While the media appears to be more interested in President Barack Obama’s treatment of Gov. David Paterson and its political implications, we cannot overlook the fact that Obama came to SUNY Hudson Valley Community College in Troy, N.Y., Sept. 21 for a major address on education, research and the economy.
I was proud to be invited to this special occasion. This was significant recognition for the State University of New York and its pre-eminence in higher education. HVCC is training students in many disciplines, including green technologies. It has a training program in solar panel installation. The area the school is in is becoming known as “Tech Valley,” New York’s answer to Silicon Valley.
The partnership between colleges and industry, according to Obama, must be encouraged and nurtured. He spoke about the relationship between innovation and the global economy and how investing in education and research will result in sustainable growth, benefitting everyone.
As I sat listening to the president in a large, windowless building, which the day before had been a classroom for training automobile technology students, he concluded by saying, “I understand, as all of you do, the power of these institutions to prepare students for 21st-century jobs and to prepare America for a 21st-century global economy. And that’s what’s happening right here at Hudson Valley Community College.”
I left proud of the wonderful colleges and universities we have in our state.
Toby Stavisky
Chairwoman
State Senate Higher Education Committee
Whitestone
