Speech: Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears

BY WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE
(from Julius Caesar, spoken by Marc Antony)

Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears;

I come to bury Caesar, not to praise him.
The evil that men do lives after them;
The good is oft interred with their bones;
So let it be with Caesar. The noble Brutus
Hath told you Caesar was ambitious:
If it were so, it was a grievous fault,
And grievously hath Caesar answerd it.
Here, under leave of Brutus and the rest
For Brutus is an honourable man;
So are they all, all honourable men
Come I to speak in Caesars funeral.
He was my friend, faithful and just to me:
But Brutus says he was ambitious;
And Brutus is an honourable man.
He hath brought many captives home to Rome
Whose ransoms did the general coffers fill:
Did this in Caesar seem ambitious?
When that the poor have cried, Caesar hath wept:
Ambition should be made of sterner stuff:
Yet Brutus says he was ambitious;
And Brutus is an honourable man.
You all did see that on the Lupercal
I thrice presented him a kingly crown,
Which he did thrice refuse: was this ambition?

Yet Brutus says he was ambitious;

And, sure, he is an honourable man.
I speak not to disprove what Brutus spoke,
But here I am to speak what I do know.
You all did love him once, not without cause:
What cause withholds you then, to mourn for him?
O judgment! thou art fled to brutish beasts,
And men have lost their reason. Bear with me;
My heart is in the coffin there with Caesar,
And I must pause till it come back to me.

President of Cleveland State University Inauguration Speech

October 16, 2009
Thank you, Chairman Weinberg. I am grateful to you for that warm introduction and for
your unwavering enthusiasm and support for Cleveland State University.
This entire Board of Trustees exemplifies a commitment to this community and the
University that is extraordinary. It was the Boards sense of purpose, the time, energy
and focus that I saw during the search process that convinced me that this was a special
group of leaders, committed to the ideals of public higher education and the mission of
the University.
The Boards abiding belief that CSU is an important instrument of transformation for our
city, county, and region made it clear that the Board understood the nature of an urban
university and was anxious to advance the partnerships and connectivity vital to an
urban universitys success.

I pledge that I will do all that I can to take the University down this path and redeem the
faith the Board has placed in me.
The leadership of the Board is complemented by the leadership at the local and state
level, particularly that of Mayor Frank Jackson and Chancellor Fingerhut. The Chancellor
is passionate in his belief that the future of the state depends on the ability to produce a
diverse and diversified core of graduates who will be the architects and engineers of a
new state economy one that will be anchored in new knowledge and knowledge
service industries.
State leadership is aligned with this vision. In the most difficult of times, our state
leadership fought and largely succeeded in protecting the states investment in public
higher education.
I thank all my family, friends and colleagues who have traveled to share this day with us.
All have contributed in different ways to providing me the opportunity I have today.
Most of all, I am grateful to my wife and secret weapon, who becomes less of a secret by
the day, for supporting me and joining me on this incredible journey. Please join me in
welcoming and thanking my wife and partner, Patsy Bilbo Berkman, who shares my
commitment to this institution. Our children and other members of our family are also
with us today and I would like to ask them to stand and be recognized.
It is an honor to stand before you today as President of Cleveland State University. Dr.
Schwartz had a long-planned trip to the Mediterranean and could not be here, but I want
to commend his leadership over the last 8 years. I also want to recognize former
Presidents Dr. John Flower and Dr. Claire Van Ummersen for helping to construct the
University platform we build upon today. Please join me in a round of applause for our
Emeriti Presidents.
Since I accepted this position and moved here from South Florida, Ive been telling
everyone that there is no place I would rather be than right here at CSU.

And yes, I think I know all about lake effect snow.

