at the u.s. chamber of commerce health care summit, a look at innovations in health care. education secretary john king spoke at the national press club recently about how schools can encourage civic engagement and public service among students. he was introduced by jeff ballou of al jazeera english. >> good afternoon, and welcome to the national press club. i'm jeff ballou with al jazeera english here and the 109th vice president of the national press club. our guest today is dr. john v. king jr., the tenth u.s. secretary of education.

i would welcome our public radio and c-span audiences, and i want to remind you, you can follow the action on twitter using #npclive. this will be, again, a great time for you to turn off or at least silence your cell phones so they don't disrupt our program. if you have any questions for our speaker, you can write them on the cards that are at your table, pass them up to the head table and we'll try to get through as many of them as time permits or tweet them to the hashtag npclive. now is the time to introduce our head table guest. on your right looking at us and on my far left, vacari aarons. at the data quality campaign. and vice president of the education writers association. tahider sing, editor of india america today and white house

correspondent. emily wilkins, education and labor reporter at cq roll call. amy mcintosh, assistant secretary at the u.s. department of education. carol feldman, director of news operations and finance at the associated press. and also education editor at the associated press. jahana hays, 2016 national teacher of the year. constancia, reporter for bloomberg news and chair of the national press club speakers committee. lisa matthews, vice president hager sharp and the national press club speakers committee member who organized today's luncheon. thank you, lisa. and the chief of staff to the secretary of education. jamal, senior staff writer for diverse issues in higher

education. candice smith, executive director of media relations at the george washington university. and liam roberta, alliance creative communications and involved in the 1979 transition team for the then new u.s. department of education. which was established in 1980. [ applause ] it was just seven months ago our guest was confirmed as secretary of education. but dr. john v. king jr. has been involved in public education all his life. a former social studies teacher from new york, he's known for crediting the public school system with his life. king had a difficult childhood. by the age of 12, both of his parents had died. it was a rough and tumble time but after school -- after that, school was his sanctuary.

years later, dr. king would go on to lead new york state education department from 2011 to 2014 before joining the department of education. despite his emphasis on making sure all students are receiving the same level of education, regardless of race or zip code, king's tactics have been criticized on all sides. at school districts, at pta meetings, congress. at the same time, he has been praised for understanding the importance of a diverse, rich, well-rounded education. dr. king supported the implementation of the every student succeeds act which replaced no child left behind. he has urged states to use the new federal education law. that's what i get for covering elections for so long. to expand and focus more on science, social studies, arts and world languages. i like that last one. dr. king has also pushed for

higher standards as a stepping stone that ensures all students are ready for what's next. today he returns to his roots as a social studies teacher to speak with us here at the national press club about the role of schools in prepping students to be active citizens. please welcome to the national press club podium, dr. john v. king jr., secretary of education. [ applause ] >> good afternoon. thank you so much for the introduction, and thank you to the press club for inviting me here to speak with you today about a topic about which i am passionate both as a former social studies teacher and as an american, the importance of civic education as part of a well-rounded education. i've spoken about well-rounded education many times before.

i often speak about my teacher in fourth, fifth and sixth grade at ps-276. he made a huge difference in my life after my mom passed away. he made school engaging, compelling and nurturing. we read and discussed "the new york times" every day in his class. performed shakespeare and went to the met and museum of natural history and other cultural institutions. wherever we went, whatever we were doing, he would really listen and respond to our questions and our observations. he made each of us feel valued and unique. last december the president, president obama, signed the every student succeeds act or essa. essa creates an opportunity for states and schools to reclaim the promise of a high quality well-rounded education like the one i had thanks to great new york city public school

teachers. an education that prepares every student regardless of their background to succeed in college and careers. later this week, the department of education will release nonregulatory guidance on one part of essa. a new grant program designed to help schools and communities provide students with access to well-rounded education, to create and save in support of school environments, and to improve the use of technology. we owe it to every child in this country to provide them with access to music and the arts. world languages. physics, chemistry, biology. physical education and health. coding and computer science. and social studies. geography. government and civics. these are not luxuries. they are essential for preparing our students to thrive in the world they will experience beyond high school. today i want to focus on the importance of civic education and what that might look like in schools and colleges.

when we think about the responsibilities of citizens, we often think primarily about voting. and voting is unquestionably the cornerstone of freedom. the right to vote undergirds all our other rights. to not vote is to turn your back on your neighbors and your community and your country. and throughout our history, people have fought and even died to be treated as full citizens and to be able to cast a ballot. it was 132 years after the ratification of the constitution before women were allowed to vote thanks to the 19th amendment. it wasn't until 1965 and the passage of the voting rights act that african-americans were trial finally guaranteed the right to vote, despite the 15th amendment having been added to the constitution nearly 100 years earlier. it's not ancient history, 1965. congressman john lewis was among

many who were beaten and who suffered as part of that struggle, and some older african-american voters can remember having to take literacy tests before being allowed to register and vote. we need to be ever vigilant to be sure this right is not taken away. however, as i would tell my students, when i was teaching, voting, as important as it is, is only one responsibility of citizenship. the strength of our democracy depends on all of us as americans understanding our history and the constitution and how the government works at every level. becoming informed and thoughtful about local, state and national issues, getting involved in solving problems in our schools, communities, states and nationally. recognizing that solutions to the complex issues our nation faces today all require compromise. being willing to think beyond

our own needs and wants and to embrace our obligations to the greater good. finally, i would argue our democracy, our communities and our nation would be stronger if all of us volunteered on behalf of others. none of this will occur automatically. as americans we celebrate our individuality and differences. but to remain a functioning society and democracy, we values to recognize that we are dependent on society and society depends on us. all of us. parents, elected officials, educators, journalists and everyone else must set a good example for our children and newcomers to this society and to make this in lincoln's words, a more perfect union. but today i want to argue that our schools and colleges have a special experience to prepare their students to do so. educating students about their role in democracy is one of the original goals. and it should remain so today as

our nation becomes more and more diverse. and right now, it is clear that our schools and colleges must do more to meet that goal. only 1 in 5 eighth graders and 12th graders have a working knowledge of the constitution, the presidency, congress, the courts and how laws are made. not surprisingly, we're failing. even more of our children of color and children from low-income families. only about 1 in 10 -- 1 in 10 african-american, hispanuc and low-income students have a working knowledge of how government functions. only one-third of americans even know that joe biden is vice president or can name a single supreme court justice. those of us who work in washington may think, how could this be? but it is the reality. today all 50 states and the district of columbia make some civics instruction a graduation requirement.

