We must have a Culture of Hope

"First of all I am concerned about getting more young people of all races who would be educated across disciplines. We know we need the humanities, the social sciences and the arts. They teach us what it means to be human, they give us our values, they help us to put history in perspective, but we need to understand as a country that we must have a Culture of Hope"
Freeman Hrabowski has served as President of UMBC (The University of Maryland, Baltimore County) since 1992. During his 20-year tenure as president of UMBC, Freeman has helped students of all backgrounds pursue degrees in arts, humanities and the sciences and has transformed a young university into a research institution recognized as one of the most innovative in the country. His research and publications focus on science and math education, with special emphasis on minority participation and performance. He was honored by Time in 2012 as one of the Top 100 most influential people in the world.
"Excellence is never an accident (Aristotle). It is the result of high intentions, it is the result of sincere efforts, it is the result of intelligent execution. It represents choosing the wisest among many alternatives... Choice not chance determines your destiny. What will you choose? Dreams and Values."
This talk is more about STEM education, but it is really about a lot of other things - very inspirational, worth watching.
-- Watch Freeman's TED talk "4 pillars of college success in science"