[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 51 (Friday, April 19, 1996)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E582]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      IN HONOR OF DR. HENRY PONDER

                                 ______


                            HON. BOB CLEMENT

                              of tennessee

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, April 18, 1996

  Mr. CLEMENT. Mr. Speaker, it is an honor and a privilege for me to 
pay tribute to one of Nashville's favorite citizens, Dr. Henry Ponder. 
Dr. Ponder is retiring from his position as President of Fisk 
University shortly, and he will be missed at that fine institution and 
in the Nashville community more than words can say.
  I am certain, however, that we will not find Dr. Ponder resting on 
his laurels. In fact, he will be coming to Washington to head an 
organization whose mission is to further the cause of minority higher 
education. I look forward to having Henry and his lovely wife Eunice as 
neighbors in our Nation's Capitol. I am certain he will continue to 
make all of us very proud.
  I have had the great pleasure over the years to interact 
professionally with Dr. Ponder on several occasions. Most recently, he 
came to Washington and we both testified in front of the House 
Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Lands in support of 
legislation I introduced that would provide much-needed monetary 
support for the restoration of historic buildings on the campuses of 
America's Historically Black Colleges and Universities. As a college 
president, Dr. Ponder has always attended to the needs of every aspect 
of university life. Not only was he responsible for eliminating a $4 
million debt at Fisk, he also staged an extremely successful 5-year, 25 
million capital campaign that revitalized and reenergized the school.
  By the same token, Dr. Ponder realized the importance of obtaining 
funds to restore badly deteriorating buildings, such as Administration 
Hall, whose history and significance are an embodiment of all that Fisk 
stands for. The health of the complete university--from fundraising to 
student recruitment to building maintenance to school spirit--is Dr. 
Ponder's mission. By all accounts, he is leaving Fisk University in a 
state of wonderful health.
  Dr. Ponder is a native of Oklahoma. He received his Bachelor of 
Science from Langston University, his Masters Degree from Oklahoma 
State University and his Ph.D. from Ohio State University. Prior to 
becoming president of Fisk, Henry Ponder served in various academic and 
administrative positions at universities throughout the Southeastern 
United States: president of Benedict College in Columbia, SC; vice 
president and dean of the College of Alabama A&M University; chairman 
of the department of agribusiness and assistant professor of that 
department at Virginia State College in Petersburg, VA.
  Henry Ponder is also an economist of national and international 
renown. He has served as a consultant for and on special assignment to 
the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, Philadelphia National Bank, Chase 
Manhattan Bank, the Irving Trust Co. and Omaha National Bank. Dr. 
Ponder also serves on the Bishop Desmond Tutu Southern Africa Refugee 
Scholarship Fund committee. In 1986, he was chosen as one of the ``One 
Hundred Most Effective College Presidents in the United States.''
  On behalf of all Nashvillians, Dr. Ponder, thank you for all you have 
done to improve the quality of life at Fisk and in the community. 
People with your dedication and energy are rare indeed, and those of us 
who have had the pleasure of working with you can only consider 
ourselves blessed for the lessons you have taught us and the example 
you have been. You have left an outstanding legacy of growth and 
achievement that will stand for decades to come. We wish you well in 
your new career. You will be missed.

                          ____________________