E 1044 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — Extensions of Remarks May 16, 1995

Then, in 1947, he ran for the U.S. Senate

to fill the unexpired term of Theodore Bilbo. In

today’s era of contracts and 100 and 500 day

timetables, I often think of John Stennis’ campaign promise from his first Senate campaign.

He pledged to ‘‘plow a straight furrow right

down to the end of my row.’’ Senator Stennis

kept that simple promise with the people of

Mississippi and plowed a straight furrow in the

U.S. Senate for 42 years.

He served during a time when many politicians grabbed headlines by fanning the flames

of prejudice and preying on the fears of the

vulnerable. However, Senator Stennis always

took the high road with integrity and courage.

He was the first Senate Democrat to stand up

to the fear of McCarthyism and was crucial in

bridging our country’s racial divide in the

1960’s.

He began his service in the Senate by working each day until the Senate recessed and

then studying at the Library of Congress until

it closed. He rose to serve as chairman of the

Armed Services Committee for 12 years, becoming one of the most influential voices in

our Nation’s military affairs during the Vietnam

war and for much of the cold war. Every

weapons system used in the 1991 Desert

Storm offensive was authorized and appropriated under the leadership of Senator Stennis.

He also served as chairman of the Appropriations Committee as well as the first chairman of the Senate’s Select Committee on

Standards and Conduct.

Widely respected for his integrity, diligence,

and judgment he was called upon time and

again to investigate sensitive political matters.

It became routine to refer to him as the ‘‘Conscience of the Senate.’’ To illustrate the bipartisan respect he engendered, President Nixon

looked to John Stennis’ reputation and integrity during the height of Watergate. When

President Nixon refused to turn over Watergate tapes to a special prosecutor, he offered

to have Senator Stennis listen to their content

and verify President Nixon’s summary.

Mississippians knew they had no greater

friend in Washington. Senator Stennis brought

economic development to my home of north

Mississippi through the Tennessee-Tombigbee

Waterway. In south Mississippi, he secured

the State’s largest employer, Ingall’s shipyard,

and brought about NASA’s testing facility for

rocket motors, the John C. Stennis Space

Center.

Senator Stennis retired from the Senate in

1989, having served eight Presidents from

President Truman to Reagan in a career in

which he would rise to President pro tempore

of the body he so revered. Upon his retirement, President Reagan announced that the

Nation’s newest nuclear powered aircraft carrier would be named the U.S.S. John C. Stennis. The U.S.S. John C. Stennis will join the

ranks in December of the U.S.S. Nimitz, Vinson, Eisenhower, Washington, Roosevelt, and

Lincoln.

After his retirement, Senator Stennis moved

to the Mississippi State University campus

from which he graduated in Starkville, the

home of the John C. Stennis Institute of Government and the John C. Stennis Center of

Public Service, created by Congress to train

young leaders.

When asked in the twilight of his career how

he would like to be remembered, with his

characteristic humility he responded, ‘‘I haven’t

thought about that a whole lot. You couldn’t

give me a finer compliment than just to say

‘He did his best.’ ’’ Senator Stennis’ unyielding

devotion to principle, character, and humility

produced one of the greatest statesman of the

20th century. Senator Stennis did his best and

for that my State of Mississippi and America

will always be grateful.

LOW-INCOME SCHOOL CHOICE

EDUCATION BILL

f

HON. DAVE WELDON OF FLORIDA

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Tuesday, May 16, 1995

Mr. WELDON of Florida. Mr. Speaker, today

I am introducing, with my good friend FRANK

RIGGS, the Low-Income School Choice Demonstration Act of 1995.

Mr. Speaker, in some parts of this great

country, the state of education continues to

decay—despite throwing more money at the

problem. The liberal solution is more money,

more bureaucracy, more regulation, and greater Federal intrusion into our schools.

I, and my colleagues joining me on this bill,

feel differently. We should focus on parental

choices, deregulation of classrooms, the acquisition of essential skills and knowledge; and

good, objective tests that tell us how our children are doing.

Education is subject to a great many debates and ideas. One of the those ideas is allowing parents to choose the school their children attend. Some may say we shouldn’t allow

the parents to decide what school might best

prepare their child for the world outside. But,

I believe it is essential that we allow our parents to determine what is best for their children.

In an article from the Washington Post this

past weekend, a high school student was very

surprised to find out she had scored perfectly

on her SAT test. This was despite knowing

she had incorrectly answered at least two

questions. How could this happen? Well, currently the College Board, the organization that

administers the SAT, is recentering the scores

to bring the average back up to 500 points. It

is a sad commentary on the state of our Nation’s educational system when we have to

lower the standards of education in order for

our students to score well on their college entrance tests. This must stop. We must better

educate our children.

Breaking down old, outdated barriers and

confronting the new paradigm of change and

innovation has been the hallmark of this Congress. The first 100 days of this Congress

brought a tremendous amount of change. The

primary thrust of all the ideas that have been

circulating is to reduce the role of Government

and empower the American people to make

their own decision about their lives. The

Weldon-Riggs Low-Income School Choice

Demonstration Act of 1995 is an innovative

and creative way of changing the status quo

in the debate about education reform and education choice for all Americans.

