For Dukakis, a multigenerational gala
Three successors gather to laud his honesty, compassion, care for people
‘Our nation is better off because of your example.’
FORMER PRESIDENT BILL CLINTON, in a letter about former governor Michael Dukakis (above)
Former Massachusetts governor Michael S. Dukakis, who led the state for a record 12 years, a tenure that included a Democratic run for president, was celebrated by three of his successors Thursday at Northeastern University, where he served nearly 30 years as a professor of public policy after leaving politics.
Governor Maura Healey, joined by former Democratic governor Deval Patrick and Republican William Weld, with whom Dukakis has formed an unlikely alliance over transportation issues, shared personal stories and reminisced on the 90-year-old Dukakis’s three terms in office.
“I’ve come to think, in retrospect, that Michael and I might have been ideologically separated at birth,” said Weld, drawing laughter from the audience. “He was the inspiration to me then, and an inspiration to me now.”
Dukakis is now the Distinguished Professor of Political Science Emeritus at Northeastern. He taught in the school’s College of Social Sciences and Humanities for 29 years, a tenure that ended three years ago.
The university celebrated Dukakis
during a symposium that concluded with an hourlong discussion by Healey and the former governors that was moderated by former NBC Boston/NECN chief political reporter Alison King.
Dukakis, dressed in an open collar, sat in the audience with his three grown children, smiling often as his colleagues spoke of his long career in public service. His wife, Kitty, 87, was not able to attend.
Weld, Dukakis’s immediate successor, served as governor from 1991 to 1997. He praised Dukakis as one of the first politicians to speak out against dishonesty and corruption in the government. “He just stood for being absolutely straight,” said Weld, who noted that Dukakis’s 1974 gubernatorial campaign was the first to which he ever donated.
Healey said that even though Dukakis no longer teaches students at Northeastern, his “lifetime classrooms” are ongoing for those who have more to learn. She feels thankful to know the former governor is there to offer advice over the phone or at the kitchen table, where Healey said the two often discuss politics over doughnuts and coffee.
“He understands the importance
of meeting people where they are and paying attention to the things that matter in the everyday life and lived experience of residents in our city,” said Healey, the state’s first woman chief executive and openly gay governor. “To me, as governor, that’s been the greatest gift that he could have given.”
When Healey was considering running for attorney general, she said, Dukakis brought her to The New England Center for Children in Southborough, a residential school for children with autism.
“He thought it was really important that I have a look at that home and what it does and services it provides,” said Healey.
“It was really, really poignant what [he] showed me and exposed me to.”
The son of Greek immigrants, Dukakis grew up in Brookline before attending Swarthmore College, and later graduated from Harvard Law
School. He is known for paying attention to the vulnerable, said Healey, and for going to great lengths to relate to those he represents.
“He had to hustle for everything that he got in life,” said Healey. “I think that probably some of Mike Dukakis’s drive to pay it forward comes through his humility and recognition of what it is that got him to where he got to be.”
Dukakis never stopped paying attention to the issues that affect everyday people, said Patrick, who noted that he received many calls and emails from Dukakis about Boston’s litter while in office.
“He keeps an eye on us,” said Patrick, who served as governor from 2007 to 2015. “If it’s not quite right, you will hear from him.”
Toward the end of the event, Northeastern’s president, Joseph Aoun, stood up to offer his closing remarks. These remarks included the introduction of a “surprise letter,” from former president Bill Clinton tearfully read by Dukakis’s son, John.
“Our nation is better off because of your example, and your impact will only continue to grow as your students continue to grow, lead, and succeed,” Clinton wrote. “You proved that smart government really can make a difference, a positive difference, in people’s lives.”
Dukakis, who was helped up onto the stage by family and friends, spoke last. As is his fashion, he talked only of others, recounting the academic and professional accolades of his late parents before noting the success of his former students.
“I’m not quite as strong as I was a few years ago,” said Dukakis, who uses a cane. “So I just want to say thanks. Thanks to you, thanks to so many of the students that I’ve taught and had the pleasure of guiding through positions of leadership.”
Although he was disappointed that his wife could not attend, Dukakis said he was thankful for the community that Northeastern has provided. “There’s no place really quite like it,” said Dukakis, who called the students his “family.”
“Anyway, enough from me,” Dukakis said before the audience rose in a tearful standing ovation. “Thank you for a wonderful day.”
‘I just want to say thanks. Thanks to you, thanks to so many of the students that I’ve taught. ’
FORMER GOVERNOR MICHAEL DUKAKIS