President Obama Tells Students a High School Diploma Isn’t Enough

Official White House Photo by Pete Souza

President Barack Obama greets children from the Valleyland Kids summer program outside a school in Chatfield, Minn., during a stop on his three-day bus tour in the Midwest, Aug. 15, 2011.

In President Barack Obama’s back-to-school speech, he told students at a Washington, D.C., high school that some kind of postsecondary education is a must:

Now, to do almost any of those things, you have to not only graduate from high school, but continue your education after you leave.  That might mean a four-year university, a community college, or a professional credential or training, but the fact of the matter is that more than 60 percent of jobs in the next decade will require more than a high school diploma.  That’s the world you’re walking into.*

In the fall of 2007, the most recent data posted online by the Board of Regents, 45 percent of Ohio high school graduates enrolled in a 2-year or 4-year public or private college within Ohio. Forty percent had to enroll in remedial math or English courses.

*The quote is from President Obama’s prepared remarks. He may have called an audible during the actual speech. You can see the video of today’s speech here.