we are. And then finally, before turning it over to Secretary Duncan I just want give a special shout out to Ms. Jackson, the librarian at Ballou High School who [Applause] for the last three months in the driving rain in horrible traffic and I believe the occasional hail storm has piled the Ballou school kids in her car and driven them across the city to the 826 facility in northwest so that they could have this experience. And you know there's so many things that have to go right in schools for it work. You have to have the right federal policies in place. You have to have funding. You have to have the right structures, but as we've seen across the country the people who really make it work are the educators, the principals, the classroom teachers and librarians who understand first hand the difference that arts makes in the lives of students and commits themselves in their off time in terrible traffic to make sure that they have that opportunity. So Ms. Jackson and all the other teacher and poet educators who were here today, I just want to say on behalf of the President's Committee, thank you for that. And with that I will turn it over to Secretary Duncan to speak with you for a little while. Thanks so much. [Applause] >> Arne Duncan: I'll be very quick because I want to hear some of this wonderful poetry, but I just want to thank first of all the adults for your support of the students, for giving them voice, for giving them an opportunity and I think its about the most important thing we can do as educators is to help all of our young people find their voice and it may be poetry, it may be arts, it may be debate, it may be robotics, it may be sports, but its something. There's a genius in every single one of our young people and I think too often we don't uncover that. We don't provide those kinds of opportunities and when we don't do those things than you have some of those challenges that Rachel talked about, the drop off rates and other things but when you have students who can find their voice, who can find their passion who can find out what they love to do and what they excel in, I become very, very confident about where they're going to go in life and what they're going to do. And so these kinds of partnerships during the school, after the school, public schools, non-profits, folks working together; I think they're going to make an extraordinary difference as we move forward and whatever I can do to sort of celebrate these types of programs to shine a spotlight on them, to give a lot more students these kinds of opportunities, our country desperately needs that. And I think a big reason frankly why we're struggling with education right now in our country is too often these opportunities have disappeared and when they disappear I think the cost to our young people is tremendous. And so we can reverse that slide and make these kinds of opportunities the norm rather than the exception, then I know our young people are going to do extraordinarily well. So, thanks to the adults for your hardworking perseverance, thanks to students for your creativity, for your honesty and for putting in time and effort. I'm sure there's lots of other things you can be doing with your time. You can be watching video games or playing on different stuff, but actually putting your mind to this sitting down, challenging yourself, sometimes dealing with some tough truths and being able to express yourself in a creative way is just an extraordinary skill. And it's something that I hope you continue to do the rest of your life. This is not something you just do as a teenager. You continue to find that voice and continue to articulate that for as long as you can and I think you'll find how powerful your voice is if you continue to go forward. But I'll stop there. Thanks so much and I'd love to hear some of the student's poetry. Thank you. [Applause] >> I'm going to try this without a microphone. So we've go-- we've definitely got some poets who would like to share their poetry. I thought maybe we'd start it off with hearing from some of our teachers. Of course we have Ms. Jackson here from Ballou. We have Mary Bell from Wilson and Sarah Elwell at Bell. If you just want to talk a little bit about your time. You've been driving kids every Wednesday. You've been at this for a long time. She's a librarian at Ballou. What is it that made you think or know this was worth doing and how you were to make this a part of the kid's lives? What's so important about this program? >> Well, first of all the program allows the students to express themselves easily. It's not something that we're giving them saying write about this or do this. It's something that they feel on the inside. We're giving them how the feel on the inside. We're giving them ideas to share because they're always telling us what they can't do and what they can do. This is the time for you share what you cannot do so the program, it's giving them an opportunity to share with others, north, south; it tells what's on your mind and what's going on [Inaudible background discussion] so they can know what is it that you're feeling? What is it that you're feeling? What is it that you want to be known or said or heard? So, with that in mind they had an opportunity to get there. Some of them expressed that they didn't have bus fare or they didn't have the time because when you get out of school it's time to go to 826. So I had to make sure that they were fed. So we would go to Chipolte or we would go to McDonald's or something like that, but that was an incentive to go. But once they got there and they were sharing and expressing themselves, they were like, Oh this is alright. I like this. Oh, when are we going back? I know we go at a certain time frame. So, with that in mind there were other things that hindered them from not coming but just to know that they had a stability in me and they had a place they could go to and express themselves and others appreciate what they were saying. That was a big deal with 826 and I am truly grateful for that program. We had to travel far, but it's okay. I wish there was something in southeast D.C. but whatever it gave them the opportunity to go and be heard and to have people that were understanding to them. I