Schools are flexible on Obama's TV speech

Some parents in area school systems have joined the national debate over President Obama's speech Tuesday to public-school students, saying they are concerned that Obama will push his political agenda on their children.

Obama will deliver his speech at noon at Wakefield High School in Arlington County, Va. C-SPAN and the White House Web site -- www.whitehouse.gov/live -- will broadcast the speech.

In the 15- to 20-minute speech, Obama will challenge students to work hard, set educational goals and take responsibility their learning.

The Winston-Salem/Forsyth County school system has posted a message on its Web site -- www.wsfcs.k12.nc.us -- that encourages teachers to let their students watch the speech.

Students who bring a note from their parents will be allowed to leave the classroom during the speech.

The students will be taken to a common area of the school, such as the gym.

Students who eat lunch at noon will not see the president's speech.

"We hope every parent agrees this is an impartial message and will reinforce the importance of education and developing good study habit," the school system says on its site.

Theo Helm, a spokesman for the school system, said that school officials have received about 10 phone calls and some e-mails from parents who don't want their children to watch Obama's speech.

Some people have said that the speech would indoctrinate their children to Obama's agenda, Helm said. Others said they think that it is inappropriate for the president to speak to children.

One parent sent an e-mail to Superintendent Don Martin, saying that she and her husband don't want their three children to see Obama's speech and will take them out of school before the president begins his remarks.

"We don't want them subjected to communist/fascist-style propagandizing," the parent said in the e-mail.

The White House said that it will release Obama's speech on Monday to give parents time to review its content and decide for themselves whether their children should hear it.

It is odd for Obama to ask parents' permission to give the speech by posting on the White House Web site on Monday, said Allan Louden, a communications professor who teaches a class on presidential rhetoric at Wake Forest University.

Obama's speech is appropriate, but some people think that it is wrong for the president to speak to students, Louden said.

"You could call this presidential leadership, but everything is political now," Louden said.

It's not the first time that a presidential speech to students has been criticized, he said.

In 1991, President George H.W. Bush spoke to students, encouraging them to study hard and stay away from drugs.

Bush's speech was televised on CNN and public-television stations.

At that time, House Democrats said that Bush's speech was a waste of money.

School districts across the country have received phone calls from parents about the broadcast, and some have decided not to show Obama's speech.

School districts in North Carolina will be allowed to show it. Districts in Texas, Illinois, Minnesota, Missouri, Virginia and Wisconsin have decided to opt out. Others are still considering it or letting parents decide whether their children will see it.

The N.C. Department of Public Instruction sent an e-mail Thursday to superintendents, principals and teachers, telling them that they can decide whether to show Obama's speech to their students.

"As with many other enrichment opportunities available to educators, it is a local decision regarding participation of your teachers and students," the e-mail said.

School officials in Davie, Yadkin, Wilkes Stokes and Watauga counties have received phone calls and e-mails from parents, asking them if they plan to show Obama's speech to their students.

"I got some schools that will be watching, and some that will not be watching," said Jim Benfield, the superintendent of the Yadkin County Schools.

Students will not have to watch the speech if their parents object, Benfield said. Teachers may give these students another assignment.

Bill Campbell, a spokesman for the Davie County Schools, said he was concerned about the initial lesson plan that the U.S. Department of Education sent to schools.

It suggested that students write letters to themselves "about what they could do to help the president."

After the White House received criticism about the plan, it was changed to encourage teachers to have their students to write letters to themselves about how they can achieve their education goals.

The new language was more appropriate for the teachers and students, Campbell said.

Wilkes County Schools will show the speech to its students, Superintendent Stephen Laws said. "If a parent wants to check their children out of school, they can," Laws said. "I am a little disheartened that this has become a controversy. This is our president. It doesn't need to be a political issue."

■ John Hinton can be reached at 727-7299 or at jhinton@wsjournal.com.

■ The Associated Press contributed to this article.