WATERLOO - Venture capitalist Bob Compton believes American education reform is "ultimately doomed to failure."

"In America we revere, recognize and reward athletic achievement," said Compton, in a phone interview with The Courier. "When we had very little global competition in the 20th century, that was OK."

But now America is competing for jobs with China and India, where "intellectual and academic achievement" are rewarded, he said. "That is a whole change in the game."

Compton argues this necessitates a cultural shift for the U.S. He created and financed the hourlong documentary "Two Million Minutes" to make his point.

Today, Compton brings that message to ACT's annual meeting in Iowa City, where he will be the keynote speaker.

The documentary is named for the amount of time that every student in the U.S., China and India has during four years of high school. It portrays the lives of two students in each of those countries during senior year as they prepare for college.

While the U.S. has lagged on global education standards for some time, Compton noted that for the first time "we're behind the two most populous countries on earth in how we're educating our children."

"The reason I made the film is that I'm deeply concerned that we are sending this generation of children out into a global marketplace and they are just not adequately prepared to be globally competitive," said Compton. "But we are in denial and don't make any meaningful changes to our education system.

"We're going to see more companies growing and becoming leaders outside of the U.S. and we're going to see more of our core industries go into decline," said Compton.

"Look what Japan and Korea have done to the American auto industry," he added. "If two smaller countries could, frankly, decimate the American auto industry, imagine what two larger countries that are even hungrier coming out of poverty will do to a wide swath of the American economy."

Compton is one of the "thought leaders in education and workforce development" that will speak at the ACT meeting, vice president of communication Rose Rennekamp said in an e-mail.

The film "highlights the need for our young people to receive a rigorous education if they are to be ready to succeed in college and in the types of jobs available in the new, ultra-competitive global economy," she said. "We are eager to hear Mr. Compton's thoughts on these issues based on his experiences in making 'Two Million Minutes' and his successes as a businessman and entrepreneur."

Contact Andrew Wind at (319) 291-1507 or andrew.wind@wcfcourier.com.