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Every child deserves our very best. Nowhere is there more hope and potential than in the <br />curious face of a two-year old, and nowhere is there more tragedy than in the angry face of a <br />13 year-old who cannot adequately read, nor more disappointment than in the face of a 17- <br />year-old who has just been told he has no marketable job skills. <br />We need to give our young people more options. <br />Gwen Marshall from Minneapolis is just one example. Gwen graduated years ago with <br />average grades from North High School. She was married, had a daughter, and was later <br />divorced. As a single parent, she worked full-time during the day and sometimes held <br />evening jobs in retail sales. Eventually the draining routine, the day care payments and <br />being away from her young daughter got to be too much, so she quit her jobs and went on <br />AFDC. <br />To her credit, Gwen enrolled in a skilled trades program at St. Paul Technical College last <br />year, 17 years after she graduated from high school. She will complete the program this <br />summer and someday wants to teach at a high school or a technical college. I have met <br />Gwen, and I am confident she will attain any goal to which she aspires. She is with us this <br />evening. Gvten Marshall in the center balcony. <br />But we have not been fair to the Gwen Marshalls of Minnesota, and there are many of them. <br />Today I would like to prorruse you Gwen that we can and we will give your daughter more <br />career options. <br />Ill my own life, education has meant everything. If it were not for the unique opportunities <br />that 1 had, and the sturdy encouragement I received from my parents, I know this: I would <br />not be here tonight, and I suspect the same is true for most of you. <br />Gwen’s story illustrates that the system that has served most of us and our parents so well <br />for so long is no longer adequate. In Minnesota, we can and must do better. <br />The high-performance employers of today demand high skills from every employee at every <br />level. Employers all over the state are telling me they cannot find the kinds of qualified <br />workers they need. They are frustrated by the widening skills gap.