President Burks, distinguished members of the faculty, I thank you for inviting me to be part of this momentous day.

And to you, the Class of 2004, and to your proud parents, friends and loved ones in attendance, I want to say, on behalf of President and Mrs. Bush and the American people, congratulations on your well-earned achievement.

And welcome to the beginning of your education!

Now, parents, don't worry. I'm not suggesting you might get another tuition bill in the mail.

Right now you may be thinking of Bill Cosby's old line: "Commencement means to go forth—and ‘forth' is not back home!"

No, what I'm talking about is lifelong learning. As the great basketball coach John Wooden once said, "It's what you learn after you know it all that counts."

Never stop learning. If you stop learning, you stop growing.

And never stop teaching, either. That is how those around you—your community, your nation and your fellow citizens—grow.

You are not here by accident. Each of you has been prepared for a purpose. And one of those purposes is service to others.

Become part of the gathering momentum of millions of acts of kindness and generosity that are strengthening our country, one heart and soul at a time.

I have every confidence you will seize this moment. Service was an integral part of your Harding student life—from Searcy Appreciation Days to your spring break campaigns.

I especially applaud those who gave up the comforts of home to minister and teach in troubled and less fortunate nations. Your Umoja campaign enabled a refugee hospital in war-torn Sudan to receive tens of thousands of dollars in medical supplies. "Umoja" means unity—and you made that word a reality.

You are part of the most service-oriented generation in American history. But service is just one piece of the puzzle.

Charity must stand on a foundation of justice. And that is why on Monday we celebrate another momentous day—the 50th anniversary of Brown v. Board of Education.

On May 17, 1954, the United States Supreme Court unanimously ruled that separate but equal public education was unequal—and unconstitutional.

On that day a generation of young people was told that they mattered, that the promise of liberty enshrined in the Declaration of Independence and protected by the Constitution would finally be fulfilled.

This was a proud but painful moment for much of the nation. Your parents or grandparents may have been schoolchildren at the time. I'm sure they have their own experiences to share.

I ask you today to take an unflinching look back and to put yourselves in their shoes for a moment.

Try to imagine what seems unimaginable 50 years later. Some children who were even friends and neighbors, who lived and played together, were forced apart when the school bell rang.

Black children were sent miles away from their neighborhoods, to schoolhouses like mine, with no science labs. I never even saw a microscope until I got to college.

Attorneys who defended this system argued, "The happiness, progress and welfare of these children are best promoted in segregated schools."

The nine justices disagreed. They saw "separate but equal" for what it was: a cruel fiction.

Brown declared that segregation based on race was unconstitutional, even if equal facilities were maintained. This was a profound statement.

No longer could one American deny another American's very existence. No longer would "educational apartheid" be given the protection of law.

In some places, the law was enforced. In others, resistance was severe. Government officials stood in the schoolhouse door. Schools—and sometimes whole school districts—were closed out of spite.

A lawless few resorted to violence. One of the worst acts was the bombing of the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, which killed four little girls attending a Bible class.

Holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel said, "The opposite of love is not hate. The opposite of love is indifference."

As you go forward in this life, you must fight this with all your heart! Remember what President Burks told you about camaraderie—even if you couldn't spell it on day one.

And remember that the fight goes on. Brown may have outlawed segregation—but it did not outlaw indifference.

For years, too many Americans were unmoved by the growing disparities in public education. Although motivated by the best intentions, we allowed "separate but equal" pathways to develop in our schools.

Are you trapped in a poorly performing school? Do you speak little or no English? Are you a chronic truant? Are you a great athlete but having trouble hitting the books? If so, don't worry, we'll just socially promote you until graduation day. You'll get the same diploma as everyone else. Who cares if you can read it?

This was wrong. The battle for civil rights rightly began in the schools. For education is itself a civil right.

President Bush recognized this. That is why he worked with Democrats and Republicans in Congress to pass the No Child Left Behind Act.

This law is strengthening our nation's education system so that all students are better prepared to enter Harding University and other fine institutions of higher learning.

No Child Left Behind is helping to end our "indifference"—and it's making a difference.

All 50 states have accountability plans to ensure that their students become proficient in reading and mathematics.

We've given schools more freedom and flexibility to achieve those goals, as well as a 36 percent increase in federal support for education since 2001.

And preliminary results show what we're doing is working.

One of America's greatest traits is its capacity to change. But we, the people, have to lead that change, one individual at a time.

History is often made by a single, small act of courage.

Rosa Parks wanted to sit down in the bus after a long, tiring day at work. The Reverend Oliver Brown did not want his daughter, Linda, to have to wait in the rain and cold for hours to attend a segregated school.

Like ripples in a pond, those simple acts had a profound impact throughout the years.

Because of them, a little girl who was friends with one of those Birmingham church bombing victims now leads the worldwide war on terrorism—Condoleezza Rice.

And a young man who attended segregated schools and was paid by his state to pursue graduate studies elsewhere because of his color is now privileged to stand before you today, leader of the United States Department of Education.

Harding University has educated both your head and your heart, so you are prepared when the time comes to spot an injustice, then to make a small, courageous act of your own.

It has educated you to be involved with, not indifferent to, the world around you; to reach beyond your comfort zone and touch the lives of others.

You are more than graduates today. You are ambassadors for the American ideal.

You are now prepared to create a nation and a world better than the one you inherited, so the next generation is better prepared to succeed in it.

Of course, in these busy days and years ahead, you will naturally focus on your own success. But as you do, I urge you to please not succumb to indifference's twin, apathy.

Take the opportunity you've been given to choose your leaders, whether they serve on your local school board or in the Oval Office.

In 2000, fewer than nine million Americans under age 25 voted in the presidential election, the lowest rate of any age group. By contrast, 30 million votes were cast for Ruben or Clay in the last "American Idol." Think about it.

For four years you have "integrated faith, living and learning"—the Harding University motto.

Don't stop now! Keep learning, teaching and growing. And keep on fighting against indifference and injustice.

If you do, at the end of this great life you will have many more friends than regrets.

Good luck, God Bless you, and God Bless the United States of America. Thank you.

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