Bill Clinton on education and opportunity
January 30, 2015
Former President Bill Clinton gave the keynote address at a Brookings Hamilton Project conference on “Addressing America’s Poverty Crisis.” Clinton’s remarks followed several panel discussions of apprenticeships and other ways of training high-skill workers. Panelists included Harry Holzer and Robert Lerman, who have written about this topic in Issues.
Clinton emphasized the need for policies such as income-contingent student loan repayment, lower tuition, and retention programs that enable low-income people to afford and finish a quality education. He also recommended that we eliminate the misleading distinction between education that develops workplace skills and academic knowledge.