[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 95 (Tuesday, July 8, 1997)]
[Senate]
[Page S7022]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    TRIBUTE TO DR. RUTH WRIGHT HAYRE

 Mr. SANTORUM. Mr. President, I rise today to honor Dr. Ruth 
Wright Hayre upon her retirement as president of the Philadelphia 
School District's Board of Education.
  Dr. Hayre is a remarkable woman whose successful career was built on 
the strong work ethic she developed early in life. At the age of 15, 
Dr. Hayre graduated with honors from West Philadelphia High School. 
After winning the mayor's scholarship to the University of 
Pennsylvania, she earned both her undergraduate and graduate degrees.
  Once Ruth completed her studies, she began a distinguished career in 
the field of education. Dr. Hayre's teaching career began at Arkansas 
State College, but eventually, Ruth returned to Philadelphia to teach 
English at Sulzberger Junior High School. At William Penn High School, 
she was promoted from teacher to vice principal and then to principal. 
Dr. Hayre's achievements are even more impressive considering that she 
was the very first African-American teacher in the Philadelphia school 
system, the first African-American high school teacher, and the first 
African-American principal of a Philadelphia senior high school. Still, 
this was only the beginning. Ruth rose to the position of 
superintendent of district four. Once again, her list of firsts grew, 
since she was the first African-American superintendent of a 
Philadelphia public school. On December 2, 1985, she received an 
appointment to the Philadelphia Board of Education. Five years later, 
Dr. Hayre was unanimously elected president of the board--becoming the 
first female to hold this position. In 1991, she was reelected as 
president of the board. Moreover, she has taught a course in urban 
education and administration at the University of Pennsylvania. After 
years of dedication to the children of Philadelphia, she is retiring 
this year.
  In addition to her commitment to education, Ruth has served her 
community in numerous other ways. She has served on the boards of many 
prestigious organizations including Blue Cross, the Philadelphia 
Council of Boy Scouts, the Afro-American Historical and Cultural 
Museum, the Educational Alumni of the University of Pennsylvania, and 
most currently, the Dr. Ruth W. Hayre Scholarship Fund. Dr. Hayre is 
also actively involved in religious, civic, and community service 
organizations such as the Northeasterners, the Coalition of 100 Black 
Women, and the Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority.
  Dr. Hayre has received numerous awards and commendations for her 
contributions to the field of education. For instance, the Governor of 
Pennsylvania honored her as a Distinguished Daughter of Pennsylvania 
for establishing the Wings to Excellence Program at William Penn High 
School. Likewise, she received the Philadelphia Award for her efforts 
to provide quality education for all. The University of Pennsylvania 
and Temple University have each granted her honorary doctoral degrees. 
Similarly, she received national recognition for establishing a fund at 
Temple University to provide college tuition for 119 graduates of the 
sixth grade classes of the Kenderton and Wright Schools who complete 
high school and are admitted to an accredited college. All of her 
achievements notwithstanding, Dr. Hayre once remarked that her greatest 
accomplishment was, ``Being a wife, a mother, and a grandmother.''
  Mr. President, Dr. Hayre is truly a great American. She has dedicated 
her life to one of the single most important vocations--educating young 
people. I ask my colleagues to join me in honoring Dr. Ruth W. Hayre 
for her life-long accomplishments and in extending the Senate's best 
wishes for continued happiness as she retires.

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