over the past couple of years, 14 states have begun requiring students to pass a version of the citizenship exam to get a diploma. that could be a good start, but it is civics light. knowing the first three words of the preamble to the constitution or being able to identify at least one branch of government is worthwhile, but it's not enough to equip people to carry out the duties of citizenship. everyone above a certain age who watched saturday morning cartoons remembers how a bill becomes a law from schoolhouse rock. but that doesn't help them evaluate different positions on issues such as immigration or climate change or taxation. so today i ask our nation's schools and colleges to be bold and creative in educating for citizenship. make preparing your students for their civic duties just as much a priority as preparing them to succeed in college and in their careers. and i ask educators to work from the broader definition of civic

duty that i've described. i ask teachers and principals and superintendents to help your students learn to be problem-solvers who can grapple with challenging issues such as how to improve their schools, homelessness, air and water pollution, or the tensions between police and communities of color. it is also critical that these conversations not be partisan. civic education engagement is not a democratic party or republican party issue. solutions to problems can and should be rooted in different philosophies of government. we have to make sure classrooms welcome and celebrate these different perspectives. i recognize this could lead to uncomfortable conversations and that teachers will need support and training to foster these conversations in productive ways. principals will need to be courageous and back their teachers up. superintendents and school boards need to make sure their communities understand what they are trying to accomplish. i know from personal experience that these issues are not always

easy to talk about. i have two daughters. one in elementary school and one in middle school. over the past year, we've had to talk to them a lot about the fact that the vast majority of police officers are dedicated public servants who are doing their best to keep people safe. and at the same time, the reality, we've got to talk as a country about systemic issues of racism, prejudice and bias. and how they affect the relationship between police and communities. also made the same point when i was in st. paul, minnesota, earlier this year meeting with families and staff members at the school where philando castille worked. he worked at a school in st. paul. beloved by the faculty and kids at the school. he was kills in an interaction

with police officers in falcon heights, minnesota. and i went to mourn with the families and talk with the families. talk with the reality that castille was stopped more than 40 times by police before the incident where he was killed. i urged the parents and educators i met with not to sink into despair but instead to work with others in the community to make sure that an event like that would never happen again. i wanted them to act on the same belief that i want my daughters to understand. that these issues can be resolved, but that it will take concerted efforts at all levels of government. national, state and local. because reality is that for many of the biggest issues, including tensions between police and communities of color, they're not going to be settled solely by decision by the president or congress or even a bill passed in a state legislature. the department of justice can monitor policing, can identify

violations of civil rights and can order changes in practices and policies to prevent these violations. that's a start. but what's also needed are citizens who will work with others and vote strategically to demand changes in police training to include bias, cultural competencies and ways to defuse tense situations in their police interactions. and an end to racial profiling, to demand an end to discriminatory practices by prosecutors and courts that have a dire impact on poor people. the same activism beginning at the local level to make the difference in the creation of jobs, better housing and improved mass transit and so many other issues. but this won't happen unless people have the knowledge, skills and inclination to get involved that can be learned in school. i know there are schools around the country doing a good job of

this. and there are advocacy groups started by former supreme court justice sandra day o'connor that are working to get more schools involved in civic education. one organization that's helping to make this happen is the james madison memorial fellowship foundation which was established by congress in 1986. when i was a teacher, i was fortunate to be a madison fellow char which allowed me to take classes on the teaching of the history of the constitution and participate in a community of talented and passionate social study educators. generations of madison fellows selected from all 50 states are in classrooms across the country ensuring their students have a good understanding of the foundations of american democracy. one person who is doing this kind of work extraordinarily well is johanna hays who is a high school social studies teacher in waterbury, connecticut, in addition to being the 2016 national teacher of the year. she's passionate about teaching

her students at kennedy high school about history and the importance of community service and their obligation to improve the human condition. she's the adviser to the school's helping people out everywhere club. she and her students participate in the annual walk for autism and rally for life and have raised thousands towards cancer research. she points out that students want to help but they need role models to show them how. we need more teachers like johanna and more schools and districts to support them. so what are the elements of a robust and relevant civic education? first, students need knowledge. they need to know the constitution and the legislative process. they also need to understand history. our students ought to be truly familiar with the primary source that have shaped our nation's history. with the declaration of independence and constitution. and dr. king's letter from a

birmingham jail to name a few. it's not enough to be able to quote from these documents. they need to know why they remain relevant today. they need to put themselves into other shoes and to appreciate the different perspectives that have shaped our nation's history. we should teach students that's slavery is not just a scar on our national character erased by the civil war. we should teach them technology and wrestle with the way that ugly legacy continues to shape our country and helps explain the treatment of people of color in america today. the way the new national museum of african-american history and culture on the national mall tells this story is both powerful and unforgettable. i visited and was filled with horror as i read the bill of sale -- bill of sale -- for a 16-year-old girl names holly. i gazed upon a statue of thomas jefferson with the names of the human beings he owned inscribed on a stack of bricks behind him.

as i stood in front of what was once emmett till's coffin. that's not the only story the museum tells. it also tells the story of resistance and dignity in the face of oppression. from turner, harriet tubman and the tuskegee airmen. a wonderful new story for educators. students should understand the constitution protects the right of nfl quarterback colin kaepernick to protest during the national anthem and why players across the country, including high school students, are doing the same. and they should also understand and be able to explain with evidence why some people are offended by that decision or would choose a different way to express their views. civics shouldn't be an add-on. it can be made a part of every class. not just social studies and history but read, writing, science and math.

