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Contact: Lea Ann Erickson
508-929-8018

LT. GOVERNOR TIMOTHY MURRAY TO DELIVER
2008 WORCESTER STATE COLLEGE COMMENCEMENT ADDRESS

(Worcester, MA--)Timothy P. Murray, Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts, will be the featured speaker at the 132nd Commencement of Worcester State College (WSC), Sunday May 18, 2008 at 1:00 p.m. at the DCU Center in Worcester.

 “I am so proud to welcome the Lieutenant Governor to our 2008 commencement,” said Worcester State College President Dr. Janelle Ashley.  “He has exemplified outstanding service to his city and the Commonwealth and embraced issues so dear to our students and our community: economic development, public education, the environment and engaging citizens in their democracy.”

“As a Worcester native, it is an honor to have been asked to speak at the WSC commencement ceremony,” said Lieutenant Governor Timothy P. Murray.  “I am looking forward to participating in the festivities with the graduating students and the faculty and staff that helped them to achieve this great milestone.”   

Prior to his election as Lieutenant Governor, he was a three-term mayor of Worcester, the state’s second largest city. Under his leadership, Worcester experienced unprecedented progress, with $1 billion of new economic development projects that are helping to transform an older industrial city into one that is well-positioned to lead and grow in the new economy.
 

As mayor, he chaired the Worcester School Committee and helped make that city’s schools among the best urban school systems in the nation. He built community partnerships to lower drop-out rates, launch school-based health initiatives and expand after-school programs to support working families.
 

The oldest of five children, he attended Worcester public schools and went on to St. John’s High School in Shrewsbury. He earned his bachelor’s degree at Fordham University, and then put himself through law school attending classes at night while working days as a substitute school teacher and an advocate for homeless families. He earned his law degree from the Western New England College School of Law in Springfield and became a partner in the Worcester firm of Tattan, Leonard and Murray.

He was first elected to the Worcester City Council in 1997 and became mayor in 2001. Prior to his elective service, he was active for many years in a wide range of community initiatives. He served on the boards of the Worcester Public Library, Worcester Historical Museum, Worcester Community Action Council, the Worcester Working Coalition for Latino Students and Preservation Worcester.


 

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