Speeches

Governor Gary Locke’s Remarks
Bothell Campus Groundbreaking
May 28, 1998


It's a great pleasure to participate in breaking ground for this new institution.

I know that for many people here - from the HEC Board, the Community and Technical College Board, and from the UW and Cascadia this ceremony is the culmination of years of effort.

But, as people say at commencement ceremonies at this time of year, this is truly just the beginning.

And it is a beginning for something far more significant than bricks and mortar.

We are breaking ground not just for a new building, but for a new millennium - in which all of us, of every age, will learn for life.

In our old way of thinking, a college education meant leaving home, living in a dorm - and being between the ages of 18 and 22.

Today, the educational needs of our society have changed.

We need institutions that help people of all ages learn what they need to know, when they need to know it.

And we need institutions that make learning available to students wherever they are.

That's one of the most exciting promises of this campus.

Thanks to the high-tech industry that's centered just a few miles from here, this campus will rise, not just at this site, but on the computer screens of thousands of students all over our state.

Technologies that didn't even exist when this co-location of the UW and Cascadia Community College was first proposed now make teaching and learning possible in ways that make distance irrelevant.

So our task today isn't just to break ground for a building, but to break ground for new ways of thinking about higher education.

Our task is to break ground for a new era of rapid innovation and constant change.

And our task is to commit ourselves to building, on this site, a set of flexible, student-centered institutions that can help make Washington a state of learning.

A state of learning is a place where everyone is engaged in education in one way or another throughout their lives - whether it's tutoring kids as part of the Washington Reading Corps, taking classes to qualify for a promotion or start a new career, or enriching our lives and communities by learning history or art.

There is a growing hunger for education - a hunger for hope and opportunity; for adventure and personal enrichment; and for human advancement.

That is the appetite this campus will stimulate, and education is the nourishment that will sustain our democracy and our society in the century to come.

So, on behalf of the citizens of this state, thank you to all those who've brought us to this day - and to those who will build not just a new building, but a new era of learning.

And now, let's get to work!
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