studying climate change in science class can be broadened and made more rel vent by asking students to find out whether their local government is prepared to respond. math can be made more engaging by having students research the ratio of liquor stores to grocery stores to population in various neighborhoods. and then asking the mayor why that is the case. beyond knowledge, students need civics skills. they should be able to write persuasive letters to the editor or mayor or member of congress and learn to speak at public meetings. in addition, they should have opportunities to do democracy. when i was teaching, i had my seniors do research projects tackling local problems in the community. i can recall students who worked with a local non-profit to end the dumping of garbage in their neighborhood. to support urban agricult are products and advocate for more affordable housing. they learned they could make a difference and that there are

many ways to serve. join the military is certainly one way to serve. but so, too, is assisting the homeless or fighting sexual violence or tutoring younger children. by getting involved in real issues, students learn it's not enough just to shout about their disappointments and criticize the ideas of others. they need to offer solutions. they have to work together to advocate for those slulgs solu see that they're implemented and understand that change takes time. i'm proud we as a nation provide opportunities through americorps to support people who want to give a year or more giving back to a community in need. we currently have 80,000 folks serving in this program. over half supportingor public schools. and we should have far, far more. when i was an under graduate, i taught civics one day a week in a school that served largely low-income students of color in boston. i also tutored young people in the mission maine public housing

development and the roxbury section of boston and ran a summer camp there. with my fellow harvard under graduates, we lived for the summer in the community in the mission main housing project which sadly at the time was rife with crime and drugs and violence. but also rich with hope and resiliency and tenacity. we learned about those challenges and those commitments in the community in a way that i will never forget. in fact, those experiences helped shape my decision to pursue a career as a teacher and a principal in the very same neighborhood where i volunteered as an undergraduate. we also want our students to look beyond their own interests to their own -- to their enlightened self-interest in the common good. i recently visited flint, michigan, and while i may never live in flint, i recognize that it's in my interest to make sure

that children and families in flint and every other city in the country have safe water to drink and an opportunity to fulfill their potential. service both helps students understand the challenges in the community, helps them understand themselves and also helps them understand the importance of the common good. colleges also have an important role to play in preparing young people to fulfill their responsibilities as citizens. back in 1947, the truman commission on higher education for democracy concluded that educating for democracy should come first among the principle goals for higher education. should come first among the principle goals for higher education. that is just as true today, but this goal too often has been forgotten at times. and at times education policymakers, educators, students and families have approached colleges if its only

worthwhile goal was a means of success to the competitive job market. it has to be about more than that. but it's k-12 education or higher education, we have to see it as preparing students, yes, for college and careers and, yes, for civic participation. for citizenship. for caring about the common good and contributing to the common good. the good news is that this kind of civic education, civic education that digs into challenging issues and teaches knowledge, skills and inclinations to serve actually works. it changes students behavior as adults. research compiled by the campaign for the civic mission of schools shows that students who receive effective civic education are more likely to vote and discuss politics at home, four times more likely to volunteer and work on community issues, and more confident in their ability to speak publicly and communicate with elected officials. this type of civic learning can prepare students for demanding careers in a globally competitive labor market because

they'll learn to think critically, write creatively and persuasively and work with diverse groups of people. but the biggest and most important outcome of all is high-quality civic education prepares students to help the nation solve difficult, challenging, complex issues to make it a better, equitable place to live with genuine equity for all. it must be part of a well-rounded education and must be at the foundation of the future, not only of our economy, but of our democracy. thank you for this opportunity to talk with you. i look forward to your questions. [ applause ] >> thank you, mr. secretary.

even before the lunch, there's a lot of interest. there are cards coming up and stuff coming on twitter. we try to be in the 21st century with our questions. just to tack on to the end of your speech. you engaged in a lot of wonderful sort of rhetoric of where we should be in the civic space in terms of education and talking about current issues. it's one thing to talk about it and another thing to implement it. how do you implement it? >> three thoughts on that. one is later this week, we'll put out guidance on title 4, which is a funding stream as part of the every student succeeds act that states and districts could use in support of civics education, social studies to provide communities of practice around issues of civic education. two is schools and districts need to make the decision that this is a priority. and one of our challenges during the no child left behind era was

that in some schools and districts, the focus on english and math was so narrow that it crowded out social studies, science, computer science. and we've got an opportunity with every student succeeds act for students and districts to rethink that and think about what is an excellent education and to ensure that includes social studies and civic education. and the third piece is to lift up teacher leaders like johanna. all over the country, there are great -- there are great -- it's well deserved. there are great social studies educators or great civic educators. sometimes they aren't even teachers. sometimes it's a science teacher who cares about issues of environmental protection. sometimes it's math teacher who is deeply concerned about economic opportunity in the community. but there are educators in every school and district who could be empowered to lead within their school communities around civic education. >> a couple of follow-ups to

this. here's one. and i think this goes to current events. tonight, of course, is the final presidential debate. there are a couple of questions on that front. do you think there's been an increase in bullying in schools due to the tone of the race? >> you want to ask them together or -- >> let me just throw one other in here. no, go ahead. that sufices. >> look, i can't comment specifically on the 2016 election, but what i can say is i worry intensely about ensuring every school is a safe environment for every child. the first thing i did at the beginning of january and the last thing arne did on his last day as secretary at the end of december was to sign a joint tloert school districts and school communities about the

importance of creating environments of religious tolerance because there's no question we've seen over the last few years an increase in anti-muslim bullying in schools. we also worry intensely about the issue of bullying of students who are immigrant students. and i think we have a challenge to make sure school is a safe place for all kids. i think it is possible to have constructive conversations about issues of civic engagement and about political debates and at the same time have as a nonne t nonnegotiable principle that school has to be a safe environment. >> i know you can't comment on the race in depth but have the debates and the race said anything about our civics education since you dove so deeply into it? has it opened up a scar and just what's lacking?

>> i think there's a danger always in this conversation about civic education to focus just on immediate events. i would say if you look broadly at where we are as a society, we've got a lot of work to do to make sure our young people are prepared to engage as citizens. part of why i raised the issue around the relationship between police and communities of color is that we've got to make sure that young people who are rightly very concerned about what they see and scared and parents who are scared understand how we use the levers of government to try to tackle those challenges. that we can talk to the mayor and the city council about the kinds of training that are provided to police officers. that that's something we can impact if we engage at the local level. so, you know, i don't know if -- there may be reasons in the current discourse. there's more attention on this issue, but i think it's deeper than that. we've got to ask ourselves as a

society, how do we do better preparing all of our citizens for citizenship. the president was at a local high school and touted the high graduation rates in high school and test scores. but one thing that this questioner asked, it comes against -- excuse me. higher graduation rates but in some cases, lower test scores. the questioner asked whether or not students should be more college ready when they graduated from high school? you said at the beginning of the administration you believe high school and college career ready standards must be a reality of students for all students. how do you bridge that gap between these record high school graduation rates and in some schools record low test scores in critical areas like math and science and so forth. >> we worry a lot about that. if you go to any community college around the country, you'll find 50%, 60%, 70%, 80%

