Whereas Stephen Joel Trachtenberg has served since 1988 as
the 15th president of The George Washington University;
Whereas Stephen Joel Trachtenberg served as the third
president of the University of Hartford in Hartford, Connecticut, from 1977 to
1988;
Whereas Stephen Joel Trachtenberg, a native of Brooklyn,
New York, was an accomplished author, scholar, and educator, and has earned the
respect and admiration of his colleagues, peers, and students;
Whereas Stephen Joel Trachtenberg earned a bachelor of
arts degree from Columbia University in 1959, a juris doctor degree from Yale
University in 1962, and a master of public administration degree from Harvard
University in 1966;
Whereas Stephen Joel Trachtenberg was selected as a
Winston Churchill Traveling Fellow for study in Oxford, England, in
1968;
Whereas Stephen Joel Trachtenberg was celebrated by the
Connecticut Region of Hadassah with the Myrtle Wreath Award in 1982, was
presented with The Mt. Scopus Award from Hebrew University in Jerusalem in
1984, and received the Human Relations Award from the National Conference of
Christians and Jews in 1987;
Whereas Stephen Joel Trachtenberg was honored with the
Distinguished Public Service Award from the Connecticut Bar Association in
1988, and was recognized by the Hartford branch of the National Association for
the Advancement of Colored People for his contributions to the education of
minority students;
Whereas Stephen Joel Trachtenberg received the
International Salute Award in honor of Martin Luther King, Jr. in 1992, and the
Hannah G. Solomon Award from the National Council of Jewish Women;
Whereas Stephen Joel Trachtenberg was awarded the John Jay
Award for Outstanding Professional Achievement in 1995 by Columbia University,
the Newcomen Society Award, and the Spirit of Democracy Award from the American
Jewish Congress;
Whereas Stephen Joel Trachtenberg received an honorary
doctor of medicine degree from the Odessa State Medical University in Ukraine
in 1996, the Distinguished Service Award from the American Association of
University Administrators, and the B’nai B’rith Humanitarian Award;
Whereas Stephen Joel Trachtenberg received the Department
of State Secretary’s Open Forum Distinguished Public Service Award in 1997, and
the Grand Cross, the highest honor of the Scottish Rite of Freemasonry;
Whereas Stephen Joel Trachtenberg Day
was
declared by resolution of the Council of the District of Columbia on January
22, 1998, in honor of his commitments to minority students, scholarship
programs, public school partnerships, and community service;
Whereas Stephen Joel Trachtenberg was honored by Boston
University in 1999, where he previously served as a vice president and as an
academic dean, with an honorary doctor of humane letters degree;
Whereas Stephen Joel Trachtenberg received the Tree of
Life Award from the Jewish National Fund;
Whereas Stephen Joel Trachtenberg was named a
Washingtonian of the Year 2000 by Washingtonian Magazine, was decorated as a
Grand Officier Du Wissam Al Alaoui by King Mohammed VI of Morocco in 2000, and
was awarded the Order of St. John of Jerusalem, Knight Grand Cross for
Distinguished Service to Freemasonry and Humanity;
Whereas Stephen Joel Trachtenberg received honorary doctor
of laws degrees from Southern Connecticut State University, the University of
New Haven, Mount Vernon College, and Richmond College in London;
Whereas Stephen Joel Trachtenberg was named a Fellow of
the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and was awarded the Department of
the Treasury’s Medal of Merit;
Whereas Stephen Joel Trachtenberg received the
Humanitarian Award from the Albert B. Sabin Institute, and the District of
Columbia Business Leader of the Year Award from the District of Columbia
Chamber of Commerce;
Whereas Stephen Joel Trachtenberg performed public service
as an attorney with the Atomic Energy Commission, as an aide to former Indiana
Representative John Brademas, and as a special assistant at the Department of
Health, Education, and Welfare;
Whereas Stephen Joel Trachtenberg authored
Reflections on Higher Education
, published in 2002,
Thinking Out Loud
, published in 1998, and Speaking His
Mind
, published in 1994;
Whereas Stephen Joel Trachtenberg serves on the boards of
the Chief of Naval Operations Executive Panel and the International Association
of University Presidents, and as a member of the Council on Foreign
Relations;
Whereas Stephen Joel Trachtenberg, as president of The
George Washington University, opened new buildings for the School of Business
and the Elliott School of International Affairs and a new hospital, and added
the Mount Vernon Campus, formerly the Mount Vernon College for Women, to the
university;
Whereas Stephen Joel Trachtenberg, as president of The
George Washington University, created 5 new schools, the School of Public
Health and Health Services, the School of Public Policy and Public
Administration, the College of Professional Studies, the Graduate School of
Political Management, and the School of Media and Public Affairs;
Whereas Stephen Joel Trachtenberg, as president of The
George Washington University, reinvented
the university’s
position and positive reputation as Washington, DC’s center of
scholarship;
Whereas Stephen Joel Trachtenberg will continue, after
retiring as the third-longest-serving president of The George Washington
University, as University Professor of Public Service and President Emeritus;
and
Whereas Stephen Joel Trachtenberg and his wife, Francine
Zorn Trachtenberg, have 2 sons, Adam and Ben: Now, therefore, be it
That the Senate—
(1)honors and
salutes the accomplishments of Stephen Joel Trachtenberg and recognizes his
deeds throughout his 19 years of service as president of The George Washington
University in Washington, DC;
(2)recognizes the
accomplishments and achievements of Stephen Joel Trachtenberg in higher
education, as an author, as an attorney, and as a public official; and
(3)based upon his
service, extends its appreciation to Stephen Joel Trachtenberg in recognition
of his retirement as president of The George Washington University.