For years there has been a great debate on what Barack Obama’s SAT scores were. However, there has never been a concrete answer to this question.
Barack Obama has never publicized his SAT scores. Like all American Citizens, he has a right to privacy regarding his academic scores and has always exercised it. As a result, the public domain has no verified answer to what he scored in his SAT. Most of the information about Obama’s SAT scores is just mere speculation.
Sealed Records
It has been rumored before that Barack Obama’s SAT scores were sealed. However, FactCheck.org refutes these claims.
A judge can seal only documents that are ideally open to public access. An example of such documents includes juvenile file records.
Since Obama’s school records are not documents of public interest, they cannot be sealed. The only reason Obama’s educational records are not public is that he desires them to be confidential.
What’s more, student records in America are protected under the 1974 Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, demanding that no personal, educational records be released without the student’s written permission. This includes transcripts and all college applications.
Therefore, none of his Alma matter is at liberty to disclose his scores.
Undisclosed Scores
Several people, including former president Donald Trump, tried to pressure Barack Obama into releasing his SAT scores during his campaigns, claiming it would foster his transparency.
Nonetheless, Obama did no such thing.
Trump went further to taunt him, claiming that Obama is not as brilliant as he would like people to believe. If he were, he would have released his transcripts to the public.
Quite ironically, Donald Trump’s Lawyer Michael Cohen later wrote to The Military Academy, threatening legal action against the school if they leaked any of Donald Trump’s school records.
Above Average Student
There have also been claims suggesting that Barack Obama was not such a brilliant student at school. Some even cite this to be the explanation behind his confidential school records.
Such claims can easily be refuted by the tremendous academic achievements he has attained in his life; from his days in Occidental College to Columbia College, he finally joined Harvard Law School.
It was from Harvard Law School, where he graduated magna cum laude, which is no mean feat. It requires brilliance to achieve that.
Even while at Harvard, he continued to do exemplary tasks. At the end of his first year, he became an editor of the Harvard Law Review.
In his second year, he was elected president of the journal. At the same time, while still a Harvard student, he became a research assistant to Laurence Tribe, the constitutional scholar.
Why Obama’s Confidential SAT Scores Should Not Be a Big Deal
Despite the huge fuss surrounding Obama’s choice to keep his SAT scores confidential, it should not be a big deal. Most of the presidents before him did not release their transcripts to the public.
Only George W. Bush’s Yale grades are verified to be accurate. And even so, they only became public after someone leaked them.
They were leaked to the New Yorker Magazine despite his intention to keep them confidential.
SAT scores are not related to the presidential work; hence there is no direct need for presidential candidates to submit their transcripts when vying for the presidential seat.
Credible Sources
Different sites today publish what they claim to be Barack Obama’s SAT scores. However, most of them cannot be fully trusted when it comes to that.
A trusted site will need to show their sources and establish that the source is credible. Unless the 44th president of America (Barack Obama) discloses the information himself or gives express permission to his Alma mater for his records to be released, it is best not to trust any exact figures given by any website.
Obama’s Influence
Whether he performed exceptionally in his SATs or flunked terribly, we have to admit that Obama has had a significant influence on the lives of many people globally. Many teenagers who grew up during his term seemed well-motivated by his story and his leadership.
Today, students who read his biographies and autobiographies can’t help but marvel at his educational journey. Some even look forward to following in his footsteps.
Barack Obama inspires all who read or learn about him to dare to go beyond. He holds the record for being the first African-American President of America.