think that was a big part of the reason why I made that hike there. [Applause] >> Any other educators want to speak up or share what brought you to the program? >> Well, I'm Sarah Elwell and I'm the librarian but also the Poetry Club Adviser at Bell Multicultural High School and there are voices that need to be heard and not always in the most standardized of ways that seem to be more respective in the school system now. So the Poetry Club, I feel like it offers an outlet for students who feel constrained by all these restrictions that are placed on teachers and the school system by standardized testing. It's a place where they can be safe and free to express themselves and they have people around them that appreciate it. And it's just been a joy to see the lights in their eyes and the passion that is fanning through the planes of their words. I mean they are just amazing, amazing young people and so Miriam, by reaching out to our school and letting them know that, hey this could be a movement. This is something that's more powerful than just one student or one school. This could be one city or one community, one world, one nation. It's just been an amazing-- and I'm just so proud. [Applause] >> Well I think we should now turn to the students that I know. So Lewis has been to all the [Inaudible] workshops and this is the first one. If someone's got a question, maybe you want to talk a little bit about what you brought, what you found in this and then [Inaudible] >> Stand up here. Alright so-- hi, my name is Lewis Lyden. I go to Columbia House Educational Campus or Bell Multicultural High School. I'm a senior this year. I'm going to college next year at Bucknell University. [Applause] I won the Posse Scholarship for that. >> Okay. Awesome. [Applause] >> Well I wanted to ask them a question real quickly. So I understand that there's a lot of budget cuts happening right now and education is going a little bit down for the U.S. right now and internationally, and I was wondering how do you plan to prepare students for the world and beyond if the education budget keeps on being cut? >> James Billington: Can you go to the mic? >> Arne Duncan: [Background sound effects] First of all I'm a huge fan of the Posse Program and I ran the Chicago public schools. I think we had more Posse scholars then any other city. We're proud of that, but I'm glad to share a few here in D.C. But, that program as you know puts together extraordinary young people and your goal is not to go to Bucknell; you're goal is to graduate. And it took me five years to graduate from college, so it might take you three, it might take you four. It took me five; whatever it takes you get through. And that Posse crew that you're going to be with is going to help you be extraordinarily successful. It makes me very, very confident about where you're going. So it's pretty interesting. These are really tough budget times and there's a big debate going on in congress and the President has basically flat-lined domestic spending. But in the current bill, he's asking for an additional four billion dollars for education. So it's a massive investment and he fundamentally sees education as an investment, not as an expense. That I believe is not shared by everybody in congress, and there's debate going on which is fine and which is healthy. One of the things I'm proudest that we've done is to significantly increase Pell Grants for college. And we've increased them to the biggest amount since the GI Bill. And there were folks in congress who wanted to reduce Pell Grants by as much as a thousand dollars and we know going to college has never been more important. It's also noted to be more expensive and our nation's families are struggling right now. So, we are able to preserve that. So what we're trying to do is to lead by example, to walk the walk. And I think the President has just shown unbelievable courage at a time that's making really, really tough cuts and cutting things, programs he really believes in because things are difficult out there. We're actually investing more than ever before in education. And so what we're hoping is to see what we do at the federal level, at the state and the local level and get folks to follow. Not to go on too long, but this is so important to me that young people and their parents vote. And again, republican, democrat it doesn't matter to me. I want every political issue to be what they're running on education. And ultimately if your guy's voices aren't heard then it makes education easy to cut. But if your guys' voices are heard, then it makes it a much tougher call. And so, we're going to try to beat by example and having you guys step and be a part of the solution I think is hugely important. [ Sound effects ] >> So I wrote this poem in 826. It's called Memories. So we were talking about specific dates and all that stuff. So, here goes: Memories. I remember those good ol days. The days when I ran with a Barbie in my right hand and a toy car in my left. The days when I ate chicken with the veggies in a napkin. The days of nap time and milk and cookies, yea I remember those days. With the screams and the yells, the whips and the brooms, the ultimatums and the death stares, those were the days. I remember those days with the beer bottles and hard liquor with the tears and blood, those good ol days. With police and the jail visits, the CIA and immigration and the lonely nights with no one to tuck me in. Yea, those were the days. Doing homework with no help, cooking my own food, I did the cleaning. I got fatter and fatter. I remember those days, which I worked out alone, which I seeded without you, which I ate with my burnt food, yea, I remember. [Applause and inaudible background discussion ] >> Arne Duncan: Well one of the things that I hope for throughout this workshop is that the students in the workshop have a chance to use what they learn in school in different ways in writing poetry, but also in some ways try to take some the energy of the workshop back to your schools. So we'd be curious to know how has the workshop affected your relationship to the curriculum that you get on an everyday basis? Have you been able to use things you've learned in school in different ways as some of what we've done