THE WHITE HOUSE

                    Office of the Press Secretary

______________________________________________________________
For Immediate Release                             April 20, 1993     

                       REMARKS BY THE PRESIDENT
           DURING PRESENTATION OF TEACHER OF THE YEAR AWARD
	     
                           The Rose Garden 


1:25 P.M. EDT


	     THE PRESIDENT:  Good afternoon.  Please be seated.  I 
want to say, first, how delighted I am to be here with Secretary 
Riley and with Senator Graham.  The three of us served as governors 
together during the 1980s when we worked constantly on strategies to 
improve our schools, when we led often difficult and long efforts to 
upgrade the standards in American education and to improve the 
quality of instruction our children were receiving.  
	     
	     There were no two governors whom I admired more during 
that period than the two who now stand on this stage with the Teacher 
of the Year.  And I think both of them would join me in saying that, 
after all the testimony has been heard and all the bills have been 
passed and the funds have been raised and allocated, it all comes 
down to what happens between the teacher and the students in the 
classroom.
	     
	     That's why today's ceremony honoring the National 
Teacher of the Year is so important.  Tracey Leon Bailey is one 
recognition all across our country for highly advanced and innovative 
science programs.  He's developed and introduced into Florida's 
classrooms cutting-edge programs in molecular biology and DNA 
fingerprinting -- subjects usually taught only in college and, I 
might add, probably only dimly understood here in the Nation's 
Capital.  (Laughter.)
	     
	     Within three years of being hired by a satellite high 
school, Mr. Bailey's institution had one of the strongest science 
programs in the entire state of Florida, and it won numerous national 
and international awards.  These advanced programs aren't just for a 
favored few.  Tracey Bailey has inspired all kinds of students, 
including those previously known as low-achieving or at-risk to reach 
for excellence and to attain it.  This is what our students need and 
what our country needs. 
	     
	     Today, we know that a good future with high wages and 
rich opportunities rests on the foundation of quality education for a 
lifetime.  The basics aren't enough anymore.  All our kids need 
competence in math and science and advanced problem-solving.  That's 
why Tracey Bailey's accomplishments are so important and why I am so 
pleased and proud to participate in recognizing and honoring these 
accomplishments. 
	     
	     Tracey, you represent the best in the United States.  
I'm glad to recognize you today and to formally present you with this 
Apple Award as the Teacher of the Year for 1993.  (Applause.)  
	     
	     MR. BAILEY:  Thank you, Mr. President.  It is indeed a 
great honor and a tremendous responsibility to represent the nation's 
2.5 million teachers.  And we appreciate the support that you have 
shown for education, and we're looking forward to working with you to 
help redesign and improve our nation's schools.  
	     
	     We know that the quality of our children's education 
will directly impact the future of our economic and social landscape 
in the years to come.  And we thank you so much for your continued 
support and commitment to our children's education.  Thank you again.  
(Applause.)

	     THE PRESIDENT:  In closing, I would like to also welcome 
the education leaders in Florida who are here, those representing the 
national education groups who have also come.  I'd like to recognize 
Tracey's congressman, Representative Jim Bacchus in the back, himself 
a great advocate of education.  And I'd like to remind all of you 
that the ultimate purpose of the National Teacher of the Year Award 
is to find a way for the rest of us to express our appreciation to 
people all across this country who give their lives to our children, 
all of the teachers of this country who get up every day and do their 
best to try to advance the cause of learning for all the children of 
America.  They are, in so many ways, our most important public 
servants.
	     
	     Thank you very much.  (Applause.)