[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 103 (Thursday, September 7, 2000)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1420]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         TRIBUTE TO POLLY BACA

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. DIANA DeGETTE

                              of colorado

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, September 7, 2000

  Ms. DeGETTE. Mr. Speaker, I would like to recognize the splendid 
efforts and notable accomplishments of an extraordinary woman in the 
1st Congressional District of Colorado. It is both fitting and proper 
that we recognize this community leader for her exceptional record of 
civic leadership and invaluable service. It is to commend this 
outstanding citizen that I rise to honor Polly Baca.
  Polly Baca has amassed a distinguished record of leadership in our 
community and service to our nation. Ms. Baca grew up in Greeley 
Colorado and where she attended high school. After graduating from 
Colorado State University with a degree in political science, she began 
her professional career as an editorial assistant for a labor union in 
Washington, DC. During the Johnson Administration, she served as a 
Public Information Officer for a key White House Agency and after 
serving on the campaign staff for the late Senator Robert F. Kennedy, 
she served as the Director of Research and Information for the National 
Council of La Raza.
  Poly Baca has always been a trailblazer and upon returning to 
Colorado, she was elected to the Colorado House of Representatives and 
was the first woman elected to chair the House Democratic Caucus. She 
was subsequently elected to the Colorado Senate and became the first 
minority woman and the first and only Hispanic woman to serve in this 
body and the first Hispanic woman to serve in leadership in a State 
Senate in the U.S.
  Prior to joining the Clinton Administration, Ms. Baca was the 
Executive Director of the Colorado Hispanic Institute, a non-profit 
entity dedicated to developing cultural competence and multicultural 
leadership. She went on to serve as the Director of the U.S. Office of 
Consumer Affairs and in that capacity, she chaired the Consumer Affairs 
Council and the U.S. delegation to the Organization for Economic 
Cooperation and Development's Committee on Consumer Policy. 
Subsequently, Ms. Baca was appointed Regional Administrator of the 
General Services Administration in the six-state Rocky Mountain Region 
and is the first minority woman and the first Hispanic woman to be 
appointed to this position.
  Ms. Baca is nationally known for her leadership skill and has 
extensive experience in foreign affairs and is a noted international 
speaker as well. She has lectured in Japan and the Philippines on the 
American political system and the role of racial and ethnic Americans 
and women in the American socio-political and economic systems. 
Currently, Ms. Baca is the CEO of Sierra Baca Services which is a firm 
specializing in multicultural leadership development and diversity 
training.
  Her commitment and service has earned her several awards including 
being inducted into the Colorado Women's Hall of Fame and into the 
National Hispanic Hall of Fame as an original member. She received the 
Small Business Administrator's Advocate of the Year Award for Colorado 
and the Leadership Award from the U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce.
  Please join me in commending Polly Baca. It is the strong leadership 
she exhibits on a daily basis that continually enhances our lives and 
builds a better future for all Americans. Her life serves as an example 
to which we should all aspire.

                          ____________________