[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 105 (Wednesday, July 23, 1997)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1489-E1490]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                10TH ANNIVERSARY OF SAY YES TO EDUCATION

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. CHAKA FATTAH

                            of pennsylvania

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, July 23, 1997

  Mr. FATTAH. Mr. Speaker, today I rise in honor of the 10th 
anniversary of a program that has made a dramatic difference in the 
lives of students in Philadelphia and two other cities, and that has 
helped our Nation focus attention on better ways to promote success for 
inner-city students.
  In June 1987, a trustee of the University of Pennsylvania, George 
Weiss and his former wife Diane, made an announcement at the Belmont 
Elementary School that changed the lives of 112 West Philadelphia 
students and launched a program that has become a national model for 
intervention in urban schools.
  Say Yes to Education began with a promise by the Weisses to pay 
complete costs for college or postsecondary training. However, they 
knew that more would be needed to ensure that the students would be 
prepared to take advantage of their promise. The Say Yes to Education 
Foundation was formed under the educational leadership of Dr. Norman 
Newberg, its executive director and Randall Sims, its senior project 
coordinator. The program provided counseling, tutoring, mentoring, and 
summer programs to enrich the cultural and intellectual lives of the 
student. Perhaps even more important was the personal involvement of 
the Weisses and the Say Yes staff in encouraging the students. On more 
than one occasion, George Weiss himself knocked on doors to personally 
urge students to reject negative influences and take education 
seriously. It's this kind of dedication that makes the Say Yes program 
a national example of true educational reform.
  Under Dr. Newberg's leadership, Say Yes is organized as a four-way 
partnership between sponsors, a college or university, the students and 
their families, and the public schools. The relationship with a college 
or university adds a significant dimension to the program because of 
the vast human and institutional resources which are available to be 
used in support of student progress. The university connection helps to 
spread information and ideas to other educators about what works.

[[Page E1490]]

  The program has grown to include over 300 students, including a class 
from the Harrity Elementary School in Philadelphia and students in 
Hartford, CT, and Cambridge, MA. To date 67 of the original Say Yes 
students have graduated from high school, with 19 matriculating at 4-
year colleges and 21 at 2-year colleges. This number far exceeds the 
expectations of educational experts for students from similar economic 
backgrounds.
  The stories of these students, dubbed the Belmont 112 by the 
Philadelphia Inquirer in periodic articles about the program, have 
touched the lives of many Philadelphians and inspired other sponsors to 
reach out to urban students.
  It is because the success of programs like Say Yes to Education, that 
I introduced the 21st Century Scholar Act, H.R. 777. This act would 
notify elementary school students at the poorest public schools in the 
country that they would be eligible for the maximum Federal Pell grant 
award if they complete their high school education and gain admission 
into a postsecondary institution. In addition, my legislation would 
make available tutoring and mentoring services to these students 
through the existing Federal TRIO programs. The 21st Century Scholars 
Act implements the efforts of successful private early intervention 
programs, such as Say Yes to Education, on a national scale.
  To mark the 10th anniversary of the Say Yes to Education Program, a 
reunion of student participants and sponsors will take place in 
Philadelphia on July 26, 1997.
  I am pleased to honor the original Belmont Say Yes to Education 
students by entering their names into the Congressional Record: Allen 
Alexander; Eric Alexander; Tanyell Alick; Dana Baynes; Jerell Baynes; 
Majovie Billups-Bland; Maurice Boone; Christopher Bradford; Mitchell 
Bronson; Shermika Brown; Walter Brown; Damion Caldwell; Tabitha Casper; 
Sekou Clark; David Cox-Sims; Kimberly Creamer; Zengo Daigre; Zeno 
Daigre; Jahleel Daniels.
  James Davis; Solomon Davis; Troy Davis; William Dorsey; Frank 
Duckett; Craig Dunston; Anita Edwards; Micah Ellison; Jalina Evans; 
Mark Ferguson; Vedia Fisher; Tolanda Fortune; Craig Freeman; Gregg 
Freeman; Joelena Fuller; Lamont Goings; Ayenna Gomez; Yasmeen Grantham; 
Steven Guilford; Antoinette Harper; Mack Harvey; Mildrianne Hatten; 
Jerwayne Haywood; Kenneth Hilliard; Charles Hollerway; Micah Holliday; 
Jermaine Horton; Nicole Huff; Carol Jackson; Eugene Jackson; Tamika 
Jackson; Carmen James; Aronda Jenkins; James Johnson; Ravenel Johnson; 
Crystal Jones; Chantel Jones-Akers; Marvette Leatherberry; Sherlina 
Leatherberry; Christopher Lee; Latasha Lighty; Nickia Little; Genise 
Mace; Cedric Mallory; Richard Matthews.
  Percy McKitthen; Charles Miles; Dellshon Miller; Sonny Miller; 
Vanessa Mitchell; Jarmaine Olliviere; William Payne; Ronald Pierce; 
Aaron Pitt; Shaheed Purnell; Joanne Randall; Nicole Randall; Kemeika 
Richardson; Rodana Robinson; Juanita Rollerson; Quentin Ross; Katrina 
Scruggs; Edwin Seals; Marc Seymour; Michael Shenoster; Harold Shields, 
Jr.; Orion Sistrunk; Tanisha Smalls; Cornell Smith; Jumar Smith; Larry 
Smith; Rodney Sowell; Janine Spruill; Dorothy Stewart; Jeremy Summers; 
Iva Supplee-Tate; Bradley Torrence; Horace Torrence; Montara Tyler; 
Kenya Walker; Shantee Washington; Bryant Webster; Pauline White; Kelly 
Whitehead; Eric Whitney; Bill Wilcox; David Williams; Paul Williams; 
Tamika Williams; Tashieka Williams; Theresa Williams; Marvin Wilson; 
Christopher Wood.
  I hope that all Members will take time to learn more about this 
important program and its successes as our Nation moves forward in its 
effort to revitalize education for all students.

                          ____________________