This demonstration project is a tiny step, but

a step nonetheless, toward change and a better educational future for our most valuable

asset, our children.

A good education is a key ingredient in ending the cycle of poverty that entraps so many

of our Nation’s children. This bill will liberate

the parents of low-income children to choose

a school that meets the educational needs of

their children.

Improved education is essential for our Nation’s economic vitality. Our increasingly competitive global economy demands a well-educated work force, and this bill will serve as a

catalyst for improved education.

In 1986, almost 94 percent of high school

seniors were unable to solve multistep mathematical problems or use basic algebra. In fact,

a 1994 survey by the Carnegie Foundation

found that few college professors feel U.S. undergraduates are prepared for higher education: only 20 percent of professors believe

undergraduates have adequate written and

oral communications skills and only 15 percent

feel undergraduates are sufficiently skilled in

math and qualitative reasoning.

As for literacy, most young Americans are

functioning at rudimentary levels: enough to

get through the day perhaps, but not enough

to sustain a strong democracy, a competitive

economy, and a vibrant culture. According to

the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, functional illiteracy costs U.S. businesses $300 billion in

lost productivity annually.

Our children need the opportunity to pursue

a good education. If this educational opportunity is outside their school district, they

should have the chance to take advantage of

it and find their American dream through quality education.

Last November, the American people sent

me and many others to Congress to change

the way the Government works. School choice

is one step toward changing the attitudes of

the Federal Government regarding education.

Under the Weldon-Riggs education bill, the

Secretary of Education would review applications from school districts around the Nation

and select 10 to 20 school districts to participate in the school choice demonstration

project. Children who are eligible for the Federal School Lunch Program could participate,

and their parents would receive certificates to

use at any public, private, or charter school in

the area.

Two $5 million grants would be available to

the most needy districts. They would be targeted to those communities with highest number of low-income children. The remaining

grants would be in varying amounts up to $3

million.

Parents could use the money to send their

children to public, including charter schools, or

private, including sectarian, schools of their

choice. The money could be used to pay reasonable transportation costs and would be limited to the average per child expenditure in the

local public school.

The Weldon-Riggs school choice demonstration bill would cover 3 years, with an initial cost of just $30 million. Each participating

school district must submit evaluation information to the Comptroller General for review.

Data from the demonstration project would be

studied after the 3-year period and a report

would be submitted to Congress.

Earlier this year, Secretary Henry Cisneros

of HUD said, ‘‘Low- and moderate-income

families should have greater power to make

decisions about their lives, and government

should support their quest for self-sufficiency.’’

This same principal should apply to education.

These low-income families should have greater power to make decisions about their lives,

that’s what this bill does.
May 16, 1995 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — Extensions of Remarks E 1045

Mr. Speaker, I urge more of my colleagues

to sign on in support of this demonstration

project and put a little hope and innovation

into our education system.

TRIBUTE TO JIM GRANT

f

HON. SANDER M. LEVIN

OF MICHIGAN

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Tuesday, May 16, 1995

Mr. LEVIN. Mr. Speaker, on May 17 the

Overseas Development Council will honor

James P. Grant. It will do so at a dinner in

Washington to commemorate its 25th anniversary and will present awards to several who

have chaired ODC. Jim Grant will be honored

in memoriam.

If any word could characterize Jim Grant’s

distinguished career, and none adequately

can, it might be dedication. Jim cared passionately about all the world’s people and devoted

his life to his dream of everyone on Earth having a real chance to enjoy its bounty.

Whether one knew Jim Grant during his

early years in beginning to help others, his

work in the U.S. Government trying to develop

American assistance that would really matter

to people in Third World nations, his days providing leadership as head of the ODC, or his

glorious tenure as executive director of

UNICEF, the conclusion was the same for so,

so many of us. There was no one else quite

like Jim—in his combination of imagination,

enthusiasm, drive, perseverance, intelligence,

and interpersonal skills.

He simply would never give up.

Jim Grant would understand the impetus in

our Nation to focus on improving the opportunity for the millions of our citizens who have

seen their standard of living stagnate over the

last decade, and in many cases decline. At

the same time he would not believe that, in

doing so, our Nation would want to turn its

back on the plight of millions elsewhere. He

believed too much in the basic decency of the

people of this country, and in this sense he

was in all of his bones and in his fundamental

attitude very much an archetypical American.

Literally, there are hundreds of thousands, if

not millions, of children alive today because

Jim Grant lived. Could anyone ask for more of

his or her life?

Jim met more of the people he cared about

than do most, but most of them he never met.

But he could envisage them vividly, as if part

of his own family, to whom he was so close

and from whom sprang much of his humanity.

I had the privilege of working with Jim, also

of seeing him preside over many a meeting.

