Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel addressed topics of humanitarianism and public service during a humor-filled speech he delivered Saturday afternoon to the Clinton School of Public Service’s graduating class.
During the commencement ceremony at the Arkansas Statehouse Convention Center, Emanuel used anecdotes and referencedlife lessons in the 15-minute speech to the 34 students of the school’s seventh graduating class.
“While I’m not a graduate of this prestigious institution, I am a graduate of another Clinton School: the Clinton School of Hard Knocks. … I wasn’t too much older than these graduates when I left Chicago for Little Rock, taking an office in a paint store to work for then Gov. Bill Clinton’s presidential campaign,” Emanuel said, referring to his experience living and working in Arkansas during the 1992 campaign.
The idea of responsibility was a thread that ran throughout the entire address, as Emanuel said that the graduates not only have an obligation to serve their city, state and country, but the world as a whole.
“Remember that theClinton School has given you greater insights, but also greater responsibility to use your blessings for others,” Emanuel said. “Remember that public service is a sacred trust: It will require sacrifice for you and your families. It is a difficult journey and in my experience there is none that is more rewarding.”
The graduates, who received their Master of Public Service degrees just after Emanuel’s speech, “represent 14 states and four countries, including the Democratic Republic ofCongo, Nigeria, Portugal and Thailand,” according to Ben Beaumont, director of communications for the University of Arkansas System.
Beaumont said that over the past two years, these graduates completed a 36-hour curriculum and finished three field service projects in 21 countries on five different continents.
“The Clinton School has provided you opportunities to learn and serve in countries all over the world,” Emanuel said. “But the moment you walk across this stage today, those opportunities become obligations. As Mayor of Chicago, I offer you some humble advice about how to meet those obligations: Come work inour cities. There is no better place to put your education to work and no greater need of your gifts.”
In his “call to action,” Emanuel also discussed the obligation that the graduates have to the world’s great cities. He said the cities will shine in the next century with the help and leadership of hardworking public servants.
“To reinvent our cities, we need to re-energize government and to rethink what it should and should not do in the future.” Emanuel said. “To rebuild our roads, our runways and our rails, we need creative partnerships between the public and private sectors. To be pioneers of ideas and innovation, weneed new ways to welcome the best and the brightest from around the world. To match the skills of young people with the needs of a modern economy, we need to transform our community consciousness. And, most of all, to reach our potential as a city, we need to provide every child, in every community, with a world-class education, no matter their background and no matter their zip-code.”
The commencement ceremony began with a short video of Clinton congratulating the graduates, during which he called Emanuel’s career “truly inspiring” and “a great example of turning good ideas into action for the benefit of others.”
Northwest Arkansas, Pages 17 on 05/12/2013