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Her parents told her she could be President of the United States. She settled for Secretary of State.
After 16 minutes, three introductions and a dedication to Martin Luther King Jr., Condoleezza Rice took the stage Thursday.
Rice spent her time at the podium covering a range of issues, including foreign policy in the Middle East, the United State’s responsibility on a global scale and the economy. She told the audience it is crucial to focus on the issues that are important.
“We have to stand for a democratic future for the men, women and children of the world,” Rice said in her speech.
Rice often referred back to personal experiences during her speech.
“It may seem strange to you but it doesn’t seem that long ago to me that I was sitting out in that audience in college,” Rice said in a press
conference that followed the presentation. “I am not that far in my own mind removed from my own college experience, so using those experiences to say, ‘here are the ways I got to do what I am doing,’ I think are very important.”
Tanner Wall, OSU College Republican co-chair, said he thought the turnout for the event reflected a diverse interest in the speaker.
“I think it was great that OSU was able to get her in, especially because if you noticed how many organizations, not just College Republicans but just the entire campus and the community, rolled out to support her, so that is a good thing,” Wall said.
Kent Samson, Director of Campus Life, said he estimated between 2,300 and 2,500 people attended the event.
The School of International Studies, Spears School of Business, OSU President’s Speakers Series and SGA Speakers Board sponsored “Remarks by Condoleezza Rice.”
The event was a part of the OSU Global Briefing Series.
Stacey Brandhorst, SGA Speakers Board Chair, said she was impressed with the collaborative effort of the organizations that sponsored the event.
“Normally when you bring four groups together to do anything it is not very fluid,” Brandhorst said. “It has been over a year planning it and it was worth every minute.”
Sen. Jim Halligan of Stillwater said the presentation was a special event.
“You really got to salute the students for bringing her to the campus,” Halligan said. “It is a proud day for Oklahoma State.”
Rice said she enjoys making the visits because it allows her gain additional perspective of American life outside of Washington D.C.
“I love coming out to universities any place and I especially like getting out and around the country that isn’t Washing D.C.,” Rice said at the press conference. “Washington D.C. is a small part of who we are and what we do and I love getting out and getting a chance to talk to people.”
Rice said her ultimate goal was not to push political policy, but to have the audience leave with a lesson.
“The most important lesson that I try to impart is that you can’t plan every stage in life, so when I talk about planning to be a music major and ending up being a soviet specialist and everything that came from that, what I am really saying is don’t try at 21 to determine every station in your life,” Rice said at the press conference. “You might miss out on a lot when you are planning.”
4 comments
They were quoting Dr. Rice. She joked that she settled for state.