On the recordDecember 17, 2015
this week in Washington, President Barack Obama's favorite pickup basketball pal from Chicago is leaving town. He is heading back home to Chicago. His name is Arne Duncan. He is Secretary of Education. He was one of the first choices of this President to serve in his Cabinet. He was an obvious choice. Arne Duncan has given his life to teaching and education. It starts with his parents--his father, who was a professor at the University of Chicago, and his mother, who ran a mentoring and tutoring center in the Hyde Park area of Chicago. As a young boy in school, Arne used to come out of class and go to his mother's mentoring center to help other young kids learn to read and do their homework. It was built into him. His dedication to teaching, to schools, and to improving the lives of students across America has been well documented. As Arne grew up, he grew tall. As he grew tall, he played basketball, and he was very good at it. He ended up going to Harvard University and playing on their varsity basketball team. He then went on to play in the professional ranks in Australia. It was there that he met his wife. They have two children together. She is waiting for him in Chicago, and he is anxious, I am sure, to return and live full time in that city with his family. When he came back from his stint in basketball, he went back to mentoring kids in the Hyde Park section and other parts of Chicago.…
