Blog Posts Related to the Young Americans

Empowering Young People to Build a Kinder, Braver World

Yesterday, Cynthia Germanotta and I had the opportunity to discuss how to empower young people and end bullying at the Third Annual Bullying Prevention Summit in Washington, D.C.  Cynthia and her daughter, Lady Gaga, recently founded the Born This Way Foundation to empower young people with the skills and opportunities they need to build a kinder, braver world. 

As moms, both Cynthia and I realize the impact that bullying—and kindness—can have on young people.  We both agreed that we must all stay focused on ending bullying because no young person, or their loved ones, should have to endure the pain, agony, and loss to our families, schools, and communities that can come with bullying.

We also agreed that we need to reinforce positive behavior and motivate everyone, particularly young people, to get engaged.

President Obama believes that together, we can end bullying.  The President and his Administration are committed to developing a comprehensive policy, and all of us have a vital role to play: students, parents, and school administrators, as well as political, business, community, and faith leaders. 

For the Win: FROGs for the Future

Will Lourcey (Photo Courtesy of Points of Light).

For the Win is a guest blog series featuring the remarkable initiatives that young Americans are advancing to win the future for their communities. Each week we highlight a new young person and learn about their inspiring work through their own words. 

Will Lourcey, founder of FROGs, is a fourth grader at Tanglewood Elementary in Fort Worth, Texas. He enjoys writing, traveling and fighting hunger. Willwas recognized as a 2012 Hasbro Community Action Hero, an award recognizing outstanding young service leaders presented by Hasbro in partnership with generationOn, the global youth service enterprise of Points of Light.

I was inspired to help the hungry about two years ago, thanks to baseball. One hot, June night I was riding home from a little league game and when we stopped at a red light, I saw a man with a cardboard sign that said: Need A Meal; written in red ink. Right then and there I had no idea what it meant, but I felt bad for the man. When we got home, I talked to my mom and dad, and decided I wanted to help the man. Dad said we couldn't give directly to the man, but he knew a member of the local food bank and scheduled a meeting. 

Introducing Carson's Corner

Here at the Office of Public Engagement, we meet individuals every day who are doing some pretty extraordinary work within their communities.

While we would like to share some of our work with these folks, we also value the opportunity to learn from their experiences. In turn, we try to highlight these lessons with you through Twitter and our blog so that you might chime in and participate in the conversation. That is why I'm proud to introduce Carson's Corner, a new column where we can take a moment to reflect together on some of the issues we brought into focus throughout the week. I can't think of a better way to kick off this new feature than by checking in with young Americans.

Ronnie Cho is an Associate Director in OPE, as well as the White House Liaison to Young Americans. Ronnie works to make sure the issues important to young people are brought to the forefront of the White House. This summer has been particularly exciting for this community. Earlier this month they used their voices to prevent Congress from doubling interest rates on student loans. Across the country young people made their voices heard through tweets, Facebook posts and through emails and conversations with friends and neighbors. America’s youth are among the most dynamic and impactful leaders in the country.  Their leadership was illustrated yet again this week with the XIX International Aids Conference and the Campus Progress National Conference.

President Barack Obama, with Education Secretary Arne Duncan, delivers a statement on college affordability and interest rates on student loans, in the East Room of the White House, June 21, 2012. (Official White House Photo by Chuck Kennedy)