Read President Obama's Back to School Speech
MORGAN -- President Obama's September speech to school-aged children is still causing waves in Morgan County.
While some parents are upset the speech was broadcast to a handful of Morgan schoolrooms, others are asking why more classes didn't participate.
The speech was broadcast to just two fifth-grade classes, said district Superintendent Ron Wolff.
"Because we have extreme trust with educators in our county, it has caused parents to become lax in participation in the education process," said parent Rob Craven.
"There have been recent events to cause my wife and I to be more aware of the fact that we need to take a more proactive role in what is going on with the school district."
Craven is worried about the messages recent speeches have carried to students.
For example, Obama's speech carried the message that "loyalty to a man or group of men is more important than loyalty to God, country or the Constitution," Craven said.
"The video is going beyond the bounds of merely educating students," he said.
"We are not actually calling to chastise the educational system in Morgan. We are asking the educational institutions here to help recognize and accept the parental responsibility we have toward our children.
"We are also calling all parents in the county to renew active awareness and participation in their children's education.
"We feel, as parents, we can't abandon our God-given responsibility to educate our children, and we will not let it be usurped."
Jody Hipwell, on the other hand, is a parent who supports Obama's speech being broadcast in schools.
"I feel the district really messed up not letting our students see that in class. We were very disappointed."
Not exposing students to the president's speech is sending students mixed signals, she said.
"This is the president of the United States. With that office comes respect," said Hipwell, who has two children in Morgan schools.
"I feel like we're telling our kids, 'It's OK, we don't need to listen to him.' "
Because the schools failed to broadcast the speech to either of her children, Hipwell said she made it a point to read the speech with them at home.
"What a wonderful speech about positive education and going out and making something of yourself," she said.
Hipwell's concerns seem to be the majority, Wolff said in the board's September meeting.
"I've had more people contact me asking why we didn't show it," said Wolff, who sat in one fifth-grade class while students watched the speech.
"It was a darn good speech."
Wolff said teachers were worried that showing the speech would reduce instructional time.
The logistics of gathering large student groups also prevented the district from broadcasting the speech on a wider basis.
Wolff also said that if district officials had known the speech content would be released before the broadcast, more teachers would have favored showing it.
"I suggest parents pull the content off (the Internet), sit down and use some of the lines to talk to your kids," he said.
"It's a good speech that I'm sure will motivate some kids."
*CORRECTION* Robert Craven's comments in a Wednesday story about continuing concerns in Morgan County over President Obama's speech to school children were not in reference to the speech. His comments referred to the video "I Pledge," which included an excerpt from an Obama speech as well as statements from a number of celebrities on how they could help the president and the world.
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