in the workshop that you considered or thought about bringing it back into your school environments? I know some of you go to art schools, some of you don't. So we'd just be curious to know, what has this experience been like and how does it relate to what you've been doing at school at 826? [ Sound effects ] >> Okay, Well I'm Rashanda and I go to Duke Ellington. >> Alright. >> [Laughter] Yea. I'm actually usually-- this has provided me as an outlet and I see poetry in a different perspective, because I like to write but I love to write like short stories. And at my school, even though it's an art school, I don't really have the opportunity to write because I'm in a different department. And when the teacher handed me the permission slip, I was like, what is this? And when I found out it was a poetry workshop I was a little nervous because I'm not a poet and like I remember you saying that the slams had to be a certain way, so I hear my peers doing poetry a certain way. So I tried to mimic that but through this I found that poetry isn't so-- it doesn't have to be so defined in a box. So it's giving me a great outlet and after you guys have all spoke it's very inspiring, inspirational and I'm ready to write some more poetry. >> Alright. [Applause] >> Does anyone else have something? >> Hello. My name is Karan Gieuer [Assumed spelling] Woodrow Wilson and well about learning something about the arts and for what is announced from this program, it really opened a door for me. Like for example, like I live in South America and Argentina and Brazil. I didn't really do a lot of things there, but when I came here to the United States I was more open to more artistic education, including like a chance to do poetry, which I try to help. I ended up working on a project but doing it right in my heritage, and these opportunities are given to me not because a door opened to me, but because someone opened a door for me. You know like my teacher, Ms. Fall, she gave me-- she made me like come to this program to like participate because-- it was interesting because I work with a team. I feel like I was actually editing a book, working with like professionals. And also in my school, I was open to a lot of artistic areas. Like I did drawing and painting this year and last year I did sculpture and photography. I was open to many things and education is very important and arts freedom is a freedom that needs to be taught. So, the art of communication, art is really important. Especially programs like these are actually opening more doors for us. So, thank you again. [Applause] >> So the theme of the conversation is complete education and how arts fits into our education. Does anyone want to talk about, someone not from Ellington maybe what the arts program is like at your school and you know how this adds to it and what your education would be like without it. Anyone want to give the Secretary of Education a little insight to what its like to really-- what's really going on in your schools arts wise or give any of us insight. Any takers? >> Well I'm not-- [Inaudible background discussion] alright. I'm not trying to hog the mic or nothing. [Laughter] Well I go to Bell Multicultural high school and in there we have a few art classes. We have an APR and a couple of sculpture classes now. They are kind of new in my school. We have a music class, like a band this year I think it was. We're starting a band, so it's pretty much increased a little bit. Like Ms. Elwell over there said, we have a poetry club. I love poetry club by the way. [Laughter] And we're missing a lot of things though still and there's a lot of material that we could be using instead, but like we're trying to do the best with-- I guess my school is trying to do the best with what they have. We could use a lot more though, so-- >> Any questions? Do you have any questions for the students? >> James Billington: We have time for one more. >> One more poem? [Applause] >> Hi my name is Tiasha Hans and I attend to Ballou Senior High School. Well I'm a senior and the president of the poetry club. [Applause] The name of my poem is called I'm a Human Being. I wrote this poem because as an African-American female or male growing up in a rough neighborhood we tend to get judged a lot by where we come from and the people around us. But a lot of times the people that come out of the community are different than you know people who are selling drugs etcetera. And I don't want the people around me and my peers to hold me back on what I do. >> Alright. >> And it's kind an MC type style. They say the black man live an animalistic but this life be lived realistic, better yet realism, steal dinner with racism. I am not an N-I-G-G-E-R. I am a human being. Where I come from we get more food stamp cards then Christmas cards and unbearable hunger pains, that's the definition of my life. I am a human being. Drugs dealers selling their mothers just to make ends meet and mothers dying, babies crying and silent tears are soaking on my pillow. Daddies dying, getting shot even women widowed. I am a human being. So do not judge me or label me by where I come from. Let me be a human being. Do not let the color of my skin or the nap of my hair defeat the purpose of my destiny, but let the concepts of character define who I am and I am a human being. I'm not a section of a city occupied by a minority group who live there because of social, economic and legal pleasures. In other words I am not ghetto because ghetto is a place. Am I right? So if I may proceed like green lights, where I come from we get more obituaries than high school diplomas to hang on the wall cause everybody wanna be the next big drug dealer so the whole hood fold. Do not judge me or label me by where I come from. I am a human being. [ Sound effects ] >> Nice. [Inaudible background discussion] >> I think luckily for anyone who might try and follow that that pretty much uses up our time with Arne Duncan. Thank you so much for your time, for coming by to hear these voices. Thank you so much to all the students who are here on their last day of spring break. We really appreciate it and thank you so much to our poets who came as well. [Applause] >> This has been a presentation of the Library of Congress.