[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 44 (Wednesday, March 27, 1996)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3011-S3012]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          NEAL BERTE'S 20 YEARS AT BIRMINGHAM-SOUTHERN COLLEGE

  Mr. HEFLIN. Mr. President, Dr. Neal R. Berte recently celebrated his 
20th year as president of my undergraduate alma mater, Birmingham-
Southern College. He has been, and continues to be, an outstanding 
spokesman, administrator, and scholarly leader of one of the Nation's 
very best liberal arts colleges.
  A native of Ohio, Dr. Berte and his wife, Anne, have four grown 
children and two grandchildren. He obtained his bachelor's, master's, 
and doctoral degrees all at the University of Cincinnati. A member of 
Phi Beta Kappa honor society, he also holds honorary doctoral degrees 
from Birmingham-Southern and Cincinnati. He served as an associate 
professor at the University of Alabama from 1970 through 1974 and as 
the university's vice president for educational development from 1974 
until 1976. He also served as dean of the university's New College from 
1970 until 1976 when, on February 1, he became president of Birmingham-
Southern College.
  Dr. Berte is recognized as one of the most accomplished, successful 
educational professionals of our time. Under his stewardship, 
Birmingham-Southern's endowment has increased from $14 million to $82 
million and its student population, made up of some of the brightest 
high school graduates in the State and Nation, has more than doubled. 
Acceptance of its graduates to medical and law schools is among the 
highest in the South and its outstanding faculty has increased by 66 
percent during his tenure as president. He has also overseen the 
construction of eight new campus buildings.
  The campus of Birmingham-Southern, known as The Hilltop, has an 
atmosphere of learning and of intellectual achievement. This atmosphere 
is reflected in the fact that the school is consistently recognized as 
one of the top national liberal arts colleges by such prestigious 
publications as U.S News and World Report, National Review, Money 
Magazine, the Insider's Guide to the Colleges, Southern Magazine, and 
the Princeton Review.
  The National Review's College Guide has said, ``An ambiance of 
graciousness, a tradition of academic excellence, and close student-
faculty relations have made Birmingham-Southern College one of the 
standout liberal arts colleges in the South * * * '' U.S. News calls it 
a ``  * * * trailblazer for higher education of the future.'' These 
kinds of accolades are a direct reflection of the school president's 
strong commitment, total dedication, and superb leadership skills.
  Birmingham-Southern College's graduates of all ages speak often of 
the deep pride and affection they have for their alma mater. Indeed, 
the school enjoys an uncommonly strong level of support among its loyal 
and generous alumni. Even those of us who were students there long 
before Dr. Berte's arrival 20 years ago have enjoyed a renewed sense of 
pride in Birmingham-Southern since he became president.
  Birmingham-Southern does not have a football program, but its 
basketball team has won two National Association of Intercollegiate 
Athletics [NAIA] championships in the past 7 years, most recently in 
1995. Its baseball team has advanced to the NAIA World Series on three 
occasions.
  Dr. Berte's many honors and awards include his induction into the 
Alabama Academy of Honor; his selection as Birmingham's Citizen of the 
Year; his selection as one of the 100 Most Effective College Presidents 
by the Council for Advancement and Support of Education; and his 
recognition as one of America's Leaders in Higher Education by the 
American Council on Education.
  Birmingham's morning newspaper, the Post-Herald, carried a front-page 
feature on his life and career on February 6 and an editorial on his 
tenure at Birmingham-Southern the next day. I ask unanimous consent 
that the text of these articles be printed in the Record.
  I want to commend and congratulate Dr. Neal Berte for his impeccable 
leadership, clear vision, and total dedication to the field of higher 
education in general and to Birmingham-Southern in particular. As a 
proud alumnus of the college, I have no doubt that his next 20 years 
there will be just as productive and vibrant as his first. It could not 
be in more capable hands.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows;

            [From the Birmingham Post-Herald, Feb. 6, 1996]

                    Berte Looks to the Future at BSC

                         (By Michaelle Chapman)