of students who are entering required to take remedial courses. essentially high school classes while in college for which they and their families are paying college prices. and so we've got to figure out how we ensure that graduating from high school really means ready for what's next. ready for college and careers. it is encouraging that 40-plus states have been deeply engaged in the work of raising their standards. the every student succeeds act requires every state commit to college and career ready graduation standards such as their students will graduate from high school ready for credit-bearing course work or good jobs. so i think we've made progress over the last eight years in bringing attention to this work. and there's professional development that's happening for educators. there's work that folks are doing on teacher preparation and teacher support. but there's clearly more to do. and one of the things we've been careful to say is, y we're very proud the graduation rates have gone up significantly and very

proud they've gone up significantly for african-american students, latino students, low-income students. students that had large high school graduation gaps. but we've got to stay focused. at the state level, district level in ensuring all students graduate ready. the every student succeeds act creates plans that will achieve that. and one of the things we've tried to make clear is that states have a responsibility to make sure those plans ensure opportunity for students in every community. can't just be in some places kids get access to college ready course work and others they don't. can't be that in some places kids get advanced placement or individual baccalaureate. some places kids can take as we see chemistry and physics and algebra 2 and other places they can't. states have a responsibility to ensure all students have access and the implementation of every student succeeds act, one measure of its success will be, are we able to close those

equity gaps? states seem to be vig ilant abot that and the department needs to be vigilant about that. >> this raises the very act you cite. recently in fact, over the summer, you've had breakfasts with various colleagues, including some members of the club here. you were talking about new regulations you'll be promulgating. this is met with stiff resistance. you want to bridge this funding gap, level the playing field and there are members of congress who are saying you're breaking the spirit if not the outright intent of the brand-new law just signed in december when you are trying to implement these regulations, trying to level the playing field. how do you answer those charges? >> so as a high school social studies teach elet me give the history and historical context on this question. so when the original elementary and secondary education act was passed, it was passed as a civil rights law intended to address

gaps in opportunity. one of the things the naacp and ldf found was that districts were actually taking the money that was provided for esca and intended to benefit the highe e students and using that's to backfill local and state obligations so students in high-need schools were still getting significantly less. they were not getting the money intended to support them through the original esca. and at that time, language was added to the law around supplement not supplant. this is a 50-year struggle to ensure the federal dollars are, in fact, sup elemental. not used in a way that supplants local and state obligations. what we see is still today, 50 years later, there are communities where you can go, same school district, ten blocks. a school that serves affluent

kids spending 25%, 30% more than a school ten blocks away serving high need students. that's clearly a violation of the very words of the law. suppleme supplement, not supplant. it's a part of the every student succeeds act. there were some changes to the language around supplement not supplant that require us to regulate and make clear how we're going to finally deliver on the words of the law. supplement not supplant. and our regulations that are now out for comment are designed to do exactly that. to ensure that the federal dollars are genuinely supplemental and ensure the resources that are intended back in 1965 to get to the highest needs students actually get there. there are folks calling for ignoring the supplement not supplant provision. they are saying, no, no, don't try to ensure that the law is followed. now on the other hand you have senator murray and congressman scott who have been clear that supplement not supplant is in

the law and that they see our regulations as implementing the very words of the law. and so we're taking public comment. we will respond to that public comment in a final rule, but we're clear that the purpose of this law is to get resources to the highest needs students. >> you aren't overregulating? you're upholding the law. >> exactly right. >> let's see. speaking of inequality, how should educators address the tack -- tackle the issue of growing economic inequality in the united states and what's the role of financial literacy? >> one of the most encouraging things about the improvement in graduation rates is we know students who graduate with a high school diploma are much better positioned for the economy. but the reality is that the fastest growing areas of our economy require post-secondary education. one thing the education sector can do to address income inequality is to ensure more students are prepared for

college or careers that provide family sustaining wages and ensure that students don't just get to college but through college. that's k-12 and in higher education in terms of the support students need to actually finish while they're there. from the beginning, when the president was working on the stimulus and responding to the economic crisis that he found when he arrived at president, from the beginning, the president was clear we need to take emergency steps to get the economy become on track but also need to make smart, long-term investments in our future and that education was central to that. that's the reason behind race to the top, behind the large investment we made in the school improvement grants and improvements in our struggling high schools in particular and struggling schools generally. so we believe that improving the quality of education is inextricably linked to improving our economy and ensuring

opportunity for all people. the other thing i'd add is the president's proposed something call preschool for all. we'd ensure that all 4-year-olds would have access to pre-k from low-income and moderate income families. we've got to acknowledge that given the brain saerncience, a of learning takes place in 0 to 4 and our failure to invest in universal access to pre-k, ultimately for 3-year-olds and 4-year-olds, that's a failure to invest in our long-term success. so we've got to sudden the work to strengthen k-12 and higher education. it's also time for an investment -- a big investment in early learning because we know it will have a long and large long-term return. >> that raises an interesting follow-up. you want universal preschool. in fact, i believe you were at a forum earlier this week where you talked to melissa harris perry about this. but if you want more funding for

schooling, how does that work when trying to put forward these new regulations which are upsetting congress who is holding the purse strings? it's going to blow back at you. how do you deal with that? >> ultimately these things are interrelated in that at the end of the day, we've got to realize as a society, this is true for all of our elected officials, that we have a stake in the civic other people's children. that we have a stake in the success of the kid in the neighborhood down the road in the city down the road in the rural community down the road living on a native american reservation in the next state over. so when we say we want to continue to direct resources that should be going to high need kids and affluent kids, we're undermining our long-term future as a country. we say we can't afford to invest in early learning, we're making a very shortsided decision because the research evidence shows that early learning has an 8-1, 9-1 return on investment if

it's high quality. if we invest in high quality early learning we'll save money later on prisons, on the cost of social services that result from students not having the skills and opportunities they deserve. >> you mentioned prisons. you rolled out a new program in trying to partner with a lot of universities, with those who are incarcerated. for a long time, people could get geds, high school degrees, other degrees while incarcerated. what's significantly different and new about this program versus what's been available within correction at institutions for decades? >> the history on this is that in the mid-90s, congress made a terrible mistake. they banned access to pell grants for folks who are incarcerated. prior to that if you're incarcerated you were able to use pell grants if eligible to support higher education. when congress banned pell grant access for folks who are

