Before President Barack Obama spoke at Henninger High School on Thursday, Say Yes to Education’s founder said he hopes to partner with the federal government to expand the organization.

“This should not be in only two cities,” George Weiss said.

Say Yes is a national nonprofit that offers programs to inner-city students such as a extended day, mentoring and tutoring. The program reaches schools in places such as Hartford, Conn., Philadelphia and Harlem, N.Y., but Buffalo and Syracuse are the only two programs where it’s citywide. A cornerstone of the program is a promise of free tuition at colleges it partners with. In Syracuse, there are about 100 partners, including Syracuse University.

Weiss said in an interview before the speech he didn’t think it was random that the president picked Buffalo and Syracuse— two places where Say Yes offers city-wide support. In his speech, Obama mentioned the program as one of the reasons he came to Syracuse.

Both the president’s speech and the idea of Say Yes involve the ideas of affordability and accessibility in education, Weiss said.

About 12-15 other cities have expressed interest in getting the program, he said, including some in New York state.

He said he sees the federal government as a natural partner, but added: “To be honest with you, the government works in strange ways. And sometimes it doesn’t work.”

But Weiss said he hopes that with a White House endorsement, the program could get congressional or state money to move into other cities.

“What I see happening in Syracuse is absolutely spectacular,” he said. “Why shouldn’t other kids — that don’t have these same breaks — why shouldn’t it be in 10 cities? Why shouldn’t it be in 20 cities? Those are my goals, and those are my dreams.”

Published on August 23, 2013 at 10:36 am

Contact Dylan: dmsegelb@syr.edu | @dylan_segelbaum