First Lady Katie O'Malley Delivers Commencement Address to Graduates of the Kennedy Krieger Institute
ANNAPOLIS, MD (June 11, 2010) –First Lady Katie O’Malley today delivered the commencement address to this year’s graduates of the Kennedy Krieger Institute, a nationally recognized “Blue Ribbon School of Excellence” which provides model programs of innovative education for children and young adults with a wide range of learning, emotional, physical, neurological, and developmental disabilities. The First Lady encouraged the 44 graduates to continue to reach their fullest potential.
“Today, we celebrate you. We celebrate your individual accomplishments and your collective accomplishments. We celebrate the great things that your futures hold,” said First Lady O’Malley in her address. “You have learned, you have succeeded, and you have experienced life in a way that will prepare you for a future filled with even greater achievements. What makes this graduation ceremony more special than other graduation ceremonies is that you have beaten the odds.”
“Today, some of you will earn a certificate; some of you will continue on to vocational training programs; some of you have earned a diploma and will continue on to a college or a university. Each of you has successfully achieved this by capitalizing on your strengths and overcoming obstacles that might have stopped someone else,” she said. “Your dreams, your drive and your confidence led you here today, and those traits will lead you anywhere you want to go in life. Always dream, big and you will continue to inspire everyone around you.”
About Kennedy Krieger
The Kennedy Krieger Institute is an internationally recognized institution located in Baltimore, Maryland dedicated to improving the lives of children and adolescents with pediatric developmental disabilities through patient care, special education, research, and professional training. Kennedy Krieger’s clinical programs offer an interdisciplinary approach in treatment tailored to the individual needs of each child. Services include over 40 outpatient clinics; neurobehavioral, rehabilitation, and pediatric feeding disorders inpatient units; plus several home and community programs providing services to assist families. Faculty at Kennedy Krieger are among some of the world’s leading experts in this field and are attuned to the special needs of this population. These faculty have made crucial medical discoveries leading to innovative treatments and have improved the lives of individuals with disabilities. In addition to providing evaluation, rehabilitation, educational services and cutting edge research on behalf of children with brain, spinal cord and musculoskeletal related disorders, Kennedy Krieger also provides professional training by renowned experts dedicated to increasing the number of qualified specialists in the United States and abroad.