GLASSBORO, N.J. – Embattled New Jersey Governor Chris Christie told graduating students at Rowan University on Friday morning that while their diplomas will open doors, it won’t guarantee success.
What matters, Christie said, is “how hard you’re willing to work.”
The Republican was invited to deliver the 2014 commencement address at the southern New Jersey school despite student and alumni complaints. A petition to Rowan University on change.org asking the school not to celebrate the Republican with an honorary degree or with the privilege of being the keynote speaker garnered nearly 3,000 signatures by Friday morning.
“No governor in N.J. history has been more adversarial to teachers and public education than Chris Christie,” the petition reads. “His policies have damaged public education and the teaching profession as a whole. He is not deserving of this honor from Rowan. “
Petitioners also pointed to the fact that Christie’s administration is under state and federal investigation concerning the September George Washington Bridge lane closures, orchestrated by some of his staffers and allies, seemingly for political retribution. Half a dozen protesters, who identified themselves as Rowan students, were booted from one of the governor’s town halls in March after they interrupted Christie on a number of issues, including so-called “Bridgegate.”
But Christie’s speech was met with calm. The “free speech zone” — a university-issued tent under which protesters could gather — had no one under it during the start of the ceremony. And at the end, he received a standing ovation.
The governor centered his 15-minute remarks on the personal story about his grandmother, who was born on a boat coming from Italy to the United States. She received no education beyond middle school and was put into an arranged marriage at a young age. After finding out her husband had been cheating on her, Christie’s grandmother kicked her spouse out of their home and filed for divorce – atypical in the early 1940s.
Christie recounted his grandmother’s commitment to hard work and family. She got a job at the Internal Revenue Service in Bloomfield, N.J. (a two-hour commute) and depended on her 10-year-old daughter to take care of herself and two other siblings. They may have been poor, but their life felt full, said Christie.
“She taught me that your life is not determined by what you don’t have, but what you’re willing to do,” the governor said.
Christie was supposed to speak in front of the approximate 2,200 graduates at the school’s stadium, but due to rain, the governor delivered his keynote address and received his honorary degree of law at the school’s smaller, Pfleeger Concert Hall, where approximately 130 seniors majoring in mechanical engineering received their diplomas.
Though students complained after the school announced that Christie would be their keynote speaker, many on Friday said at the end of the day, it didn’t make a difference.
“It’s about us. It’s our day, no matter who is speaking,” said graduating senior Sarah Dores, 22, of Maple Shade, N.J.
Others like Sarah Schanck, another graduating senior, said Christie’s visit put a cloud over what should be a celebratory day. She noted several students she knew were debating not going to their ceremony because Christie was headlining.
“This is about celebrating our achievements but it’s not as happy because there are a lot of mixed feelings on campus,” said the 21-year-old from Hollywood, Maryland.
Several high-profile commencement speakers backed out of headlining ceremonies this month following protests by students and faculty. That includes former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice at Rutgers University after student demonstrators railed against her role in the 2003 Iraq War. International Monetary Fund managing director Christine Lagarde canceled her May 18 appearance at Smith College, citing anti-IMF protests from faculty and students. And on Tuesday, Robert Birgeneau, the former chancellor at the University of California-Berkeley, withdraw as a 2014 commencement speaker at Haverford College. Birgeneau is known as an advocate for minority and undocumented students. But during his tenure as chancellor, he came under fire for how Berkeley’s police force responded to Occupy protests in 2011.
While some applauded the speakers’ cancellations, others have criticized students for not creating a culture that’s friendly toward free speech.









