Live from the Democratic National Convention!
Monday, August 25. 2008
My dear friend and colleague, Rita Ferrandino, has made an extraordinary journey to Denver to serve as a Florida delegate to the 2008 Democratic National Convention.
I went to undergraduate school with Rita, far more years ago than I care to admit, and have watched her shift from a devastatingly cute 18 year old Italian girl from Reading, PA, into a simply devastating pro in the publishing industry, political activist, and loving mom.
How did we get to be the grown-ups?
Part of what takes me out at the knees about Rita's attendance at the convention is that she was allowed to invite a guest, and chose to bring her dad. Papa Frank, as I have called him (again, for far more years than I would care to admit), is as devastatingly cute as Rita ever was, and came to this country as a young boy from Italy, filled with the dreams of immigrants since the first European set foot on these shores, wanting to make a better life for he and his family.
Boy, has he ever done it! And now he gets to join his daughter the delegate at the nomination of a presidential candidate.
As someone who has spent a professional lifetime committed to education, Rita is maintaining a blog about the education plans that are emerging from the Democrats. Please check it out; she'll be adding video coverage from the convention as they have a chance to upload!
Click here to visit Rita's blog!
And, for those of you who are hungry to learn more about our democratic process, you are invited to join Rita and faculty from Denver Metro State College on an online course on the politics of presidential elections, focusing on the DNC. Visit Rita's blog and follow the links to the course -- it sounds amazing!
I went to undergraduate school with Rita, far more years ago than I care to admit, and have watched her shift from a devastatingly cute 18 year old Italian girl from Reading, PA, into a simply devastating pro in the publishing industry, political activist, and loving mom.
How did we get to be the grown-ups?
Part of what takes me out at the knees about Rita's attendance at the convention is that she was allowed to invite a guest, and chose to bring her dad. Papa Frank, as I have called him (again, for far more years than I would care to admit), is as devastatingly cute as Rita ever was, and came to this country as a young boy from Italy, filled with the dreams of immigrants since the first European set foot on these shores, wanting to make a better life for he and his family.
Boy, has he ever done it! And now he gets to join his daughter the delegate at the nomination of a presidential candidate.
As someone who has spent a professional lifetime committed to education, Rita is maintaining a blog about the education plans that are emerging from the Democrats. Please check it out; she'll be adding video coverage from the convention as they have a chance to upload!
Click here to visit Rita's blog!
And, for those of you who are hungry to learn more about our democratic process, you are invited to join Rita and faculty from Denver Metro State College on an online course on the politics of presidential elections, focusing on the DNC. Visit Rita's blog and follow the links to the course -- it sounds amazing!