CSU and Cleveland already feel like home to me. In many respects my entire life has
been spent in preparation for this opportunity. So allow me to tell you a little bit about the
trail that led me here.
Virtually all of my life has been spent in cities. I know cities and appreciate them I draw
strength from their energy and resilience, and respect the hard work and determination
of their residents.
Secondly, I believe passionately in public higher education. I am a product of the New
Jersey state college system, earning a B.A. in political science at William Paterson
College. Like so many contemporary students, I worked at a variety of jobs throughout
my college career.
I became a college student somewhat reluctantly, waiting three years after graduation
from high school before enrolling at Paterson. Until that time, I simply wasnt interested
in going back to school. But once I began, I grew to love the freedom of thought, inquiry
and creativity that college provided.
When it came time for graduate school, I applied to several, including Princeton. I was
admitted to the Ph.D. program in Political Science with full support, which for the first
time in my life allowed me to devote my full attention to study.
After earning a Ph.D. and then teaching for three years at Princetons Woodrow Wilson
School, I wanted to teach at a public university, preferably one in an urban environment.
So I accepted a professorship at Brooklyn College, part of the City University of New
York system, and spent the next 15 years there.
I found that I really loved teaching, and was good at it. Good teachers, of course, are
fundamental to education at any level. Nothing is more important. Good teachers are
better listeners than talkers -- dialogue is a more valuable teaching tool than monologue.
A teachers true mission is to make each student feel he or she has something to
contribute and to provide them a path to grow through participation, to create a safe
environment for students to make mistakes.
I would have been happy to spend the rest of my career as a professor, but somehow I
stumbled into administration, joining the CUNY Administration as University Dean for
Urban Affairs, a natural fit given my interest in urban studies.
This brought me face-to-face with the myriad and complex set of issues that confront
urban universities and American cities.
Later, I was named founding Dean of the School of Public Affairs at Baruch College in
Manhattan. My career eventually led me to a different urban center Miami, where at
Florida International University, where I had the privilege of serving as executive dean of
the College of Health and Urban Affairs and Provost.
I dont love cities despite their problems I love cities because of their problems. In
overcoming obstacles that seem insurmountable, they display a nobility and courage in
the face of adversity that I find inspiring. Do your worst -- you can knock a great city to its
knees, but it always staggers back to its feet, ready to go another round.

In 1975, New York City was in essence put into receivership, and one year later,
Cleveland was the first city in America since the Great Depression to go into temporary
bankruptcy. Yet both have persevered, overcame, and moved forward.
Call it toughness, or swagger, but that refusal to quit fighting no matter the odds is a
quality all great cities share. Its a quality I sense in Cleveland.
And right in the heart of Cleveland, at the center of its urban core, lies Cleveland State
University, the great public institution I am now privileged to lead at what I believe is a
pivotal moment for both the school and the city.

I have arrived at an incredibly exciting time. Enrollment rose by 4 percent this year,
reaching its highest level in 15 years. More than $300 million in new construction and
renovation is underway or planned, including a new student center, College of Education
and Human Services Building, and a $65 million project that eventually will add five
dorms plus a 300-car parking garage to the campus.
We have seen tremendous growth in all our health science programs and the College of
Business. I am proud of the incredible strides made by Cleveland-Marshall College of
Law, with 95 percent passing the February 2008 state bar exam on their first try.
Cleveland State is in and of this city, and the connections and bonds between the two
must be strengthened. We must build bridges between the University and the city that
will provide environments for students to apply and expand what they are learning in
classrooms and laboratories.
Our campuss urban environment is an asset of which we must take full advantage.
Students choose CSU because of its downtown location and the opportunity to engage
with the business, arts, philanthropic and nonprofit communities. These pathways will
lead them to careers in Cleveland and help them stay in Cleveland.
I have found that businesses and organizations here are anxious to bring CSU students
into their fold. They have discovered that they can find a nationally competitive talent
pool at CSU. And they get dividends with CSU students -- a great work ethic and a
commitment to our city. Most of our graduates want to stay here. Our ability to provide a
skilled, trained and committed workforce, grounded by a strong foundation in liberal arts
and sciences, is a tremendous asset.
An example of the transformative power of higher education can be found in a recent
report by the Northeast Ohio Council on Higher Education, which estimated that an
increase of just one percent in Northeast Ohios bachelors degree attainment level
would result in another $2.8 billion in annual personal income for the region.
Jobs in the new economy will require education and training, and those jobs wont come
at all if there isnt a skilled workforce ready to fill them. The average salary for an
American with a high school diploma is $28,000, compared with $51,000 for a person
with a four-year college degree. And this disparity has been steadily growing over the
last 30 years, the average income of those with a high school diploma or less has fallen
in real terms, while the average income of college graduates has risen 19 percent.