There was no one who could better stimulate

a diverse group to work, sometimes struggle

to a constructive conclusion—not infrequently

the very one he had in mind from the very beginning. As the ODC notes his untimely death

by commemorating his life, many who know

him well join in and innumerable others who

did not know him directly but benefited from

his work would do so, if they could.

HONORING THE NEW YORK PUBLIC

LIBRARY

HON. ELIOT L. ENGEL OF NEW YORK

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Tuesday, May 16, 1995

Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, the New York

Public Library, one of the Nation’s most treasured cultural institutions, and the only library in

the world combining a preeminent research

collection and a comprehensive system of

neighborhood branch libraries, is celebrating

its 100th birthday.

For 100 years, the New York Public Library

has been a cornerstone of equal opportunity

by providing free and open access to information without distinction based upon income, religion, nationality, or other human condition.

The only criterion for admission is curiosity.

Through the 82 branch libraries and 4 research centers, the Library serves more than

10 million people each year. The research libraries, which include the Center for the Humanities, the Schomberg Center for Research

in Black Culture, the Library for the Performing

Arts, and the soon-to-be-opened Science, Industry, and Business Library, contain vast

treasures which provide researchers, scholars,

and students access to the accumulated wisdom of the world.

However, it is the neighborhood branches

that are the cornerstone of many New York

City neighborhoods. They provide a safe and

inviting gathering place for the young, the elderly, and, in fact, for everyone to learn and

enrich their lives. The branch libraries reach

far beyond the traditional lending role usually

associated with neighborhood libraries. The

many branch libraries that are located in my

congressional district play an extremely important role in the education and socialization of

the residents of Bronx County.

I join with my constituents in recognizing the

New York Public Library on the 100th anniversary of its founding.

TRIBUTE TO PETER CLENDENIN

fHON. THOMAS J. BLILEY, JR. OF VIRGINIA

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Tuesday, May 16, 1995

Mr. BLILEY. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to

commend and pay tribute to a good friend and

servant to the people of the Commonwealth of

Virginia, Mr. Peter Clendenin. On June 30 of

this year, Peter will end more than 12 years of

service as president of the Virginia Health

Care Association, a nonprofit association that

represents assisted living, nursing facility, and

subacute care providers throughout the State

of Virginia.

For the 3 years preceding his tenure at the

Virginia Health Care Association, Peter served

the Commonwealth as assistant secretary of

human resources where he oversaw the development of the budgets for 15 State agencies responsible for implementing security,

manpower development, mental health services, and rehabilitation services for the people

of Virginia.

Peter began his service to the Commonwealth in 1975 as a senior legislative analyst

with the Virginia Joint Legislative Audit and

Review Commission where he worked for 4

years as project director of program evaluations.

Mr. Speaker, it gives me great pleasure to

share with my colleagues the many contributions Peter Clendenin has made to the people

and government of Virginia, and to wish him

well on his future endeavors.

CONGRATULATORY REMARKS FOR

MISS CHELSI SMITH, MISS UNIfVERSE 1995

HON. KEN BENTSEN OF TEXAS

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Tuesday, May 16, 1995

Mr. BENTSEN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to

recognize Miss Chelsi Smith who was

crowned Miss Universe on May 12, 1995, in

Namibia, South Africa. Miss Smith has become an inspirational figure to young people

across the world.

Chelsi Smith represented the State of Texas

at the Miss USA competition in 1995. Upon

her award, she continued her duties in South

Africa where she represented the United

States of America in the Miss Universe competition. Of the 82 contestants Chelsi Smith, of

Deer Park, TX, has become the sixth Miss

USA to be honored with the title of Miss Universe.

Miss Smith, a 21-year-old woman, was

raised in Deer Park, TX, were she graduated

from Deer Park High School in 1991. She is

a sophomore at San Jacinto Community College, were she intends to complete her studies

in early childhood education after fulfilling her

reign as Miss Universe.

Chelsi has worked to raise the awareness of

racial issues and has served as a motivational

spokesperson to the youth of America.

I congratulate Miss Chelsi Smith on her

award of Miss Universe. I wish her well as she

continues to represent the United States of

America and the State of Texas. I am very

proud that a fellow Texan has so well represented our Nation. It is with great pride that

I extend my congratulations to Miss Smith for

her important victory.

MARGARET MONTERO-LEADERSHIP IN THE PORTUGUESEfAMERICAN COMMUNITY

HON. FORTNEY PETE STARK OF CALIFORNIA

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Tuesday, May 16, 1995

Mr. STARK. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to

recognize Mrs. Margaret Montero, the supreme president of the Associacao Protectora

Uniao Madeirence do Estado da California

[APUMEC] a fraternal organization in California’s 13th Congressional District. On June 20,

1995, she will finish her term in office.

The APUMEC is a fraternal benefit society

which was started in Oakland, CA, in 1913, by

several men from the island of Madeira, Portugal. The purpose of the society is to assist

any member who might be ill or in need. If a

member passes away, the society provides

assistance to the member’s family. Since

1913, the society has grown in membership to