WASHINGTON — Nearly 130 students, some of them the custody of foster parents or even homeless – but soon college bound – met at the White House Thursday for the 2015 “Beating the Odds Summit.” The young people, coming from 29 states and the District of Columbia, are part of first lady Michele Obama’s Reach Higher initiative.
“This is your first stop, this is the first star you grab for – your education,” Obama said to the students during a panel session.
The first lady’s program aims to get more underprivileged kids into higher education be it professional training, community college, or attending a four-year university. President Barack Obama has set a 2020 goal for America to be ahead of other countries in having the largest proportion of college graduates in the world.
In 2012, 43.05 percent of U.S. adults had achieved education levels beyond high school, according to the Organization of Economic Co-operation and Development’s “Education at a Glace” report. The U.S. had the fifth largest proportion of higher education graduates behind the Russian Federation, Canada, Japan and Israel.
Education Secretary Arne Duncan told the group of students that it’s up to the adults to provide more opportunity such as mentoring programs and summer internships.
“I think young people are more than doing their side of the bargain,” Duncan said. “It’s up to us as adults for us to do better and meet them halfway.”
Azeezat Siyanbola, 18, who traveled from her home in the Bronx in New York City to attend the summit, said she appreciated how Obama talked about the difficulties she might face, including being a woman of color.
“If I have a goal and I have a dream that’s right there at the end of the tunnel, I’m going to get it because I’m going to make it happen,” Siyanbola, who will be attending Barnard College in the fall, said.
More than 70 nonprofit organizations sponsored the youth who attended the event and will be preparing to begin college in the fall. In addition to Obama’s talk, students were treated to a concert by the rapper Wale.