incarcerated, many prison education programs are providing higher education opportunities shut down around the country. what we've done is through the president's experimental authority, the experimental authority under the higher education act welaunched a pilot. they are providing what will be 12,000 students with the opportunity to pursue a higher education while incarcerated. we know from the research evidence that those who get an edges while inka education while incarcerated are less likely to return to prison. a study that showed a 43% reduction in recidivism for participation in any educational program. so this is another place where it's a smart investment because we reap the returns in folks not going back to prison, folks leaving aside crime and focussing on supporting

themselves and their families. and i've had the opportunity to visit some of these prison education programs and what you see is the folks will tell you, part of how they ended up there is either the educational opportunities they didn't have, the first chance they didn't have, or the educational opportunities they didn't take advantage of. but they recognize that through higher education, through acquiring skills, they can change their lives. and this is a place where as a country, we want to undo the damage of mass incarceration. one place to start is ensuring access to educational opportunity. >> this goes back to funding. so how do you navigate that congressional land mine field when deal with the regulations piece, preschool piece. how your going to fund this ideal program? >> on second chance pell we know from the history of when pell access was available to folks incarcerated, it's actually very, very small.

i think it's about 1% of -- or maybe less than 1% of pell spending. we currently have a pell surplus. the president proposed in the 2017 budget, which is a budget that respects the constraints we need to given our broader fiscal challenges as a country. in his 2017 budget he's restored pell grants for those incarcerated and within the pell budget. this is a place again where we risk as a society being penny wise and pound foolish. we spend much more over the long run if a person leaves prison, commits further crimes and returns to prison. >> different subject. common core. since you have addressed standards. the question, you and the president have praised schools for achieving common core standards but school districts and politicians on both sides of the aisle have called it a

punishment-driven shotgun approach to achieving high education standards. they want better testing stomachstomach system -- systems, curriculum support. some parochial schools say common core standards are incombat patable with a catholic education and called it a federal overreach which is not education but rather the training and production of workers for an economic machine. and the standards treat student as nothing more than human capital. do your crit ics have a point? >> lead me start with the historical context on this. so the role of the federal government is not to tell states what their standards are. what we've said and what essa actually requires is that states have college and career ready standards but they determine the content of those standards. some states have chosen the common core. those states did so after the

common core developed by educators and governors and state chiefs working together to develop those standards. those were state developed, state chosen. and so sometimes folks get the history wrong on this. our position has always been college and career ready standards. it's up to states. what the content is of those standards. that said, adopting college and career ready strpds is just the first step. states then have to follow with professional development support, with training for teachers and principals. and we're seeing many states engaged in that work. many states have used federal resources whether it's race to the top or dollars to support strengthening teacher preparation and professional development so that they can successfully teach their students to college and career-ready standards. we've got a ways -- how to get there is ensuring the standards

that students are appointed towards from k to 12 is college and career readiness. >> that helps close the 18% gap of students that are still not getting out with the proper skill-sets and so forth? >> that will help, but it's not -- there's no silver bullets in education. so standards have to happen alongside other steps that we need to take. mentioned early learning. we know that schools that pay attention to chronic absenteeism and the kids who, because they're chronically absent, we can see that something else is going on. and ensure they get counseling or mental health services or help for their families. they've been able to improve their graduation rates. we know that schools that are diverse and that are intentionally diverse that bring together students across lines of class and race perform

better. we have decades of research evidence that's suggests low-income students who have the opportunity to go to schools with affluent students will not only do better academically but they and their peers are better prepared for the diverse world we'll inhabit. we just had a two-day convening at the department. anyone who says just change this one thing and everything will be perfect, that's clearly not right. we've got to do multiple things to close that graduation rate gap and to ensure that when kids graduate they graduate ready for what's next. >> charter schools. you have said what i worry most about is we have some states that have done a really great job with charter authorizing and so have generally high quality charters on the other hand you have places like michigan, a history of a low bar and charter and willingness to hold charters to high standards. what's your view on where it

should be by the time you leave office and how do you plan to get there as someone that sights your own education for saving your life and trajectory and what of non-charter public schools. for sometime one of the arguments was over resources about charter getting better resources in public education. there's actually a second question tied to this. a few days ago the naacp national board called for a moritorium until laws are advised to make it as accountable and transparent as charter schools. do you agree or if you do do you start funding charter schools as they recommend it? >> so let me start with this, we are fortunate i think as a country to have some high performing charters that do a great job and great

opportunities to students. charters helping students not only perform at higher levels academically but go on at much higher rates and succeed that. that is good. we should have more schools like that and i think any arbitrary cap on the growth of high performing charters is a mistake in terms of our goal of trying to improve opportunity for all kids. that said where states are doing a bad job on charter authorizing that has to change. i talked about the example of michigan. we have states that have set a low bar for getting a charter and when charters perform poorly they take action to improve them or close them which is the essence of the charter school compact. charter schools were supposed to be more autonomy in exchange for greater accountability and some states have not followed through on that. that is a problem. those decisions are made at the state level but what we have

done is two things. one is we prosided resources to improve charter authorizing in states and worked with states to strengthen their practices around reviewing the quality of charters, reviewing the quality of charter applications and two increasing the supply of great high performing charters. but to the extent that what folks are saying is that they want it and we have charter doing a great job for kids that want to grow, they should be able to and we have to ask what is best for students and parents and students and parents aren't as concerned about the governance model as about is my child getting a quality

education. it's access to great opportunity. >> what do you propose about the quality of pay. one teacher says i worked 12 hours yesterday didn't have time for lunch and didn't have time for lunch. >> it's actually help us teach. >> i think we see across the country, we see states that have not made the investment they

should in their education system. we did a report earlier this year, the department, looking at the difference in state investment and prisons versus k through 12 education and what we found is that we severe the last 30 years rate of increase in investment spending and three times as high as the rate of increase and spending on k-12 education. as a society we have resources where states should be spending significantly more on teacher salaries? absolutely. and should we be paying more to teachers? especially teachers willing to serve in the highest needs communities? where we have real demand? absolutely and the president proposed that. the president proposed a billion dollars for an initiative called best job in the world that would support professional development, incentives, career ladders for teachers that teach in the highest needs communities

