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How To Get the President to Speak at Your Graduation

February 19, 2010 at 12:05 PM ET by Arne Duncan
Summary: 
Arne Duncan, Secretary of Education, and the President announce the Race to the Top High School Commencement challenge and are inviting public schools across the country to compete to have President Obama speak at their graduation.

At the beginning of the school year, the President encouraged students to take responsibility for their education, study hard and graduate from high school. That’s why the President and I are proud to announce the Race to the Top High School Commencement challenge. The challenge encourages schools to show how they are making great strides on personal responsibility, academic excellence and college readiness. In your application, tell us why your school is special and why it should be a model for other schools around the country.

Following the application deadline, six finalists will be selected by the White House and Department of Education. These schools will then be featured on the White House website and the public will have an opportunity to vote for the three schools they think best meet the President’s goal. The President will select a national winner from these three finalists and visit the winning high school to deliver the commencement address to the class of 2010.

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Applications must be submitted no later than Monday, March 15th at 11:59 pm EST. Learn more about the challenge at obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/Commencement. You can also check out our facebook page at Facebook.com/racetothetop.

Arne Duncan is Secretary of Education