Statement From Chancellor Lester W. Young, Jr., the Board of Regents, and Commissioner Betty A. Rosa on the 25th Anniversary of September 11, 2001

"Twenty-five years ago, our nation, and New York in particular, was forever changed by the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. Today, we remember the nearly 3,000 lives taken that day, as well as the more than 9,000 individuals who have since died from conditions linked to 9/11 exposure. We honor the extraordinary courage of the first responders and everyday New Yorkers who ran toward danger to help others, and we recognize all those who continue to carry the physical and emotional consequences of that day.

We also honor the educators who faced an unimaginable responsibility in the hours and days that followed. In classrooms across New York, teachers, counselors, school leaders, and staff comforted frightened students, helped young people make sense of the incomprehensible, and provided stability and reassurance at a moment of profound uncertainty. Their compassion and steadiness reflected the very best of the education profession.

That same spirit of service was demonstrated by countless licensed professionals across New York, including many of the health and mental health professionals whose professions are overseen by the State Education Department's Office of the Professions. Physicians, nurses, psychologists, social workers, and others responded in the immediate aftermath and continued to care for survivors, families, first responders, and communities in the difficult days and years that followed. Their service remains an enduring part of the story of September 11.

As September 11 moves further into history, fewer of today's students have a personal connection to that day. That makes our responsibility to teach its history all the more important. Students should understand not only what happened on September 11, but also the lives that were lost, the heroism and sacrifice that followed, and the ways those events shaped our state, our nation, and our world.

Through education, we preserve the memory of those who came before us and ensure that the lessons of September 11 are not lost to time. By teaching them with care, honesty, and reverence, we honor those whose lives were lost or forever changed, while helping future generations understand their responsibility to remember, learn, and carry those lessons forward.

On this 25th anniversary, may we never forget those we lost, remain grateful to those who served and sacrificed, and recommit ourselves to building a future defined not by the hatred that caused such devastation, but by the courage, compassion, unity, and humanity that emerged in response."