It is estimated that two thirds of all new jobs will require some higher education, and at
the current rate we are producing college graduates, by 2025 there will be a shortage of
23 million college-educated adults in the American workforce.
Nor are the benefits of a college education merely financial. Those with college degrees
are more likely to vote and take an active part in their community, their children will do
better in school, and they will even live longer. Today, there is only one reliable route to
the middle class, to what we call the American Dream, and that is through education.
Providing the educational opportunities Clevelanders and the residents of North East
Ohio need to succeed is our special mission. And that means not only getting them into
school, but keeping them here.
For some, an opportunity is all they ask. The campus is home to many courageous and
determined students refusing to let any obstacles come between them and their
educational dreams.
Students like Jennifer Hakko of Lakewood, a mother of two who worked her way through
school to earn a bachelors degree last year in Speech and Hearing, graduating Summa
Cum Laude, all the while caring for her ill parents. She is back at CSU this year, working
on a masters in Speech-Language-Hearing Pathology.
And Colin Cross, a business major, one of 279 military veterans enrolled at Cleveland
State, who came to us after serving for eight years in the U.S. Army, including tours of
duty in Iraq and Kosovo.
Many of our students face a triple hurdle to success. College for them is a challenge
economically, academically and socially, and to succeed they need support, guidance
and encouragement. Our obligation as educators is not just to enroll students but to
graduate them. All of us faculty, staff, advisors, peer students must re-dedicate
ourselves to helping students get past the obstacles standing between them and a
diploma. It truly takes a village to graduate a student.
Cleveland State University must lead our areas recovery. Of course, the idea of public
education as a leading force for social and economic advancement is nothing new to this
country.
Public education in America has a long, sterling history of inclusion. Unlike in
meritocracy-based systems in Europe, Americans have always considered education an
asset not to be jealously guarded, but to be shared. It is an attitude that served us well
for more than 200 years, sparking the creativity and invention that made us the envy of
the world.
But for all its long and noble tradition, U.S. public higher education has been slipping
noticeably over the last decades. When I graduated, the United States had the highest
rate of degree attainment in the world.
Among younger adults today, its a different story. Other nations are achieving degree
attainment rates dramatically better than ours as high as 54 percent among adults
aged 25-34, compared with 39 percent for the U.S. According to the Lumina Foundation,
of the 30 nations who make up the Organization for Economic Cooperation and
Development 29 have increased degree attainment among their young adults over the
last 10 years.

The United States is the only country to see a drop, and it has fallen from first to tenth in
the percentage of young adults with college degrees.
All this merely ups the ante for CSU. What we do here is not only vital to the future of
this city, region and state, it has global implications.
I am confident we can meet this challenge. If you were to make a list of Cleveland
States strengths it would be a long one, but number one would be its outstanding
faculty, with more than 90 percent holding the highest degree attainable in their field.
They are productive, talented, committed and Ive been here long enough to know that
they share my love of teaching, scholarship and service.
And working both behind the scenes and on the front lines is a remarkable group of
committed administrators and staff, who make everything we do possible.
And since coming here, I have been heartened and energized by the vast store of good
will that exists for CSU in the Cleveland area. People recognize that this university
embodies their hopes for the future, and they have a burning desire to see us succeed.
And succeed we will. It would be premature for me on this occasion to offer an
overarching vision for Cleveland State University. It is my intent to continue to listen
and learn, and that process, now four months along, is still ongoing. While I am very
excited about some initiatives I will describe shortly, I intend to ground these ideas in
more dialogue with all of the CSU constituencies.
But I am guided by certain principles. We will align our mission to reflect the needs of our
students, our city, our civic and business community and our academic strengths.
I believe in public university systems, with an emphasis on cooperation rather than
competition. The recent restructuring of the states institutions into the University System
of Ohio reflects the vision of a system strategically aligned, differentiated but still acting
in concert.
As part of the states plan for higher education, we have identified two signature themes.
One of these themes will be health, a natural direction for us given the outstanding
medical and health-related institutions based in this region. This strategic focus on
health and health education dove-tails perfectly with our goal of increasing the depth and
breadth of our sponsored research.
The second signature theme will be in Sustainable Communities. Again, this is a natural
choice because of CSUs outstanding Maxine Goodman Levin College of Urban Affairs,
coupled with the Nance College of Business and the Fenn College of Engineering. Their
focus will be on finding new ways to restart and sustain urban economies, which again
offers direct benefits to the city we call home.
Building our research component will be a top priority. Research, like everything else in
the Twenty-first Century, is undergoing rapid change, and ours should reflect those
changes. It has been said that the technological advances of the next decade will come
not from the discovery of new knowledge, but by making connections between already
existing pools of knowledge.
Our research agenda ought to reflect who we are, what we are and where we are. To
the degree possible, our research priorities should be unique to our community.