       When you ask Neal R. Berte about his future, expect him to 
     talk about his goals for Birmingham-Southern College.
       Berte celebrated his 20th anniversary as president there 
     Thursday.
       He has had plenty of opportunities to go elsewhere but 
     said, ``I feel sort of content.''
       That's not to say Berte has no goals for the small liberal 
     arts school he helped build into one of the best of its kind 
     in the nation.
       But he really can't envision a job offer good enough to 
     persuade him to leave the Hilltop and the city he has come to 
     call home.
       At 55, Berte is a slim and energetic man who puts those in 
     his company at ease with his friendly but earnest manner.
       While many college presidents confine their interests to 
     campus, Berte's voice is heard far beyond the gates of 
     Birmingham-Southern.
       Berte is an example to his students, whom he expects to get 
     involved in the community.
       He's chairman of Leadership Birmingham and the Birmingham 
     Business Leadership Group, made up of the chief executive 
     officers of 45 of Birmingham's largest businesses.
       His past positions have included chairman of the Birmingham 
     Area Chamber of Commerce and campaign chairman and president 
     of the United Way of Central Alabama. He's also been 
     Birmingham's Citizen of the Year and been inducted into the 
     city's Distinguished Gallery of Honor.
       Birmingham-Southern students follow in Berte's footsteps in 
     their amount of community involvement. ``Every year, over 
     half of our students and faculty are out in service to 
     others,'' Berte said.
       ``We've been here long enough that I've seen them go out 
     and make a difference in terms of their careers but also make 
     a difference as far as their civic involvements, in the life 
     of the communities where they live, in the life of their 
     churches.''
       Berte said he gets to know the names of most students. ``We 
     work at trying to treat each student as an individual. . . . 
     I think somehow knowing someone's name does make a 
     difference, so I work at it,'' he said.
       Students who get up early to exercise can find Berte in the 
     college's old gym at 6 a.m. either running or doing weight 
     training. He's in his office by about 8:15 a.m. and spends 
     many evenings at on-campus functions or events around town.
       Ed LaMonte, a Birmingham-Southern professor who is on leave 
     while serving as interim superintendent of Birmingham 
     schools, said Berte is an excellent example of leadership.
       ``He has simply stepped forward time after time to play a 
     very important role in what is in the best interest of the 
     city. ... He has, on occasions, played a role that has cost 
     the college a bit in terms of support but has served the 
     community well,'' LaMonte said.
       ``He's the personification of the word `leader,' '' said 
     Don Newton, president of the Chamber of Commerce. ``I have 
     never seen him tackle anything that he didn't complete the 
     task.''
       Herbert A. Sklenar, chairman of the Birmingham-Southern 
     Board of Trustees, believes Berte's involvement in the 
     community is part of the reason why the school is doing so 
     well.
       ``He took an institution that had a great tradition and 
     history but was faltering somewhat and has turned it around 
     and, by all kinds of measurements, turned it into a 
     success,'' Sklenar said.
       Twenty years ago, Berte said, ``There were some large 
     problems . . . that probably were reflective of many colleges 
     and universities across the country. . . . We had a declining 
     enrollment. We were operating on a deficit budget. I think 
     it's fair to say the general public did not have a real 
     positive attitude about the value of liberal arts 
     education.''
       But the trustees were committed, the faculty was 
     outstanding and the students were capable, he said.
       Berte pulled all those forces together and began improving 
     the school, which had abut 827 students. Today, 1,562 
     students are enrolled at Birmingham-Southern.
       Other things are changing at Birmingham-Southern as well--
     much of it as part of the Toward the 21st Century Campaign, a 
     $64 million fundraising effort that began last May. Pledges 
     for $46 million have been received so far.
       Berte is proud that the endowment has grown to $82.2 
     million from $14 million.
       In the past few years, Birmingham-Southern has gotten 
     considerable national recognition from magazines, 
     publications and foundations that rate colleges and 
     universities.
       ``That is good for Birmingham-Southern . . . but I'd like 
     to believe it also is good for Birmingham and for Alabama,'' 
     Berte said.

[[Page S3012]]



            [From the Birmingham Post-Herald, Feb. 7, 1996]

                         20 Years of Leadership

       Twenty years ago, the future looked dim for many small, 
     private liberal arts colleges. Declining enrollments and 
     troubled financial conditions forced many such schools out of 
     existence. Others survived by abandoning much of their 
     distinctiveness through merger into other colleges and 
     universities or becoming taxpayer-funded institutions. People 
     were even questioning whether a liberal arts education still 
     had any value.
       Among the colleges in trouble was Birmingham-Southern 
     College. Enrollment was down significantly, the college had a 
     budgetary deficit and the college presidency had changed 
     hands several times in a very short period.
       Then, on Feb. 1, 1976, Neal Berte became college president. 
     Under his leadership, the Methodist institution enhanced what 
     were still strong academic programs, rebuilt its finances and 
     reversed the erosion of a tradition of community involvement.
       If Berte had done nothing more in the past 20 years than 
     restore Birmingham-Southern's standing as one of the best 
     liberal arts colleges in this part of the country, he would 
     deserve high praise. But as anybody who follows public life 
     in this community must know, he has done much more.
       There is hardly a facet of civic life that has not been 
     affected--for the better--by Berte. He holds or has held 
     chairmanships in several organizations. But even more 
     important has been his ability to bring other leaders and 
     potential leaders together in ways that improve Birmingham 
     for all of us. He has been a much-needed catalyst for change.
       Anybody seeking an example of what being a leader means 
     need look no farther than the Birmingham-Southern hilltop 
     campus and the office of Neal Berte.

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