Pelosi tweets for the first time

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) tweeted for the first time this weekend before the commencement ceremonies at Cornell University, where she addressed the graduating Class of 2010. 

The Speaker posted on Twitter after she received a signed jersey from the Cornell basketball team, which made Sweet 16 for the first time in school history this season. The last time the Ivy League had a team advance to the regional semifinals was 31 years ago.

Pelosi tweeted on Saturday:

Thx @Cornell_Univ
for a signed Big Red jersey by Sweet 16 team! I deliver convocation
later today http://twitpic.com/1s4vpn

Pelosi — the top House member — has had a Twitter account for some time, but it only became active this weekend. It has 487 followers and has only tweeted twice.

Her post comes on the heels of an effort on behalf of House Democrats to boost their presence on social media sites such as Twitter, Facebook and YouTube. The push is called the “Member Online All-Star Competition.”

The California Democrat touted her post during her address to the audience of parents, relatives and well-wishers at Cornell’s Schoellkopf Field.

“Today, I was so proud to receive a Big Red jersey signed by the basketball team that I immediately tweeted a picture of it to the world,” she said.