Higher Achievement Green Apple Awards

For Immediate Release
Cheryl Clarke
Director of Foundation Giving,
Freddie Mac Foundation

May 16, 2007

This has been a wonderful evening. It's so rewarding to see the many accomplishments of Higher Achievement's scholars.

The Freddie Mac Foundation has had a long-standing relationship and been a strong supporter of Higher Achievement – the staff, the students and the program. For the past nine years, we have partnered with and invested in you while you consistently molded and shaped – nurtured and developed –- a pipeline of the best and brightest students moving on to top secondary public and private schools.

Our awards of more than one million dollars in grants to Higher Achievement has helped them:

Turn middle school students into successful scholars,
Expand its after-school programs in the District of Columbia, &
Open a new center in Alexandria, Virginia.

We're proud to have played a part in that success. We're even prouder of the scholars who work extraordinarily hard – putting in 650 hours of study on top of the 900 hours they spend in school each year.

With the support of Higher Achievement's dedicated staff and volunteers, this hard work pays off. We see it in improved grades, higher test scores, better attendance and placement in top schools. And all of this adds up to brighter futures.

So tonight, I want to congratulate each and every Higher Achievement scholar. Tonight, we celebrate your many accomplishments – your academic achievements and your personal growth. And, oh how you've grown!

You've become confident, poised, and ready to take on new challenges. And you have developed a burning desire to learn and the confidence that you can, should and deserve to grow.

There's a saying that I'm certain every Higher Achievement scholar knows well: "Be the change you want the world to be." That was the philosophy of Mahatma Gandhi, who lived in the last century. And it's a philosophy that each of you will take into the future.

As you go on to new schools, new friends and new opportunities, continue to challenge yourself – and others around you – to strive for excellence – and be the excellence!!!

I can say with confidence to the young scholars in this room tonight: You will grow up to be responsible, caring adults. You will be the strong community leaders of tomorrow, because you have already learned a valuable lesson today:

You can change your community – and even the world –
by first challenging yourself to be your very best.