Former White House chief of staff to speak about September 11 at Framingham State on Sept. 8

Andrew Card, the former White House chief of staff who informed President George W. Bush that America was under attack on September 11, 2001, will speak at Framingham State University on Wednesday, Sept. 8, at 4 p.m., as part of the university's 20-year anniversary commemoration of the attacks, according to Framingham Source. Card will deliver a lecture titled "Under Attack," reflecting on his experience during the attacks.

The event will take place in the Dwight Hall Performing Arts Center and is free and open to the public, with masks required, Framingham Source reported. It will also be streamed online over Facebook via Framingham State University's page. The report was based on a press release and photo submitted to Framingham Source by Framingham State University.

Framingham State President F. Javier Cevallos was quoted in the release: "As we commemorate and remember the tragedy of 9/11, we are fortunate to have the opportunity to hear from someone who was at the very center of the nation's response. We are grateful to Mr. Card for taking the time to share his experience with our community."

Card's background

Card served as White House chief of staff under President George W. Bush from 2001 to 2006, according to Framingham Source. After leaving that post, he served as acting dean of the Bush School of Government and Public Service at Texas A&M University from 2011 to 2013. In 2014 he became president of Franklin Pierce University, a post he held until retiring in the summer of 2016.

Part of a broader commemoration

Card's talk was one of several events Framingham State sponsored or co-sponsored to mark the 20th anniversary of 9/11, per the report. Others included a 9/11 Memorial & Museum poster exhibition, "The Day That Changed the World," on display in the university's Henry Whittemore Library Gallery; virtual on-demand tours of the 9/11 Memorial & Museum in New York City for the FSU community; a joint panel discussion with FSU and Massachusetts Maritime Academy titled "9/11 Boatlift: Reflection After 20 Years," featuring Captain Richard Thornton of NY Waterway; and "Bystander 9/11," a theater piece about the events of September 11, staged at the Amazing Things Art Center in downtown Framingham and sponsored by Framingham Public Schools and the Amazing Things Art Center.

US In News compiled this archived account from contemporaneous coverage by Framingham Source. It restores a story originally published on this site in August 2021; figures are as reported at the time.