Education

Federal File

August 07, 2002 1 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

Just Wear It

The concrete courtyard in front of the Department of Education was baked by relentlessly sunny skies, but that didn’t stop hundreds of department employees from feasting on free hot dogs, snow cones, popcorn, and sodas during a team- building lunch in late June.

A band played background music as employees tried to find shade and munched free food. Then Secretary of Education Rod Paige took the stage for a pep talk.

Mr. Paige tried to rev up the crowd with a litany of compliments for their work on the “No Child Left Behind” Act of 2001. He said he wanted to use employees’ ideas to improve the state of education in the country.

“We want to harvest the collective thoughts of all your minds and push that together like a laser beam” to focus on problems, Mr. Paige told the crowd.

Just behind him were the little red schoolhouses with “No Child Left Behind” signs that mark entrances to the agency’s main building. But Mr. Paige said he didn’t want to stop there. He wanted to start a fashion trend that would overtake the Nike “swoosh” baseball caps. He predicted caps with the “No Child Left Behind” logo would be a hit in the U.S. capital.

“We want them to line up to buy caps at the Department of Education,” Mr. Paige said. “We’re going to start a fashion trend in Washington, D.C.”

The suggestion appears to be part of a public relations blitz emphasized by the red schoolhouses and scored by the new agency theme song.

Some of the lyrics, sung in an upbeat gospel sort of way, include:

“We’re here to thank our president, for signing this great bill.

“Yea, research shows we know the way, it’s time we showed the will.”

So far the department hasn’t decided what exactly to do with the ditty. Plans to use it as, say, background music for telephone callers on hold have apparently themselves been put on hold.

Mr. Paige did not make employees sing the song during the lunch. Also, as of the end of July, no trend-setting hats were available, nor were there any plans to create any.

—Michelle R. Davis

A version of this article appeared in the August 07, 2002 edition of Education Week

Events

Artificial Intelligence K-12 Essentials Forum How AI Use Is Expanding in K-12 Schools
Join this free virtual event to explore how AI technology is—and is not—improving K-12 teaching and learning.
Federal Webinar The Trump Budget and Schools: Subscriber Exclusive Quick Hit
EdWeek subscribers, join this 30-minute webinar to find out what the latest federal policy changes mean for K-12 education.
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Curriculum Webinar
End Student Boredom: K-12 Publisher's Guide to 70% Engagement Boost
Calling all K-12 Publishers! Student engagement flatlining? Learn how to boost it by up to 70%.
Content provided by KITABOO

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
View Jobs
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
View Jobs
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
View Jobs
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.
View Jobs

Read Next

Education Quiz What Is the Average Teacher Salary for the 2024-25 School Year? Take This Weekly Quiz
Test your knowledge on the latest news and trends in education.
1 min read
Education Quiz Are You Keeping Up With Trump’s Big Changes to K-12 Funding? Take This Weekly Quiz
Test your knowledge on the latest news and trends in education.
1 min read
Education Quiz How Is Trump Changing School Discipline Rules? Take This Week’s Quiz
Test your knowledge on the latest news and trends in education.
1 min read
Education Briefly Stated: April 30, 2025
Here's a look at some recent Education Week articles you may have missed.
8 min read