and more resources and focussing on those resources on teefers. one of them is early learning. we did a study on pre-k pay and found pre-k teachers are making half what they would be making if they were working in an elementary school. which again suggests that our priorities are not right. so this is a place where i agree with the questioner. we should pay our teachers very well because they're essential to the future of our country and we need to make sure that the work conditions are good. it's not just a question of teacher pay. i think of a place like detroit. if the water is leaking from the ceiling and rodents across floor those are not going to make teaching a profession that people want and profession that people want to stay in for the

long-term and this is one of the reasons it's so important. because if you consistently under resource the highest immediate schools the result will be poor working conditions in those schools and the inability to retain the great teachers that our highest need students need. >> quickly, out of time, an issue with one of your senior staff who had to re-sign over fraud and financial abuse, have you been able to clean up the issues in the inspector general's office? >> so this is about an employee in our it department who made mistakes and is accountable for those mistakes. chose ultimately to re-sign. he is no longer with the department. we have a very strong team

around our it and we are very focused as folks are across the administration on continuously strengthening cyber security. this is actually cyber security awareness month. just came from a cyber security convening at the department this morning and we're very focused on making sure that our it systems are as strong as possible. that we protect the security of data and that we ensure that we are providing services. so for example it's a tool we built through our investment and the strength of our i.t. systems and work across the administration to leverage technology on behalf of taxpayers and students. it allows students to find information. to find out about their graduation rates. how much people make who have graduated from that school. how folks that graduated from

that school are able to repay their loans. it's a great tool that remains available that's continuously evolving to try to provide services and i.t. is a strength now of the department but as is true for any employer there is sometimes employees that make mistakes and we have to ensure that stops. >> i was in the home stretch here before i get the last question, press club at 8:30 a reliable source. we have an upcoming luncheon on november 21st and the general manager who has been here before so an update again on various issues that have happened in the local subway system in

washington. final question, i present you. [ applause ] >> so we're running out of time. very quickly what advice would you give to a 12-year-old kid raised on public assistance that wants to be you? >> two things. one is to have faith in what's possible. you know, i am only standing here only alive today because of what new york city public schoolteachers did for me. one of the reasons the president and first lady care so much about education is they know the difference education made in their lives and the tubts they have been able to have so i always try to say have faith because i think sometimes as a young person it could feel like this is the only way it could

ever be and sometimes they don't even have a vision because they are hopeless about their future. one is faith in what is possible and to see my example of what education can be. two is to work hard in school. there's a debate is it poverty that matters? schools that matter, the reality is they both matter. schools are imbedded in communities and schools can save lives but they also face all the challenges that exist in the community. school can be the difference and the path and give you a skills and opportunity to have a different life and have life be different for you or your

family. those will be the two things. >> thank you for information on national press club programs you can go on to press.org:

. in our news i knew i could find information on that and that helped me figure out what and how to form my outline for my piece.

>> and come up with what my actual theme was. i was doing research at the same time and coming up with more ideas for what i can film and i come up with an idea. i'm like that will be a great shot and i'll think about that and that will give me a good idea and i do research about that and the whole process is about building on other things and scratching what doesn't work and you keep going until you finally get the finished product. >> this year's theme, your message to washington d.c. tell us what is the most urgent issue for the new president and congress. it's open to all middle school or high school students grade 6 through 12 with $100,000 awarded in cash prizes. students can work alone or in a group of up to 3. and include some cspan programming. the $100,000 in prizes and will

go to the student or team with the best overall and can help us spread the word to student film makers. >> the affordable care act's annual open enrollment period begins on november 1st. health and human services secretary sylvia burwell talked about enrollment rates and the insurance plans available to enrollees. this is 25 minutes.

fred is the name i gave to the brain tumor blocking the flow of spinal fluid town my body. in january of 2006 i went down to duke university and my dad's insurance paid $450,000 and we had surgery to repair the damage fred had done. i was 22 years old at the time and after i got out i had to get cobra coverage to keep my insurance to pay for pre-existing conditions. after exhausting cobra i was paying 55% of my income as in home support provider for people with disabilities on health care. that included $1,203 out of pocket each month for my narcolepsy medication. i was living on $8,000 for the

entire year before the affordable care act went into effect. since the law has gone into effect i went from 55% of my income and $5,000 deductible to 7% of my income and $500 deductible. i went from living on $8,000 a year to having far greater percentage of my income available to spend as i felt necessary. every year since the first open enrollment on the affordable care act i have been able to find a plan that provided me with better support and save me even more money. so i would love to introduce to you the secretary of health and human services sylvia burwell. [ applause ]

>> thank you very much nathan and i appreciate you joining us this morning. we are quickly approaching an important and momentous date in november. we faced years of partisan misinformation and pun dents talking about it and you have dissected one part of it or the other. we have been building to this point for four years. i'm talking about of course november 1st. the day that the health insurance marketplace is going to open up for our 4th open enrollment and that is the opportunity for every american to sign up for quality health coverage that doesn't currently have it and with that way less than two weeks away. i want to outline our vision for

this 4th open enrollment and the marketplace going forward. any conversation that looks around i believe should start with a little bit of a look back and today it's easy to forget where the health insurance market was before the affordable care act. americans with pre-existing conditions and diabetes and those that have beaten cancer often found themselves completely locked out. many of our friends and family members would have been out of work. if we ever lost the coverage we had our lost our jobs. even for people that could have been able to buy coverage in theory there was no easy way to actually compare plans or shop. middle class families that didn't have coverage through a job usually got no help in paying for that coverage. women could be charged more for coverage than men because of their gender and as a result nearly 50% of americans have no coverage of any kind.

