[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 129 (Thursday, September 24, 1998)]
[Senate]
[Pages S10940-S10941]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 RECOGNITION OF HISTORICALLY BLACK COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES IN GEORGIA

 Mr. CLELAND. Mr. President, as designated by the Senate, 
September 14-20, 1998, is celebrated as National Historically Black 
Colleges and Universities Week. I am pleased to take this opportunity 
to recognize the achievements of these fine institutions of higher 
education and to pay a special tribute to the ten Historically Black 
Colleges and Universities located in my home State of Georgia. The 104 
historically black institutions of higher learning throughout the 
United States are cornerstones of African-American education and play 
an integral role in the lives of African-Americans and in American 
history.
  Historically Black Colleges and Universities have set a high standard 
for providing quality instruction and valuable, lifelong experiences to 
students. Though sometimes faced with adversity, historically black 
colleges and institutions have provided students with the opportunity 
to broaden their horizons and to reach their fullest potential.
  As I have mentioned, my state of Georgia has the privilege of being 
served by ten of these fine institutions: Albany State University, 
Clark Atlanta State University, Fort Valley State University, 
Interdenominational Theological Center, Morehouse College, The 
Morehouse School of Medicine, Morris Brown College, Paine College, 
Savannah State University, and Spelman College.
  Albany State University, the previous Albany Bible and Manual 
Training Institute, Georgia Normal and Agricultural College and Albany 
State College, was ranked by U.S. News and World Report among the top 
colleges and universities in the South in September 1997. In a recent 
special report to Black Issues In Higher Education Magazine (July 9, 
1998), ASU was ranked among the top 100 producers of degrees for 
African Americans in three key areas--education, health professions, 
and computer information Science.
  Clark Atlanta State University is a comprehensive, private, urban, 
coeducational institution of higher education with a predominantly 
African American heritage. It offers undergraduate, graduate, and 
professional degrees as well as non-degree programs to students of 
diverse racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic backgrounds. U.S. News and 
World report lists Clark Atlanta among the best universities in the 
United States in its 1996 ``America's Best Colleges'' guide.
  Fort Valley State University, founded in 1890, is a public, state and 
land-grant co-educational liberal arts institution located in central 
Georgia's Peach County. The Georgia Board of Regents designated Fort 
Valley State as a fully accredited University on June 12, 1996, 
continuing in its leadership role as the only senior college or 
university in the University System with a mission in all four 
disciplines--academics, research, extension and service.
  Interdenominational Theological Center, established in 1958, 
maintains its position as the nucleus of theological education for 
African Americans in the world. Six historic African American 
seminaries comprise ITC. They are: Gammon Theological Seminary (United 
Methodist), Charles H. Mason Theological Seminary (Church of God in 
Christ), Morehouse School of Religion (Baptist), Phillips School of 
Theology (Christian Methodist Episcopal), Johnson C. Smith Theological 
Seminary (Presbyterian Church USA) and Turner Theological Seminary 
(African Methodist Episcopal).
  Morehouse College, founded in 1867 as the Augusta Institute, is a 
small, liberal arts college with an international reputation for 
producing leaders who have influenced national and world history. The 
institution is best known for the work of graduates such as Nobel Peace 
Prize laureate Martin Luther King Jr., former Secretary of Health and 
Human Services Louis Sullivan, MacArthur Fellow Donald Hopkins, 
Olympian Edwin Moses, filmmaker Spike Lee, and a number of Congressmen, 
federal judges, and college presidents. These alumni, and a long list 
of other Morehouse men from one generation to the next, have translated 
the College's commitment to excellence in scholarship, leadership, and 
service into extraordinary contributions to their professions, their 
communities, the nation, and the world.
  The Morehouse School of Medicine became independent of Morehouse 
College in 1981. The Morehouse School of Medicine is a predominantly 
black institution established to recruit and train minority and other 
students as physicians and biomedical scientists committed to the 
primary health care needs of the underserved and is fully accredited by 
the Liaison Committee on Medical Education and the Southern Association 
of Colleges and Schools.
  Morris Brown College, founded in 1867, is a private, coeducational 
liberal arts college engaged in teaching and research in the arts, 
humanities, education, social and natural sciences. The College is 
committed to developing, through strong academic, continuing education 
and cultural enrichment programs, the skills needed to function as a 
literate citizen in society for persons of all socio-economic status.
  Paine College, founded in 1880, has a history tied to the history of 
the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church and the United Methodist 
Church. The College was founded to establish an educational institute 
to train Black ministers and teachers. Throughout its history, Paine 
has been a distinctively Christian college. It has maintained deep 
concern for the quest for truth and has been resolute in blending 
knowledge with values and personal commitment. Paine has been 
historically dedicated to the preparation of holistic persons for 
responsible life in society.
  Savannah State University, founded in 1890, is the oldest public 
historically black college in the state of Georgia. SSU offers 26 
undergraduate and graduate degrees in three schools--the College of 
Business Administration, the College of Liberal Arts and Social

[[Page S10941]]

Sciences and the College of Sciences and Technology. Special programs 
at SSU include the Marine Sciences program and the Naval Reserve 
Officers Training Corps.
  Spelman College was founded in 1881 as the Atlanta Baptist Female 
Seminary to increase educational opportunities for Black women in 
Atlanta. Spelman's mission is to help students to think objectively, 
critically and creatively within a moral framework and to use their 
talents to solve problems that are ever present in a rapidly changing 
and complex environment.
  The extraordinary contributions of historically black colleges and 
universities in educating students and in enriching our communities 
cannot be overstated. They are a valuable national resource which are 
being rightly honored for their exemplary tradition in higher 
education. Mr. President, please join me and our colleagues in 
congratulating and celebrating a rich legacy and tradition of the 
excellence, determination, strength, and perseverance of historically 
black colleges and universities.

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