Incoming North Park Freshman Invited to White House for Youth Summit
Part of First Lady's Reach Higher initiative
CHICAGO (July 24, 2015) — Incoming ºÚÁÏ³Ô¹Ï freshman Cesar Bustos, a graduate of Steinmetz High School in Chicago, was invited to attend a youth summit at the White House on Thursday. He was one of 130 students from across the country selected to attend the Beating the Odds Summit, hosted by First Lady Michelle Obama.
The event was part of the first lady’s Reach Higher initiative, which is intended to get more U.S. students to continue their education after high school. Bustos participated in workshops and panels focusing on obtaining the tools and strategies to help more students successfully transition to college and complete the next level of their education. Students attending the summit come from a variety of backgrounds, all of whom had "overcome substantial obstacles to persist through high school and make it to college," the White House said in a statement.
“The experience sounds so surreal,” Bustos told the Chicago Sun-Times in an interview before leaving for Washington, D.C. “Being undocumented, I never believed I would ever go to the White House or even meet the first lady. I never thought this would happen to me. As undocumented immigrants, we come to work and hope we can provide better for our children. That’s what my mom wanted for me from the beginning.”
On Thursday, Michele Obama told incoming college students that "education should be cool again. This should be the cool thing to do in life."
A panel consisting of Obama, Education Secretary Arne Duncan, E! News co-anchor Terrence Jenkins, rapper Wale, and college senior and education activist at Brown University, Manuel Contreras, discussed the keys to success in college.
“Failure is a necessary part of growth and success,” Obama said. “Don’t let that be your mental barrier. Roll up your sleeves, don’t be afraid to work hard, and if you fail, recover. Get over it."
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