Governor Gregoire Addresses the 2007 Higher Education Day Legislative Lunch, Presents Former Governor Gardner with the Dr. Robert Waldo Award (As Written)

February 20, 2007

Thank you, Joyce {Taylor, emcee, KING 5 News Anchor}.

This is an exciting year for education at all levels. I�m especially proud of some of the investments we are making in higher education that will strengthen our four-year schools for many years to come.

We�ve already expanded our branch campuses at Vancouver, Tacoma, Tri-Cities and Bothell into four-year programs and this year we are poised to go much further in increasing access to our colleges and universities.

In my budget, I�ve proposed 8,300 new slots, including 3,300 in high-demand fields like nursing, construction and engineering.

In eastern Washington, we�re providing more opportunities for doctors, nurses and dentists to study and practice. We�re expanding the �WWAMI� program, the WSU Intercollegiate College of Nursing in Spokane and establishing the Regional Initiative in Dental Education program as part of Eastern Washington University�s operations at the WSU-Spokane campus.

We�re making the cost of college more predictable and affordable by capping tuition increases at all our colleges and universities and freezing tuition in our community and technical colleges.

And we�re making major new investments in early learning as well as math and science that will increase our state�s demand for higher education decades into the future.

I�m especially proud of one of the scholarship programs we�re investing in this year � the GET Ready for Math and Science scholarship program for low- and middle-income kids.

To qualify, students would have to score at least a four on the Math WASL and enter a math or science-related major, then work in Washington in a math or science-related job for three years.

Still, I want to work with all of you to do more to raise the rate at which our young people earn baccalaureate degrees. We are currently 35th in the nation and we all know our state can and should do better. It is my hope that our investments in early learning and K-12 will start to move us up that list.

I also think if we work to personalize education and relate it more closely to the real world, we can attract more young people to our institutions of higher learning.

As an example, just a few weeks ago a professor and a group of students from WSU-Vancouver launched a company, GeoMonkey, that enables users to customize a map and share it with others.

GeoMonkey began as a software development class project and is now on its way to becoming a successful business.

Similarly, the investments we are making through the Life Sciences Discovery Fund and in biofuels and agricultural research will grow our state�s economy and create jobs for college graduates in our state.

The Life Sciences Discovery Fund and the new University of Washington Department of Global Health are enabling us to discover cures, vaccines, and treatments in Washington that can be delivered everywhere. Just last year, the University of Washington signed a deal with the University of Queensland in Australia to collaborate on life sciences research.

Meanwhile, the investments we�re making in biofuels and agricultural research will grow our agriculture economy in new directions. One program we�re proposing will encourage farmers to develop new crops and WSU scientists to come up with new products for those crops.

By getting our research institutions to work more closely with industry, our institutions of higher education offer the promise of real advances for the entire world � and a stronger state economy.

Before I talk about today�s guest of honor, let me tell you one other quick story. Last year, I met with China�s President Hu Jintao in Seattle. During our meeting, I asked him what he thought were the top issues facing China and he told me, energy and the environment � finding enough energy to keep the Chinese economy strong while protecting the environment.

I then described to him our efforts to research and develop alternative fuels and he was ready to make an order on the spot before we�ve even made a drop!

We are building a world-class higher education system here in our state that leaves us well-situated to prosper in today�s global economy. And much of the credit goes to the winner of this year�s Dr. Robert Waldo Award.

Throughout both of his terms as Governor and to this day, Booth Gardner has been a strong voice for higher education, contributing to the development and expansion of both two- and four-year campuses all over the state.

In fact, Booth started the branch campuses in Tacoma, Vancouver, Tri-Cities and Bothell. His name is engraved into the �Founder's Stone� at the University of Washington-Tacoma, dedicated in December.

As Governor, Booth also purchased the property for the Riverpoint Campus in Spokane and started SIRTI.

These programs have revitalized communities � just look at downtown Tacoma � and become valued institutions in our state.

Booth recognized the unique importance of workforce development, creating the Board for Vocational Education and moving the Vo-Tech Schools out of the K through 12 system and into the community college system.

Finally, capping off his career as a voice for higher education, in 2003 he worked with Governor Dan Evans, then-Governor Gary Locke and the Legislature to create �Gardner-Evans� bonds that produced $750 million in capital funds for construction on two- and four-year campuses across the state from 2003-2009.

I�m proud to say we�re building on his legacy in my budget.

Although I wouldn�t trust him behind the wheel of a car � as Governor, he once eluded the State Patrol duty assigned to protect him and took me on one of the scariest rides of my life � he has been the driving force behind so much of our progress in higher education.

Congratulations, Booth, on winning the Dr. Robert Waldo Award!

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