When Democratic gubernatorial candidate Shannon O'Brien was elected state treasurer in 1998, she became the first woman ever elected to a statewide office. Her political career began more than a decade before that. She was first elected to the Massachusetts house in 1986 at the age of 27, after growing up in a politically active household in Western Massachusetts. O'Brien now lives in Whitman with her husband and two-year-old daughter.

Chitra :We are a South Asian community portal. As candidate for Governor, do you have a message for the South Asian community in the Greater Boston area, as well as across the Commonwealth?

Shannon :Yes, I do. I want to make Massachussetts a better place for everyone to live and looking at the contribution of south Asians community,  one of the specific area where we can forge alliance with the South Asian community is in the economic development. Many South Asians have come here, become very successful as entrepreneurs, starting businesses and giving back to their communities. One of the ways that we can continue to grow our economy is to forge even greater relationship/friendship with countries and business communities overseas. We think that MA should be a gateway community not only fostering newly/recently arrived immigrants and making sure that they have a good life but also by forging a relationship with the countries that they left behind. Forging a friendship with those countries will help develop more of a dynamic economic relationship, will go a long way in increasing the number of jobs here.

Chitra :Welfare and Medicaid for legal immigrants (permanent residents) are under attack in many states? What is your position on this?

Shannon :If we didn’t have legal immigrants coming to our state we would have lost the population of workers in this state. It’s the immigrants who fuel the strong economy that MA enjoys, so we will do everything to support them, see that they have an opportunity to do well, making sure that the kids will have best schools, also adult ESL classes to help them adjust. To help them assimilate into the community and get the skills to do the jobs that are available here.

Chitra :How would you summarize what your overall policy orientation would be as Governor? What are the top policies your administration would focus on?

Shannon :After September 11th, public safety must be a top priority. We can protect the public without infringing on personal freedoms. I proposed a five-point plan in December. We must develop a health care network to coordinate communication between DPH, health care providers, pharmacies, universities and the government. We should require background checks for flight school trainees, transporters of hazardous materials, and certain biotechnology workers. We have to create a state registry of facilities lawfully possessing anthrax or other biological agents. We must strengthen criminal penalties for terrorist activities. We should adopt my bill to establish safety assessment grants for public water supplies. I have proposed that $3 million be issued in grants to provide cities, towns, and water districts the means to assess the safety of public drinking facilities.

Other important issues for me are

 Reenergize the state's economy and attract good jobs to our state. Improve our public schools so that all children have access to the quality public education they need in order to pursue their dreams. Demand that state budgets that are on time, honest, fiscally responsible, and provide critical assistance to those who are most vulnerable. Reduce the cost of prescription drugs, and ensure that hospitals and nursing homes remain open so that everyone has access to quality medical care. Bring more accountability to state government and work hard to deliver efficient services to taxpayers. Protect our environment, preserve open space, and ensure clean air and drinking water. Ensure an adequate supply of affordable housing throughout Massachusetts by preserving existing units and creating new units where they are needed.

Chitra :Where do you stand on the MCAS test as a graduation requirement? How do you feel about bilingual education in public schools?

Shannon :Those are two big questions. I support high standards for schools, but I acknowledge the fact that MCAS has to be fair. I want to see the final test and see if there should be changes made. I think keeping the pressure on to improve the quality of instruction is most important.

Rather than abandon the high standards of MCAS, we need to work to improve it. I will be guided by the following: Teachers must be trained and provided with resources to prepare students for the MCAS. Ensure that the state frameworks, curriculum and MCAS test are aligned. Commit to Close the Achievement Gap. Students who have not done well on MCAS should have the opportunity to demonstrate their competency in other ways

Chitra :Quality of education is a perennial issue.  What would be your strategy for enhancing the quality of education in the State within the budgetary constraints that we apparently face?

Shannon :Smaller class sizes is one of the changes that I want to work towards when I am governor. I understand that that will cost more money so it may take a little bit of time to accomplish that goal. I think that we need to do a better job in teaching children how to read and the good news there is that there are several dollars that will be made available to us to ensure that every child gets excellent grounding in good reading skills. From Kindergarten onwards. There’s money coming from a recently enacted law called the ‘leave no child behind’  plan (that’s what President Bush calls it.) Ted Kennedy has been fighting very hard for this in the US senate. And it will bring over a hundred million in federal dollars coming back to our state and I will bring some portion of it to create a literacy institution where we ensure teaching reading skills to every single child in MA, if we can do a better job of focusing on literacy, the important building block of a well educated person, we will have more children doing well at schools. Also focusing on teacher training, making sure that we do better at training new teachers coming into the job, having teachers serve as mentors, will go a long way in enhancing the quality of education . Give teachers better teaching experience and give them more encouragement and enthusiasm for their important jobs.

Chitra :What are your views on a woman’s right to choose?

Shannon :I support a woman's right to choose, and as a state legislator, had a strong pro-choice voting record for eight years in the House and Senate. Having voted to protect the accessibility of abortion services for all women; I helped ensure passage of the Clinic Access Bill; supported efforts to create buffer zones around abortion clinics; and co -sponsored legislation to create funding for abortion counseling for victims of rape and incest.

Chitra :Where do you stand on the issue of same sex union?

Shannon :I support full and equal rights for gay & lesbian citizens, and believe that committed couples should be able to enter into civil unions and receive full benefits and protections in Massachusetts. I oppose the "defense of marriage" legislation as well as the constitutional amendment proposals that would forever deny these protections to the families of gay men and women. I believe that recognizing gay and lesbian families will strengthen

Chitra :Over and above policies and issues, who are you as a person?  What motivates you, personally?  What kind of books do your read?  Movies? Music? communities and families.

Shannon :I love reading, love to spend time with my family. Also enjoy traveling, golfing, skiing. ( Laughs) Of course I have not had much time in the last year to do any of that! One of my favorite books is ' Angela's ashes' by Frank Mc Court, I loved the trip my husband I made to Ireland after I read that book.

Chitra :Thank you for talking to Lokvani, Ms. O’Brien. Good Luck!

Shannon :Thank you.

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