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>> Mr. Simon: Good morning.
My name is Troy Simon,
and I am from New Orleans, Louisiana.
I couldn't read until I was 14.
I was held back twice and developed aggressive
strategy skills to hide my illiteracy.
My report card routinely confirmed my failure.
On days I did attend school, I started fights, shoved desks,
and wrote on walls --
anything to get myself out of the classroom.
Looking back, I could offer a portfolio of excuses
for why I fell behind --
my parents split, my mother's consequent poverty;
I was shuffling between relatives;
the devastation of Hurricane Katrina.
We lived in an abandoned building for a year.
My cousin and I tap danced in the French Quarter
to earn money.
But at 14, I saw my brothers and sisters headed down
the same path as me,
so I knew that I had to make a better example for them.
I decided to change my life.
I got connected with my fifth grade teacher
and worked on after-school assignments
and studied in the library,
and I knew that it would be hard to catch up,
so we devoted much of our time to writing essays
and studying really hard for grueling hours.
I enrolled in an academic support program
called the Urban League College Track,
which helped me academically and socially from that moment on.
College Track has helped me discover myself through writing.
College Track has gotten me through college.
And College Track is still getting me through college.
Now I am at Bauer College on a full-ride scholarship,
and I am happy and excited about that.
[applause]
Now that I am in college,
I am a member of the Posse program,
which is a group of nine other students who are helping
each other succeed to earn a college degree.
I know that it took me to be committed to education,
but I also know that it took others to help me.
I couldn't do it alone, no doubt.
At College Track, I met with my mentors who helped me
and guided me along the way.
I connected with my former teachers who helped me as well
and guided me along the way
and told me that I could be my best self
and I can do anything if I put my mind to it.
These teachers have been a big example to me,
and they show me that I have an unbreakable support system.
They have taught me to live out the quote
that failure is inevitable but quitting is not an option,
that pain is for the moment but quitting is forever,
that the ultimate measure of a man
is not where he stands in times of comfort and convenience
but in times of challenge and controversy.
Between these programs and my former teachers,
there is no doubt that I will succeed.
Today's event is not about me, but it's about every kid
in the United States of America, ensuring that they will succeed
and get a chance to reach their intellectual potential.
So, it is my pleasure to introduce someone who has shown
great support and confidence in our nation's young people,
someone who is working help other students have
a future as bright as mine.
Ladies and gentlemen, please join me in welcoming
our First Lady, Michelle Obama.
[applause]