[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 62 (Tuesday, May 13, 1997)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E897]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          AN ACHIEVABLE DREAM

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. ROBERT C. SCOTT

                              of virginia

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, May 13, 1997

  Mr. SCOTT. Mr. Speaker, I rise to call my colleagues' attention to 
the remarkable work of An Achievable Dream, a true success story in my 
district. It was 5 years ago when Walter Segaloff founded the An 
Achievable Dream Academy for academically at-risk students, many of 
whom have demonstrated that they are ready and willing to learn, if 
just given the proper environment. Sadly, their home environment is too 
often not conducive to learning. That's where An Achievable Dream, or 
AAD, steps in.
  By instilling a love of learning and enabling each child to develop a 
personal, achievable dream leading to academic and subsequent 
professional success, AAD puts its arm around the shoulder of these 
kids who may otherwise be headed for academic and social failure as a 
result of poverty, family problems, or low self-esteem. Many of these 
children have been stigmatized, seeing only what they can't achieve. 
But Walter Segaloff and the others who direct AAD have shown them a 
different path, one toward personal success and price.
  AAD's achievements are based on the combined efforts of dedicated 
individuals, who provide the vision and hard work, and local 
corporations and businesses, who have provided much-needed and 
appreciated monetary support. It is this community interest and 
assistance which helps set AAD apart, making it a role model for the 
rest of this Nation as we search for ways to improve education.
  Reader's Digest magazine recently awarded AAD with their American 
Heroes in Education Award, a fitting tribute to a great program. This 
is only the most recent award garnered by AAD: The program has also 
been honored by a joint award sponsored by Business Week magazine and 
the McGraw-Hill Educational Publishing Group, in cooperation with the 
American Association of School Administrators, for educational 
innovation.
  I would like to add my words of appreciation and thanks today to An 
Achievable Dream and the dramatic contributions the program has made to 
the Newport News community in Virginia, and to the Nation as a whole.

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