•  Campaign Videos (April 2012) « Obama for America
  

[Music] Dakota Remy: When you're in high school, it's like you come to a fork in the road.  You can go to college, you can go to vocational school or you can just not further your education at all.

There are so many doors open when you get into higher education.

CG: Faces of Change: Dakota's Pell Grant

My name is Dakota Remy.  I'm from Claremore, Oklahoma and Pell Grants have completely changed my life.  When I was in high school thinking about going to college I wanted to go into computer technology, I wanted to go into politics, I wanted to go into the public sector; I wanted to do tons of things.

Donna Landon, Dakota's High School Teacher: What I perceive in an individual that makes them college material is drive and a work ethic and Dakota has that.

Dakota Remy: My parents have always wanted me to go to college because they knew how hard it was to live without a degree, but when they found out how much it cost, they just couldn't afford it.  There was no way.

Donna Landon: It was after the last day of school, and I said okay, now what's your plan.  Well, I'm not going to get to go Miss Landon; I don't have enough money.  I'm not going to go to school.

Dakota Remy: And when you look at $5,000 for a year of school at a small town college, you look at that like that's $5,000.  I don't have that money.  So I really didn't know what I was going to do.

Donna Landon: At that point I said, okay, this is not acceptable.  We're getting ready to find you the money, and you're going to go to college somewhere.

Dakota Remy: I had no idea that I even needed to fill out the [inaud.].  Miss Landon told me that it was important because I could get money from them. 

TEXT: Under President Obama, 3 million more students receive Pell Grants

TEXT: Dakota qualified for a grant awarding him $5,500 a year

Dakota Remy: I'm a freshman in college right now at Rogers State University.  If I didn't have the opportunity to go to college I could be working a minimum wage typical job, but the Pell Grant has paid for everything, for seeing that my future is possible.  It's an amazing feeling.  It's like the pre-Pell Grant and then the post-Pell Grant era.

Donna Landon: There's no greater way that you can invest in your country than to educate your people, and it's going to not only make them successful, but pay back to our economy and pay back to our way of life in so many ways.

Dakota Remy: It's inspiring to know that President Obama looks at education as an investment in the future.  He wants everyone to be successful, and that makes me want to go help someone else, because someone's helped me. 

Nine million students are getting Pell Grants this year, and I feel lucky to be one of them.

TEXT: CHANGE IS MAKING COLLEGE MORE AFFORDABLE

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Notes:

Copyright © 2012 Eric M. Appleman/Democracy in Action.