Bredesen Addresses Knox County Academic Achievers

Press Release

Governor Phil Bredesen addressed more than 300 Knox County high school seniors along with parents and school leaders Thursday night at the annual News Sentinel Academic Achievers banquet. Bredesen spoke of his own high school experience and the importance of that experience in shaping his success in college and professional life.

"I can now look back at my time in university, in business, as Mayor of Nashville, and now as Governor, and I know: there was something about my school in Shortsville that helped me get to, and succeed in, each of these ventures," Bredesen said. "School didn't only shape me as a student; it also helped shape me as a human being. Schools matter. They mattered to me, they mattered to you, and they will matter to Tennessee's future generations."

The Governor also spoke about Tennessee's recent victory in the first round of President Obama's Race to the Top. The competitive Recovery Act program will provide approximately $500 million for education in Tennessee over a four-year period.

"There's one fundamental thing I hope Race to the Top will help Tennessee achieve, and that's a change in the culture of setting expectations," he said. "For the first time in a long time, Tennessee's national rank in education is not forty-something. This victory puts us at the very top. And I hope the message that our teachers, families, and especially our graduates take home today is to expect more; expect more of yourselves, your communities and your state. In fact, when I'm no longer Governor, if there's one thing I'll use to measure the work we've done, my metric will be the ability to look back and know that our work inspired Tennessee to set the bar higher as we move forward."

Source