More Resources USA Freedom Corps Website for Kids Photos

Good morning and welcome to the Department of Education. Thank you all for coming. It is a pleasure to be here today with Desiree Sayle, who is the director of USA Freedom Corps. It is also great to see David Eisner, who is the chief executive officer of the Corporation for National and Community Service. Desiree and David have dedicated their lives to bringing out the best in the American spirit. They have helped give millions of Americans the greatest gift of all—the chance to serve their communities.

We live in a nation founded on ideals of individual freedom and compassion. Since the earliest days of the republic, Americans have embraced the virtues of hard work, charity, and community service. And each generation of Americans has recognized its responsibility to pass these values on to the next generation.

We must continue this tradition by teaching our children about the importance of community service. Today, we are updating this lesson plan for the 21st century. The message remains the same, but we are posting it where we know our children will see it—on the Internet. I know what an amazing tool the Internet can be for our children because I am constantly taking their advice on how to use it.

We are here today to launch USA Freedom Corps Kids Dot Gov [USAFreedomCorpsKids.Gov]. This Web site will introduce a new generation of students to the age-old joy of community service.

In his 2002 State of the Union address, President Bush called upon all Americans to devote at least two years or 4,000 hours of their lives to the service of others. When the president said "every American," he meant Americans of all ages, including our youngest citizens. We have a responsibility to give our children the opportunity to answer this call to service.

For the last four years, the president and I have worked to open the doors of opportunity to all of our young people. We dreamed of a country where all children received a quality education and the chance to succeed in the 21st century. Unfortunately, when we first came to Washington in 2001, we found an education system of unequal possibilities. Some students flourished while others fell further and further behind. The doors of opportunity were closed to millions of our most vulnerable children.

We needed to do better. And we knew we could if we held schools accountable for results and gave parents more choices. So we passed the No Child Left Behind Act and forever changed the culture of our schools. The law set a new expectation—an expectation that every single child can and will succeed in school and in life.

We should always set high goals for our children. We want them to become good citizens as well as good students. And that's why the president's call to service is so important.

If children experience the pleasures of community service at a young age, studies show they are more likely to grow up to become lifelong volunteers. Community service is a habit that we want to help our children develop early in life.

And I know our children will answer the president's call to service so long as we provide them with the tools to do so. We have to fulfill our part of the bargain as parents and educators and show our children how they can help. When we do, the possibilities are endless.

I think of the story of 15-year-old Shauna Fleming from California. Her father challenged her to do something special for our brave soldiers. With the help of her school, Shauna started a campaign to collect and distribute thank-you letters to the men and women of our armed forces. Today, her campaign has produced over one million letters. Shauna says her "life has forever changed" from the experience. And I think her proud father would have to concede that she met his challenge.

Shauna's story shows the magic of volunteering. She enriched her life by touching the lives of others. Every child should have the chance to feel the sense of pride that comes from serving a cause larger than oneself.

Today, there are many young Americans who want to help but do not know how or where to start. Still there are many others who wonder whether their efforts can make a real difference in the world.

We know they can make a difference. And USA Freedom Corps Kids Dot Gov will show them how.

It's now my pleasure to introduce the director of USA Freedom Corps, Desiree Sayle.

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