Adult Career Development Center Graduation

Thanks for that very kind introduction. Class of 2003, ladies and gentlemen.

Thank you for the honor of joining you tonight to celebrate a milestone in the lives of so many people. For years, I have heard about all the good work going on at ACDC - from the faculty and staff who are so committed to teaching - to some of the most innovative family literacy programs around - to the lives that are literally being changed every day. This truly is one of Virginia's best schools for giving people the chance to get ahead in a high-tech economy.

So congratulations on your graduation. Earning your credentials is not easy, and you deserve to feel proud. One of the great things about schools like ACDC is that they serve so many types of students - from high school students, to adults going back to learn new skills. Yet there's one thing in common - you're here because you want to be.

And I'm here tonight because I wanted to be, too. I was glad to accept your invitation to participate in this ceremony. As Governor, being here gives me the chance to tell Virginia about one of our assets.

This school is so important because our economy is changing. More and more, today's job market demands skilled workers. But we'd be wrong to assume that fact means everyone needs a college degree to get ahead.

For too long, we have believed in America that to get ahead, you have to earn a college degree - even when that might not be the right choice than an individual student wants to make. Because the fact is that more than sixty percent of tomorrow's jobs WON'T require a college degree. But everyone will need a high school diploma or GED - and then we have to focus on helping people obtain the job skills they need to be successful.

That means we cannot afford to treat career and technical training as a secondary education any longer. It's time we started treating our plumbers and electricians - our welders and cosmetologists - with the same respect that we treat our doctors and lawyers. Because none of us can do our jobs without the others.

As I traveled around Virginia during my campaign for Governor, I met thousands of people who agreed. Promoting career education is more than a campaign promise - today, it's a priority for our administration as well.

That's why we created the Virginia Career Education Foundation. This Foundation is a way to expand career and technical education - and to spread the word about successful schools like this to other parts of Virginia as well.

That's why we're working to create something called "Middle College," which will make it easier for students to help young adults earn a high school diploma or GED program. That will help lay the groundwork for a better job or more classes. And I've asked our Middle College team to look at ACDC as a place that is getting it right.

And most of all, that's why we protected public education from budget cuts - even though Virginia has been through the worst financial crisis in years. In fact, we actually increased funding for education this year. That's good news for ACDC, and all the students who study here today and in the semesters to come.

But that's enough about business. Tonight, you deserve to celebrate.

You know, standing here tonight makes me think back to the time when I finished school more than two decades ago. I was the first in my family to graduate from college. And as I look back, there are a couple of things that I wish someone had told me at the time - a couple of lessons that I learned on my own.

The first is simple: Don't be afraid to fail. We learn through our failures. And when you fail, pick yourself up and get moving again.

Believe me, I know the value of trying again. Fifteen years ago, I took my entire life savings - $5,000 - and invested it in a business. I was young. I was inexperienced. I was an entrepreneur. And in six weeks, I was broke.

So I started a second business. That one took a few weeks longer to fail. Then I started a third business, based on a little-known new technology that could put telephones in cars. Everyone thought I was crazy - especially when they looked at my track record.

But I persevered, and at the young age of 28, I was in on the ground floor of the wireless communications industry. My success was due to good luck, hard work, and support and advice from friends and mentors. But most importantly, it depended on me to keep trying after I had failed.

Those failures taught me that an old cliché is true: you can do whatever you put your mind to. And the exciting thing about our changing economy is that you can do it wherever you want. Following your dreams may take you around the world - or it may lead you to stay right here in Jackson Ward.

The second words of wisdom I'd like to share are simple too: Call your mother.

Call your father. Call your grandparents. Call your children. This speech and this ceremony will be over soon. When it is, every person graduating should find your family members and say, "thank you" and "I love you."

Because millions of people around the world will never even be able to dream of going to school - and you didn't make it here on your own. Your family helped you get here today, and they won't be around forever. So say it. It'll be good for you to say it and for them to hear it.

So that's it. Perhaps you'll remember this insightful speech twenty years - or twenty minutes - from now, or perhaps not. What I hope you will remember is all that this school has done for you. This school is an asset to this community, and its graduates are assets to this community.

And I know you will too.

Congratulations.