Hillary Rodham Clinton's Remarks at the New York University Commencement

Ceremony

Background

Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton, (born on October 26, 1947) is the 67th United States Secretary of State, serving within the administration of President Barack Obama.

She was a Senator from the state of New York from 2001 to 2009. As the wife of the 42nd President of the United States, William Jefferson Clinton, Hillary served as First Lady from 1993 to 2001. In the 2008 election Clinton was a leading candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination.

A native of Illinois, Hillary Rodham attracted national attention in 1969 when she was chosen by her peers to be the first student commencement speaker at Wellesley College. As a graduate of Yale Law School, Class of 1973, she served temporarily as a congressional legal counsel. Rodham moved to Arkansas in 1974, marrying Bill Clinton a year later. Hillary Rodham Clinton co-founded the Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families in 1977, and became the first female chair of the Legal Services

Corporation in 1978. Named the first female partner at Rose Law Firm in 1979, she was twice listed as one of the 100 most influential lawyers in America. First Lady of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and 1983 to 1992 with husband Bill as Governor, Clinton successfully led a task force to reform Arkansas's education system. She has served on the board of directors of Wal-Mart as well as several other prominent corporations.

In 1994 as First Lady of the United States, her major initiative, the Clinton health care plan, failed to gain approval from the U.S. Congress. However, in 1997 and 1999, Clinton played a role in advocating for the establishment of the State Children's Health Insurance Program, the Adoption and Safe Families Act, and the Foster Care Independence Act. Her time as First Lady drew a polarized response from the American public. She is the only First Lady to have

been subpoenaed, testifying before a federal grand jury in 1996 due to the Whitewater controversy, but was never charged with any wrongdoing in this or any of the other investigations during her husband's administration. The state of her marriage was the subject of considerable speculation following the Lewinsky scandal in 1998 that spurred Articles of Impeachment to be issued against her husband, Bill Clinton.In January of 2000, Clinton was elected as senator to the State of New York after moving

to the small suburban hamlet of Chappaqua in Westchester County. That election marked the first time an American First Lady had run for public office; Clinton was also the first female senator to represent New York. In the Senate, she initially supported the Bush administration on some foreign policy issues, including a vote for the Iraq War Resolution, subsequently opposing the administration on its conduct of the war in Iraq, and most domestic issues. Senator Clinton was re-elected by a wide margin in 2006. In the 2008 presidential nomination race, Hillary Clinton won more

primaries and delegates than any other female candidate in American history, but narrowly lost to Senator Barack Obama. As Secretary of State, Clinton became the first former First Lady to serve in a president's cabinet. This is a speech by Hillary in Yankee Stadium, New York City on May 13, 2009.She launches the Virtual Student Foreign Service Initiative to allow for a rising generation of citizen diplomats to conduct digital diplomacy.Virtual Student Foreign Service (VSFS) Internships, announced by Secretary Clinton at

the 2009 New York University commencement speech, are part of a growing effort by the State Department to harness technology and a commitment to global service among young people to facilitate new forms of diplomatic engagement.

Words and Expressions

proliferation

growth by the rapid multiplication of parts; a rapid increase in number (especially a rapid increase in the number of deadly weapons)

e.g. The proliferation of controls rigidifies the industry.

commencement

beginning, the act of starting something; the day when degrees are conferred by colleges and universities upon students and others; a graduation ceremony, from a school, college or university

e.g. Before leaving I attended the 47th commencement of Cornell on June 16, 1914.

aggregate

a sum total of many heterogeneous things taken together; the whole amount

e.g. If increased spending is inadequate, government can step in to simulate aggregate demand.

sever

set or keep apart ; cut off from a whole

e.g. The two countries have severed their relations.

statecraft

statesmanship: wisdom in the management of public affairs

e.g. Subtlety is one of the arts of both diplomacy and statecraft.

trustee

a person (or institution) to whom legal title to property is entrusted to use for another's benefit; members of a governing board

e.g. He was nominated one of the trustees.

streamline

contour economically or efficiently

e.g. He is determined on his new plans to streamline the company, and make it more profitable and competitive.

daunting

discouraging, inspiring fear; overwhelming, intimidatingly impressive

e.g. The tests before the United States as it heads toward the twenty-first century are certainly daunting.

by dint of

through the help of (usually hard efforts)

e.g. They overcame all kinds of difficulties by dint of an indomitable spirit.

bat

strike with, or as if with a baseball bat; beat thoroughly and conclusively in a competition or fight

e.g. 1.The cat batted the balloon with its paws.

2. He batted the idea around in his head.

Godspeed

an expression of good will when addressing someone, typically someone about to go on a journey or a daring endeavor; A Christian substitute to the otherwise sacrilegious "good luck", which implies that anything can be random and out of the hands of God. Used to express concern and prayer for someone

e.g. You've labored long and done fine work, and we're here to honor you and wish you Godspeed on your life's journey.