americans fortunate enough to have health insurance didn't always get value and coverage didn't ensure access to quality care. and because of annual or lifetime limits on coverage millions of american families that play by the rules and pay their medium yums every month. we're still one illness away or the very real possibility that they have to forego care for a life threatening disease. it's also rapidly growing more and more expenses. families, businesses and government all struggle with the burden of rising costs. premiums for family coverage rose by an average of almost 8% every year. after years of talk we took the biggest step forward in a swren

ration. using ideas that were born on the left and on the right to create a market-based solution. first, we made historic progress on access. 20 million more americans have coverage thanks to the law our uninsured rate is the lowest in our nation's history. that can't be said enough. today no american can be denied coverage because of a pre-existing condition and young adults can stay on their parents plan through 26. second we strengthened the quality of coverage. that's true whether you're newly covered or you have had health insurance for years. today more than 138 million americans can get annual physicals, cancer screenings and other preventive services without a co-payment. plans are required to cover the core benefits you would expect from your insurance. no surprises and no inshurnt can impose annual or lifetime limits

on dollar coverage and we finally started to bring health care cost under control. for more than 157 million americans that have health insurance through their employer, premium growth has slowed. in fact overall health care prices have been rising in the slowest rate in 50 years and the medicare trust fund has been extended by 11 years. this is real progress and it's also worth noting what hasn't happened. some claim that the law would be a job killer. in reality u.s. businesses added 15.3 million jobs since the law passed and there's been 79 straight month of private sector job growth and the longest streak on record. some claim million of people would be kicked off health insurance because of the law but in reality the people that get coverage through their employer has stayed about the same. while the people that are working but uninsured have

plummeted. the predictions about the affordable care act have not come true and ib stead we're expanding and improving coverage and improving care. thanks to the law we're starting to build a health care system that makes american communities and american communities stronger. insurers compete on the cost, quality and variety of their products instead of trying to cherry pick the healthiest consumers. in addition thanks to the marketplace we now have a transparent market. consumers can openly shop and choose a product that meets their needs and it means people have different options in terms of cost sharing and doctor networks and prescription drug coverage. with three open enrollments now done we're starting to see how

these reforms are driving other important changes. first the marketplace gave consumers the opportunity to shop and they're using it. and more than 60% of those actually switched plans. high level of consumer engagement help explain people that buy coverage on the marketplace or are satisfied with their coverage is people that have insurance through their employer first time they're able to shop for coverage. it turns out that a and it's and help deliver better care at lower cost. we heard that from a few of them

this past summer and fall. we heard from is surkssuers tha doctors for the quality an not the quantity of care. we heard from new strategy to deliver more coordinated better care. finally, the marketplace is supporting workers in our changing economy. thanks to the marketplace entrepreneurs can now chase their ideas and innovations without being locked into a job just to keep their health insurance. if you work at a start up or company that doesn't offer benefits you can still get covered. if you're taking time off to transition between jobs like i will in january, then you don't have to lose access to quality health care. that doesn't mean that the road has been perfectly smooth. building a new market is never easy. as i said before i expect this

to be a transition period to the marketplace. bringing them online with actual data and costs. we're enhancing the stability of the marketplace and making it stronger for the future. it also hasn't helped that at nearly every turn we had to over come attempts to repeal and undermine the law through litigation. in this administration our vision to the future isn't a return to the marketplace we can't look backwards in a hopeless search for alternatives that aren't viable or don't exist. we do have an opportunity to build on that progress but as we said before to make substantial changes changes to encourage

competition we'll need cooperation from congress and hopefully we'll see more bipartisan efforts to make improvements. we want to work together we need a partner. in the meantime we're going to continue to work with the partners we have to use all the tools we have to build a stronger and more stable marketplace. of course the biggest opportunity we have to strengthen the marketplace is right in front of us. this upcoming open enrollment. this is the last open enrollment through this administration and we want to make it count as we have every year we have new challenges this fall but we're confident and excited because we'll enter this open enrollment with new strengths. most important we know from three years of experience that the marketplace offers a product that people want and people need.

most people will be able to find a plan less than $75. consumers will continue to have affordable options available and this year will make it easier for consumers to find and enroll in a plan that works for them and their family. and get americans information about coverage and financial assistance. outreach strategy to reach consumers through the right

channels with the right messages at the right time. we're going to take advantage and their very existence i didn't even know about and if you can watch people play video games and i certainly have no idea that they have 10 million visitors a day. these are all good things to know once i have a little more time in january. and like in previous open enrollments we'll ramp up our efforts around deadlines that drive consumers, especially young adults to act. and every year we project how many people we think will sign

up through the marketplace because it's important to set a clear goal to manage too. we know the marketplace is strong but we know that it can grow even more so today we're releasing our open enrollment projection for this upcoming open enrollment period we analyzed the best data we have and the marketplace eligible unensured and looking at trends for people purchasing coverage off of the marketplace and might be eligible for the tax credits if they shop on the marketplace. the remaining uninsured are harder to reach. but with better data on our current consumers and we have new and better tools to reach. as we look to this new open enrollment period we project that the marketplace will grow by another million people. we expect 13.8 million people.

we know it won't be easy but we're confident that americans will choose to enroll when they discover that the quality of affordable options that are available to them. in closing as the president said during the debate over the law we kint come to fear the future. we kale to shape it. a future where our economy is stronger and millions of americans are better off. a future where americans can get the coverage they need to stay healthy so they can turn around pay it forward and provide care for others. with this open enrollment we'll go farther toward that future and with that i'm happy to take some questions. >> do you know how many people paid the penalty in 2015?

>> in terms of those eligible. and marketplace insurance that are currently uninsured. >> the insurer concerns do you think if you're not able to get more young people in or boost the overall number then that's a problem in terms of insurance we are at a place where the market is sustainable according to its

size. we believe there's more folks out there that can get the benefits and that's what we'll aim to do. with regard to the question of stability and issuers and the insurers one of the things we have done is focus on a number of different things that contribute to that and you're familiar with the changes we have done around special enrollment periods. you're familiar with the changes we have done around risk adjustment which is one of the three stabilizing programs that were put in place and we're going to change the way we calculate things like how a person counts if they move in and out of the market mace or how high cost drugs are accounted for. things that we believe will stabilize or help stabilize the markets. the forms i will describe where we're bringing players together so they can share the best practices and what is happening in places where we see success or part of that. if one can add to it and change it that's something we want to

do and it's relevant to the 10.7 that i was just asked about because we know that about 40% of those folks are 18 to 34. a younger group of people. so an important part of it so i guess the answer in part of the form is it is one element of many but our big focus is we know that that 10.7 is out there. we know that there's people like nathan and that's the big goal and objective as we go into this open enrollment. >> yes. >> you mention that you're hoping there's going to be congressional partnership in the future to make adjustments to the marketplace. can you talk about the top two or three things you'd like to see con kbresz do to further stabilize these marketplaces? >> i think actually one of the things that would be very important beyond the issue of stable sairgs is getting to the

