Rowan Students, Alumni Protest Christie Commencement Speech

“Given the polarizing power of Chris Christie, it comes as no surprise that protests have greeted the announcement that the governor will deliver the commencement speech May 16th at Rowan University’s 2014 graduation ceremony,” New Jersey Monthly reports.

“The opposition that has played out over the last several weeks stems primarily from Rowan education majors and alumni, many of whom are not only enraged by the decision to make Christie the keynote speaker, but also the fact that the university will be awarding him an honorary degree (along with Senate president Stephen Sweeney and state Senator Donald Norcross).”

Rowan alumni have attracted more than 2,800 signatures to a Change.org petition that states: “Rowan is historically a teachers’ college. No governor in NJ history has been more adversarial to teachers and public education than Chris ChristIe. His policies have damaged public education and the teaching profession as a whole. He is not deserving of this honor from Rowan. ”