Holder urges students to ‘work hard’

Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. told students at a D.C. elementary school Tuesday that they need to work hard and listen to their teachers and that it’s not too early to start thinking about their futures.

The speech was in advance of President Obama’s national address to schoolchildren on the importance of taking responsibility for their success in school.

Mr. Obama spoke at a school in Arlington; Mr. Holder spoke at Amidon-Bowen Elementary School in Southwest. Amidon, built in 1960, has about 300 students in prekindergarten through fifth grade, most of them black.

Mr. Holder walked through some classrooms before speaking briefly in the school’s auditorium. One second-grade student asked Mr. Holder, “Do you get along with the president?” Mr. Holder answered by saying that the president was a “good guy.” He was also asked “Do you get to go to [the president’s] house?” Mr. Holder asked the students if they knew what the president’s house was called.

In the auditorium, which doubles as a cafeteria and was decorated with construction-paper apples and butterflies, Mr. Holder asked students how many wanted to be president, and hands shot up. He went on to ask for a show of hands from prospective doctors, lawyers and teachers, but the profession that got the most responses was professional basketball player.

“We need you all to work hard, right? I need you to do your homework all the time, right? I need you to listen to your teachers, yes?” Mr. Holder said, his questions punctuated by a chorus of yes from students. “What is it you want to be when you grow up? It’s not too early to start thinking about that. … Our future in this country really depends on what you all do.”

Mr. Holder then sat down to watch Mr. Obama’s speech with students, who sat on red, maroon and tan folding chairs.

Mr. Holder, who grew up in New York City and went to public school there before attending Columbia University, was among a number of administration officials talking to schoolchildren Tuesday.

Iman Hyatt, who watched Mr. Obama’s speech with Mr. Holder and her classmates, said this is what she learned: “Be good so you can get a good job,” said the 10-year-old, who wants to be a singer and dancer and if that doesn’t work out, a veterinarian, designer or chef. “Listen to your teachers. … Do your homework.”