I am very excited about our emerging partnership with the Cleveland Municipal School
District and the College of Education in the establishment of a K-12 school here on
campus. There are a number of reasons to do this provide a venue for training the
teachers of tomorrow, it will spark collaborative research and it will provide a school that
serves all students in the city.
This school will become part of a much larger tapestry a vibrant and active urban
corridor.
I am struck by the amazing potential of the corridor that forms the Cleveland State
campus. This neighborhood has it all its pedestrian-friendly with great walkability, has
good public transit and boasts the second-largest theatre district in the United States.
Our extended campus has its own hospital St. Vincents and two institutions of
higher education CSU and Cuyahoga Community College.
In short, our campus has the potential to become an exciting, diverse, cosmopolitan
neighborhood, and I intend to do everything I can to make that a reality. I envision faculty
and staff coming to live here, sending their children to school here, and together building
a vibrant neighborhood.
Nothing could be more important to this regions future than the task that has been
assigned to us, and we must not fail. From what Ive seen and learned here, I have
every confidence that together, we students, faculty, staff, donors and supporters will
all participate in leading the way to new ground.
It is with humility and a burning passion to realize the goals I have outlined that I accept
the presidency of Cleveland State University.
Thank you.

Inaugural Address by President Barack Obama

THE PRESIDENT: Vice President Biden, Mr. Chief Justice,
members of the United States Congress, distinguished guests, and fellow citizens:
Each time we gather to inaugurate a President we bear witness to the enduring strength
of our Constitution. We affirm the promise of our democracy. We recall that what binds
this nation together is not the colors of our skin or the tenets of our faith or the origins of
our names. What makes us exceptional -- what makes us American -- is our allegiance
to an idea articulated in a declaration made more than two centuries ago:
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal; that they are
endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights; that among these are life,
liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
Today we continue a never-ending journey to bridge the meaning of those words with
the realities of our time. For history tells us that while these truths may be self-evident,
theyve never been self-executing; that while freedom is a gift from God, it must be
secured by His people here on Earth. (Applause.) The patriots of 1776 did not fight to
replace the tyranny of a king with the privileges of a few or the rule of a mob. They gave
to us a republic, a government of, and by, and for the people, entrusting each generation
to keep safe our founding creed.
And for more than two hundred years, we have.
Through blood drawn by lash and blood drawn by sword, we learned that no union
founded on the principles of liberty and equality could survive half-slave and half-free.
We made ourselves anew, and vowed to move forward together.
Together, we determined that a modern economy requires railroads and highways to
speed travel and commerce, schools and colleges to train our workers.
Together, we discovered that a free market only thrives when there are rules to ensure
competition and fair play.
Together, we resolved that a great nation must care for the vulnerable, and protect its
people from lifes worst hazards and misfortune.
Through it all, we have never relinquished our skepticism of central authority, nor have
we succumbed to the fiction that all societys ills can be cured through government
alone. Our celebration of initiative and enterprise, our insistence on hard work and
personal responsibility, these are constants in our character.
But we have always understood that when times change, so must we; that fidelity to our
founding principles requires new responses to new challenges; that preserving our
individual freedoms ultimately requires collective action. For the American people can
no more meet the demands of todays world by acting alone than American soldiers
could have met the forces of fascism or communism with muskets and militias. No
single person can train all the math and science teachers well need to equip our
children for the future, or build the roads and networks and research labs that will bring
new jobs and businesses to our shores. Now, more than ever, we must do these things
together, as one nation and one people. (Applause.)