important things that you would do in a highly complex piece of legislation like this. it would be important to take care of and could be done quickly. the fact that it's different in different places and while that doesn't get to your specific stability and market there's things that are important to improving the function. with regard to the questions of stability the president oulined some of the most important things that we think are -- should be focused on. number one of those is in markets where there isn't -- where we are having issues and trying to get greater competition in, making sure that you have the backstop of a public option if you don't have that kind of competition. number two, as the president has mentioned the idea of how we think about issues further support for those who are in a band that aren't currently receiving support and i think the third thing which is timely

and important that people are focused on is the issue of high cost drugs and how we think about what are are the best tools we as a nation have to address that and certainly in the president's budget we have a number of proposals. one i will highlight is the question of can we negotiate. >> there's a lot of talk about insurers getting payments can you speak to whether you're going to be able to take any action. whether it's a judgment fund or some other means to make sure that they can get the payments they requested. >> because the jujt fund is an issue handled by the justice department i'll defer comments to them in terms of the question of the case before we're done handling this. >> as some insurers are raising

their rates i understand that tax credits will go up as well but they're predicting that 3 million people next year on the marketplace will be unsubsidized and i wonder if you have any concerns or thoughts about whether the coverage will stay affordable for them. >> in terms of those that do face a category unsubsidized there's a number of things that are important to refleck on and one is that in a category of people and as we analyze what has happened to the number of uninsured in the united states during this period there's been a drop of 40% there in term of the number of uninsured so people outside of the marketplace are people taking advantage. many of those people you might think are people that could get into the system because they weren't blocked out with pre-existing conditions. so we have seen growth in that. the other thing that's important

is the importance of shopping. we now have a marketplace and when you can see people can go in and shop and we're giving people tools to do that in terms of shopping whether it's for including the drugs that you can shop for our doctors or how you shop in terms of premiums and deductibles. while it is not an analysis for that particular group we know that loost year for those that came in and shopped the average savings was $500 a year. and this group of people that you're referring to and it's best for them from an affordability and quality perspective. >> with that, thank you all and november 1st. [ applause ]

>> recovering two events. national security at 9:00 a.m. eastern on cspan 2 director of national intelligence james clapper on terrorism. live coverage on cspan and cspan.org or listen live on your smartphone with the cspan radio app. >> every four years the presidential candidates turn from politics to humor at the al smith memorial foundation dinner to raise money for catholic charities at new york's historic waldorf historia hotel. >> i never quite understood the

logistics of dinners like this and now the absence of one individual was three of us. >> i'm glad to see you here tonight. mr. vice president i am that man. >> it's an honor to share with a deseb dent of the great al smith and al your great grandfather was my favorite kind of governor. the kind that ran for president and lost and hillary clinton and

dond trump. thursday night at 9:00 eastern and listen at 9:00 p.m. eastern with the cspan radio app. >> experiences in the u.s. as an undocumented immigrant by underground american dream. it's undocumented immigrant that became a wall street executive. she is interviewed by migration policy institution information policy program senior fellow and director. >> as a little girl, not having your parents with you and seeing them every few months. first of all you feel they're a little bit of strangers to you because when i would see my parents they would come bearing lots of presents and when i came to visit them in the u.s. it was summer vacation so it was a very different experience and -- than

having parents that are with you every single day. >> afterwards sunday night at 9:00 p.m. eastern on book tv. go to booktv.org for the schedule. voter anger and it's effect on the presidential race. they moderate a panel of political scientists and reporters. >> good afternoon. it is a bittersweet honor and privilege to welcome everyone to this symposium honoring our friend and colleague. today's symposium voter anger is

based on sue's 1996 of book. in the new york times obituary they wrote the following and i think as i quote this, think about this is what she wrote 20 years ago in that book she identified deep seeded voter anger. fuelled by an uncertain economy. cultural divisions and this enchantment with government as a force that politicians need to understand. people hate government she wrote because they expect more than government can possibly deliver. particularly in this era of budget con trants. and i heard a preview of the current political environment. remember peter finch, with the movie network and screaming, i'm mad as hell and i'm not going to

take it anymore. she wrote in her introduction. the question of the decade is, she continues what happens now that that window has been opened so think about that. 1996. three weeks before she passed away last may one of our colleagues visited with them at their town homeful they sat outside discussing the current presidential campaign. sue was unsurprised at the unfolding of events at that time. i expect to hear today from our keynote speaker and panel list, sue was well ahead of her time and recognizing the growing anger of the public toward our government and politicians. she reminded them just as she correctly predicted the no knee

she believed it was not a foregone conclusion. she is one of the best and most respected scholars in her field. what she didn't say at the time is she had given the top researcher of the entire university. this is but one of the many awards she received over the years including a best book award by business week and library joushl as well as the american society for public administration for the best lead article and public administration review. sue was a fellow in the national academy of public administration and she was particularly proud of the fact that her work has

been cited in three separate supreme court decisions. the founding dean of the school of public policy that recruited her at the time said she brings the skills of a high quality research academic and outstanding teaching record together with her appreciation of the communication role needed by a civic intellectual in today's public policy arena. in many ways sue was a pie nowhere. she was the first woman to be hired as a professor at the institute of public policy here at george mason university she was in the first group of women to be admitted to the cosmo's club and first woman named university professor at george mason university. in many ways women's issues were one of the central themes not only of her personal life but also of her research and

scholarship. sue was founder and director of the washington institute for women in politics at mt. vernon college and she was the first to offer seminars and workshops on the practical and theoretical facets of women con semiplating public life as a career. and several of her books explored the role of women in politics and government every one was a labor of love. she made a difference in so many

lives. her memory not only lives on for her family and her writings but also through the thousands of lives she touched over her long and productive career. so marty and karen on behalf of all the students colleagues and students at mason and for that matter mt. vernon, seton hall, brooklyn college and city college thank you for sharing your life with us. she is one of those rare individuals that will continue to be apart of all of our lives and help each of us to excel at whatever we choose to do. there couldn't be a more fitting tribute than to have students put together today's tribute to sue's work. bonnie is just one example among many of how sue influenced all of our lives. bonnie, thank you for what you have done toel