Governor emphasizes education at Chamber meeting
By Ken Powers Contributing Writer
Marlborough - Seeming as if he were sitting the living room of a friend, sipping coffee and eating a piece of pumpkin pie, Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick shared a story about the differences between his education and that of his youngest daughter to a crowd of about 200 at the Annual Luncheon Meeting of the Marlborough Regional Chamber of Commerce.

After speaking at the Marlborough Regional Chamber of Commerce at the Best Western Royal Plaza Hotel Nov. 14, Gov. Deval Patrick was surprised with a Marlborough High Panthers shirt presented by sophomore students Sarah Clark and Adrian DeJesus. PHOTO/LOUIS DEFELIPPI

"Sitting at the high school commencement of my youngest daughter Katherine this year, I couldn't help but contrast her path to that milestone to my own path to that milestone some 35 years ago," Patrick said.

The Governor told about growing up welfare on the south side of Chicago, sharing a room and one set of bunk beds with his sister and mother.

"You'd go top bunk, bottom bunk, floor," he said. "Every third night on the floor."

Patrick talked about loving to read, but never owning a book. He recalled his arrival at Milton Academy in 1970 as a 14-year-old freshman, his admission to the private school made possible by a scholarship.

"It was like landing on a different planet," Patrick said. "When I first got to Milton Academy, they had a dress code, boys wore jackets and ties to classes. When the clothing list arrived at home my grandparents splurged for me on a brand new jacket.

"But a jacket on the south side of Chicago is a windbreaker," Patrick continued, "so all the other boys on the first day of class had on their blue blazers and tweed coats, and I had on my windbreaker."

Patrick talked about Katherine always having her own room in a house in a leafy neighborhood in Milton where Patrick himself delivered newspapers while going to Milton Academy.

"At age five, in kindergarten, they're studying the changes in the season and as part of her homework assignment Katherine has to come home and explain to mom and dad the four seasons," Patrick said. "So, she proceeds to, in accurate and complete detail, to describe her several visits to the Four Seasons hotel in Washington. D.C. Beginning with, 'first you drive up and the doorman takes your car.'"

Patrick marveled aloud at the profound differences to such simple things in one generation of a family.

"When it comes to our long-term success, we really do believe that our best investment has got to be in our schools," Patrick said. "This year our budget features the largest investment in education the commonwealth has ever made. That's a good start, but we also know, not only do we need more money, we need new ideas. We need new ways.

"Our graduates are about to enter into an economy that doesn't recognize borders. Their skills and talents will be measured against people from Shanghai (China) and Bangalore (India), not just Raleigh (N.C.) and San Jose (Calif.)," Patrick said. "China is building a university the size and scope of UCLA every year for the next 10 years. In America we graduated 70,000 new engineers last year. India graduated 350,000, China, 600,000."

As a result of the change and challenges that will face graduates, Patrick announced he has launched the Readiness Project.

"It's a project about making our education system so that it helps our kids be ready for the new society and economy we are becoming," Patrick said, "an effort to move Massachusetts schools into the next phase in education reform."

On his way out of the Best Western Royal Plaza Hotel, Patrick stopped and spent a moment with Marlborough High sophomores Adrian DeJesus and Sarah Clark, who presented the Governor with a shirt promoting Panthers athletics.

"He just asked us how things were going," DeJesus said. "He told us to keep working hard, that getting a good education is the most important thing we will do."