This generation of Americans has been tested by crises that steeled our resolve and
proved our resilience. A decade of war is now ending. (Applause.) An economic
recovery has begun. (Applause.) Americas possibilities are limitless, for we possess all
the qualities that this world without boundaries demands: youth and drive; diversity and
openness; an endless capacity for risk and a gift for reinvention. My fellow Americans,
we are made for this moment, and we will seize it -- so long as we seize it together.
(Applause.)
For we, the people, understand that our country cannot succeed when a shrinking few
do very well and a growing many barely make it. (Applause.) We believe that Americas
prosperity must rest upon the broad shoulders of a rising middle class. We know that
America thrives when every person can find independence and pride in their work; when
the wages of honest labor liberate families from the brink of hardship. We are true to our
creed when a little girl born into the bleakest poverty knows that she has the same
chance to succeed as anybody else, because she is an American; she is free, and she is
equal, not just in the eyes of God but also in our own. (Applause.)
We understand that outworn programs are inadequate to the needs of our time. So we
must harness new ideas and technology to remake our government, revamp our tax
code, reform our schools, and empower our citizens with the skills they need to work
harder, learn more, reach higher. But while the means will change, our purpose
endures: a nation that rewards the effort and determination of every single American.
That is what this moment requires. That is what will give real meaning to our creed.
We, the people, still believe that every citizen deserves a basic measure of security and
dignity. We must make the hard choices to reduce the cost of health care and the size
of our deficit. But we reject the belief that America must choose between caring for the
generation that built this country and investing in the generation that will build its future.
(Applause.) For we remember the lessons of our past, when twilight years were spent in
poverty and parents of a child with a disability had nowhere to turn.
We do not believe that in this country freedom is reserved for the lucky, or happiness for
the few. We recognize that no matter how responsibly we live our lives, any one of us at
any time may face a job loss, or a sudden illness, or a home swept away in a terrible
storm. The commitments we make to each other through Medicare and Medicaid and
Social Security, these things do not sap our initiative, they strengthen us. They do not
make us a nation of takers; they free us to take the risks that make this country great.
(Applause.)
We, the people, still believe that our obligations as Americans are not just to ourselves,
but to all posterity. We will respond to the threat of climate change, knowing that the
failure to do so would betray our children and future generations. (Applause.) Some
may still deny the overwhelming judgment of science, but none can avoid the
devastating impact of raging fires and crippling drought and more powerful storms.
The path towards sustainable energy sources will be long and sometimes difficult. But
America cannot resist this transition, we must lead it. We cannot cede to other nations
the technology that will power new jobs and new industries, we must claim its promise.
Thats how we will maintain our economic vitality and our national treasure -- our forests
and waterways, our crop lands and snow-capped peaks. That is how we will preserve
our planet, commanded to our care by God. Thats what will lend meaning to the creed
our fathers once declared.

We, the people, still believe that enduring security and lasting peace do not require
perpetual war. (Applause.) Our brave men and women in uniform, tempered by the
flames of battle, are unmatched in skill and courage. (Applause.) Our citizens, seared
by the memory of those we have lost, know too well the price that is paid for liberty. The
knowledge of their sacrifice will keep us forever vigilant against those who would do us
harm. But we are also heirs to those who won the peace and not just the war; who
turned sworn enemies into the surest of friends -- and we must carry those lessons into
this time as well.
We will defend our people and uphold our values through strength of arms and rule of
law. We will show the courage to try and resolve our differences with other nations
peacefully - not because we are nave about the dangers we face, but because
engagement can more durably lift suspicion and fear. (Applause.)
America will remain the anchor of strong alliances in every corner of the globe. And we
will renew those institutions that extend our capacity to manage crisis abroad, for no one
has a greater stake in a peaceful world than its most powerful nation. We will support
democracy from Asia to Africa, from the Americas to the Middle East, because our
interests and our conscience compel us to act on behalf of those who long for freedom.
And we must be a source of hope to the poor, the sick, the marginalized, the victims of
prejudice - not out of mere charity, but because peace in our time requires the constant
advance of those principles that our common creed describes: tolerance and
opportunity, human dignity and justice.
We, the people, declare today that the most evident of truths - that all of us are created
equal - is the star that guides us still; just as it guided our forebears through Seneca
Falls, and Selma, and Stonewall; just as it guided all those men and women, sung and
unsung, who left footprints along this great Mall, to hear a preacher say that we cannot
walk alone; to hear a King proclaim that our individual freedom is inextricably bound to
the freedom of every soul on Earth. (Applause.)
It is now our generations task to carry on what those pioneers began. For our journey is
not complete until our wives, our mothers and daughters can earn a living equal to their
efforts. (Applause.) Our journey is not complete until our gay brothers and sisters are
treated like anyone else under the law - (applause) -- for if we are truly created equal,
then surely the love we commit to one another must be equal as well. (Applause.) Our
journey is not complete until no citizen is forced to wait for hours to exercise the right to
vote. (Applause.) Our journey is not complete until we find a better way to welcome the
striving, hopeful immigrants who still see America as a land of opportunity -- (applause) - until bright young students and engineers are enlisted in our workforce rather than
expelled from our country. (Applause.) Our journey is not complete until all our
children, from the streets of Detroit to the hills of Appalachia, to the quiet lanes of
Newtown, know that they are cared for and cherished and always safe from harm.
That is our generations task -- to make these words, these rights, these values of life
and liberty and the pursuit of happiness real for every American. Being true to our
founding documents does not require us to agree on every contour of life. It does not
mean we all define liberty in exactly the same way or follow the same precise path to
happiness. Progress does not compel us to settle centuries-long debates about the role
of government for all time, but it does require us to act in our time. (Applause.)

