Presidential Lecture Series:
U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings
Assalamu Alaykom.
Thank you, NYIT President Dr. Edward Guiliano for your kind introduction. Shukran.
I would also like to thank Dean Timothy Keating for hosting us here. It's a pleasure to be here with you and your students.
I have been honored to lead delegations of U.S. university presidents to nations around the world. We have touted student and faculty exchange as a way to broaden one's perspective and experience new cultures. At this campus and others like it, you can access many of these benefits without even leaving home!
This is my second trip to Abu Dhabi. And I can assure you that there are few cities as innovative and exciting as this one. Centuries ago, this region was the birthplace of the first hospitals, the first calendars, the first form of writing, and the first code of law. The wheel was invented here. So was the number zero. Today, under the leadership of His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayid Al Nahyan, President of the United Arab Emirates…Abu Dhabi is again collecting historic levels of talent, knowledge, and culture.
Universities such as NYU, University of Washington, and the Sorbonne are joining NYIT in opening branches. Soon, the Louvre and Guggenheim museums will follow suit. As a result, your students are blessed with enormous opportunities.
A world of information at your fingertips. An economy that moves as fast as you can think. A society that increasingly rewards effort and merit, and shuns discrimination and corruption. And, an education that gives you the tools to improve your circumstances and the lives of those around you-a wonderful gift, a treasure.
So I ask you: will you help fight diseases such as AIDS, malaria, and cancer? Will you work to increase tolerance and understanding, and advance peace and prosperity? Will you make energy more affordable and plentiful? Will you spread knowledge across the globe, following in the footsteps of such greats as Ibn Sina and Al Khawarizmi? Why not? Who can stop you?
The very landscape of Abu Dhabi is a reminder that progress begins with questioning the world around you-improving what exists-and creating what has never existed before. As His Highness Sheikh Khalifa has said, "the educational process is an ever-growing challenge in need of meticulous planning…to keep up with…fast-paced technological advancement." He understands that great societies draw strength from ancient traditions. And to move ahead, they also need a vision for the future. This is as true for colleges and universities as it is for nations.
To help rising generations to succeed in knowledge economy…to prepare students like you to address the challenges of poverty, hunger, energy dependency, financial instability, and global conflict…we need a vision for higher education. A vision both expansive and inclusive-a vision based on individual choice and need.
That's why in 2005, I convened a Commission on the Future of Higher Education. I invited the best and brightest leaders from academia, the private sector, and government to develop a plan to help us look ahead. They produced a provocative report. It inspired academic debate in the finest tradition.
The report called for U.S. higher education to transform from "a system primarily based on reputation to one based on performance." And it challenged American universities to expand to reach more students from more backgrounds in more places.
As you know well, our global knowledge economy demands a more educated work force than ever. Yet worldwide, nearly 800 million people cannot read or write. One out of every four children fails to complete just five years of basic education.
In these uncertain times, we are acutely aware that the health, safety, and prosperity of nations are deeply connected. Economically, democratically, and environmentally, our fates are intertwined. Where one country rises or falls, other follow. We simply cannot afford to continue rationing opportunity.
We must close what my friend Queen Rania of Jordan has called the world's "hope gap"-the gap separating those who believe they have a future, from those who fear they have none. I know you understand this and agree.
The United States and the United Arab Emirates share more than a first name. We are united in our strong belief in education. We have made parallel journeys to improve our schools at every level. We also face similar challenges. For example, our universities spend precious time and energy covering material students should have learned in secondary school. In the U.S., a third of college students need remedial coursework. Here in the U.A.E., these courses take up a third of your post-secondary budget!
Instead of duplicating efforts, we must harness the wisdom and insight of higher education to help improve primary and secondary schools. In doing so, we can not only prepare more students for college, but also help the colleges themselves become more efficient and effective.
Together, we can build human capital by educating more people from diverse backgrounds…we can help more students access technology…and we can prepare more students to advance excellence in research and scholarship.
To achieve these goals, higher education must become more accessible, affordable, and accountable. Dr. Guiliano has said that "in the 21st century, there will be a new class of global universities. There isn't one yet, but NYIT is as close as anybody." That's true thanks to your initiative and leadership, Dr. Guiliano. You understand that in this competitive century, change happens, whether we're ready or not. We cannot anticipate the challenges and opportunities that will greet us. But we can prepare ourselves to adapt and to seize those opportunities.
As the Arabic proverb says, "Man talaba shay'an wajadabu." He who seeks a goal will find it.In seeking, we in the U.S. can learn from the U.A.E. Your universities are encouraged to take risks and challenge assumptions. With your insight, we can teach more people to "learn how to learn"-not just for a few years, but for a lifetime. I can imagine no more important or exciting work for a sector that excels in advancing opportunity.
As you say in Arabic, Al Ilmunoor. Knowledge lights the way. Let us shine the light of knowledge into the world's dark places. Let us vow to make higher education the centerpiece of a new era of global change and cooperation. By working together, we can set both a course for the future and an example for today. We have nothing to lose, and a world to gain.
Thank you.
# # #