Burlington, Vt. – March 2, 2010 - University of Vermont President Daniel Fogel introduced former Vermont Governor Madeleine Kunin at the opening of the symposium on government held in the Dudley Davis Center Tuesday morning.

Fogel commended Kunin for her contributions as Governor during 1985-1991, which he said are visible today “in our Vermont schools, in our doctors’ offices, in access to affordable housing, and our state’s perennial rank as one of the healthiest places for children, for families, for women, and in the very landscape of this beautiful state.”

Fogel also highlighted Kunin’s public service as Vermont Lt. Governor, as well as a State Legislator. He lauded her work in the Clinton administration as Deputy Secretary of Education, and her 3 years as U.S. Ambassador to Switzerland.

Fogel added, “I would be remiss in my duties if I didn’t add a couple of lesser known facts from her resume’.  Madeline Kunin earned her Masters degree at UVM in 1967 and is a distinguished faculty member at UVM through the James Marsh Professors-at-Large Program. We are deeply proud that our students have this opportunity to learn directly from a pioneering leader in American politics.”

Following the introduction, Kunin said politicians can do many things after they leave public office.  They can, “become lobbyists as we know, some hang out their own shingles, but I’m very happy to be a part of the UVM community. I’m able to write and work here and feel embraced,”  said Kunin, then joking that,  “the real theme of this conference is not ‘What is the Role of Government Then and Now‘, but ‘Can it really be 25 years?’

“Of course, none of us have changed,” she said, as members of her past administration sat in the crowd smiling.

Kunin admitted it’s pleasant to bathe in the warm bath of the past, but joked that eventually you have to get out of the tub.  She had asked herself upon reflection with the 25 year anniversary approaching, “Do we just have a party? Do we just look back with nostalgia?”  Kunin said she really wanted this day to be a teaching and learning opportunity at the University. Because government is so much a topic of debate today, she said the event was designed to ask, “Is it a willing partner, is it a barrier, is it evil, is it a force for good?”

Kunin pointed out that twenty-five years ago there was a bit more optimism about government and it was more often looked upon as a partner.  That government can be an ogre, she agreed, and that some of the acrimony from a national level can seep down into local politics. To that, she noted that, “It’s appropriate that we are meeting on Town Meeting Day,” a day in Vermont when people have a chance to actively participate.

Kunin said of her past as Governor,“The word bipartisan was used more often than it is today. We worked constantly with people from across the aisle, and didn’t even think about it all that much. It was just a way to get things done. If there’s any nostalgia here, it’s nostalgia for that.”

-Vermont Daily News staff report