For now decisions are upon us and we cannot afford delay. We cannot mistake
absolutism for principle, or substitute spectacle for politics, or treat name-calling as
reasoned debate. (Applause.) We must act, knowing that our work will be imperfect.
We must act, knowing that todays victories will be only partial and that it will be up to
those who stand here in four years and 40 years and 400 years hence to advance the
timeless spirit once conferred to us in a spare Philadelphia hall.
My fellow Americans, the oath I have sworn before you today, like the one recited by
others who serve in this Capitol, was an oath to God and country, not party or faction.
And we must faithfully execute that pledge during the duration of our service. But the
words I spoke today are not so different from the oath that is taken each time a soldier
signs up for duty or an immigrant realizes her dream. My oath is not so different from
the pledge we all make to the flag that waves above and that fills our hearts with pride.
They are the words of citizens and they represent our greatest hope. You and I, as
citizens, have the power to set this countrys course. You and I, as citizens, have the
obligation to shape the debates of our time -- not only with the votes we cast, but with
the voices we lift in defense of our most ancient values and enduring ideals. (Applause.)
Let us, each of us, now embrace with solemn duty and awesome joy what is our lasting
birthright. With common effort and common purpose, with passion and dedication, let us
answer the call of history and carry into an uncertain future that precious light of
freedom.
Thank you. God bless you, and may He forever bless these United States of America.

EUNICE
MABELLE
TORRE

MARIA
REGINA
CANANEA

Eulogy For My Grandfather

He was a faithful husband, a responsible father, a caring grandfather and

a good friend to everyone who knew him. He was so simple and just did
everything for his family.
I was still a little kid, 4 years old I think, when he passed away. Everything
was not clear to me. I thought he was just sleeping and will just wake up on the
next day. Despite that innocence, on thing was never forgotten and will always
be remembered. He was an extraordinary grandfather. He cared so much about
us that he didnt allow even a single bite from a mosquito. I remembered the
times when we were sitting on his lap and felt all the love and care. I
remembered the times when we were playing and laughs covered the entire
house. He always spent time to play with us and enjoyed every moment. But just
like every grandfather, he was also a disciplinarian. I didnt understand that
before but now its crystal clear. He didnt want us to be in the wrong path so he
disciplined us as early as possible. I remembered when he punished my siblings
when they were quarrelling and didnt let them go out of each room. How lucky I
was before when I was still the youngest of the family?! I just heard them cried
and wait until they became okay again. After that, everything seemed normal
again. My siblings stopped hating him for giving them the punishment, at least
they learned.
I also remembered the time when he talked to my sister to tell her that
when hes gone, stay at my grandmothers house for her to have someone who
will look after her. This was just a simple thing but really melted my heart when I
already understand things. This just proved how he really loved her wife to think
of her even in a life or death situation.
I will never forget him and will always take care of the good name I am
carrying. I will always love him and he will always be one of my leading men.