[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 61 (Wednesday, May 17, 2006)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4687-S4688]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       HONORING DR. KIRBY GODSEY

  Mr. CHAMBLISS. Mr. President, I rise today to pay tribute to a man 
who has earned a place in Georgia history and, in my opinion, will be 
unmatched for many years to come. My good friend, Dr. Kirby Godsey, has 
served as the president of Mercer University since 1979. He is 
currently the longest serving university president, not only in Mercer 
history, but in Georgia history as well. He has presided over 250 
graduation ceremonies. He will retire on the 30th day of June of this 
year.
  Kirby Godsey has achieved so much, I simply don't know where to 
begin. He is the embodiment of a great educator, a dedicated community 
leader, public servant, spiritual advisor, problem solver, and the list 
goes on. His accomplishments are endless.
  My wife Julianne and I have had the privilege of knowing Dr. Godsey 
for many years. In fact, my son Bo received his undergraduate and law 
degrees from Mercer University and Mercer Law School not too long ago. 
During my years in the Congress, I have always appreciated his 
expertise and knowledge on the issues that he has discussed with me 
during his visits to Washington, as well as in Macon, on many complex 
matters relevant to education and otherwise.
  Dr. Godsey has been named three times among the top 100 most 
influential Georgians by Georgia Trend magazine for his commitment to 
quality education, to economic growth, and to the needs of Georgians. 
He has received this honor multiple times for good reason, his impact 
on the State is extensive.
  During his presidency, Mercer University has become one of the 
leading and most comprehensive universities of its size in the Nation, 
with 10 schools and colleges. When Dr. Godsey became president of 
Mercer in 1979, the enrollment was 3,800, the budget was $21.3 million, 
and the endowment was $16.5 million. Back then, the university's 
economic impact on Georgia was more than $21 million. Today, Mercer's 
enrollment is more than 7,300; the budget is $175 million, and the 
endowment is close to $200 million, with more than $200 million 
expected to be received in the near future from planned gifts.
  But if you ask Kirby Godsey about the legacy that he will leave 
behind with his upcoming retirement, he won't point to any of those 
things. To him, it is not about bricks and mortar and money. To Kirby, 
it is about the students, the graduates of Mercer University who are 
making the school a proud institution through their professions and 
service to others--and their contributions to the greater good.
  To Kirby Godsey, service learning is a key priority. Mercer's 
reputation for scholastic excellence, rigorous academic programs, 
innovative teaching, and time-honored values has earned its designation 
in 2005 as a ``College with a Conscience'' by the Princeton Review and 
Campus Compact. For 16 consecutive years, Mercer has been recognized as 
one of the leading universities in the South by U.S. News & World 
Report.
  Dr. Kirby Godsey is a workhorse, and I will share a few examples. 
When Middle Georgia leaders asked him to establish a medical school, he 
traveled throughout the State, talking with community and State leaders 
and developing vital partnerships. Accepting only Georgia residents in 
its doctor of medicine program, Mercer School of Medicine opened in 
1982 with a mission to educate more physicians to serve Georgians.
  Today, Mercer graduates practice in 112 towns and cities and 87 
counties in Georgia and handle more than 1.3 million patient visits 
each year. Instead of developing a separate teaching hospital, Dr. 
Godsey developed strong partnerships with the Medical Center of Central 
Georgia in Macon and Memorial Health University Medical Center in 
Savannah. Those partnerships have enabled Macon and Savannah to become 
major hubs of health care services in Georgia.

[[Page S4688]]

  He has established a Center for Health & Learning in partnership with 
Piedmont Healthcare in Atlanta. And with the increasing shortages of 
pharmacists, nurses, and educators nationwide, Dr. Godsey has worked to 
ensure that Mercer addresses these critical needs through undergraduate 
and graduate programs.
  In the early 1980s, Middle Georgia's economic engine, Robins Air 
Force Base, struggled to find enough engineers, endangering its 
continuing operations. So the base commander turned to Dr. Godsey for a 
solution. In 1985, Mercer opened the school of engineering on the Macon 
campus and the Mercer Engineering Research Center in Warner Robins. 
More than 62 percent of Mercer engineering graduates work in Georgia, 
and the university is the No. 1 provider of engineers to Robins Air 
Force Base. The Mercer Engineering Research Center that the university 
established in Warner Robins has exceeded more than $189 million in 
contract revenue in research.
  Dr. Godsey happened to be in my office today, and he advised me that 
he has now secured the full funding for a new engineering building to 
be located on the Mercer campus in Macon. It is a building we have 
helped contribute to at the Federal level. He has also gotten State 
funding. But the overwhelming amount of money needed to construct this 
facility was contributed by private individuals around our State and 
around the country.
  It has been a privilege to work with Dr. Godsey over the years, and 
we have worked to secure funding for a program that is vital to Warner 
Robins Air Logistics Center, the Critical Personnel Development 
Program. The centerpiece of this educational partnership between Robins 
and Mercer's Macon campus is to provide a state-of-the-art facility for 
academic training and laboratory research in support of the Logistics 
Center's mission requirements. In addition, it will create regional 
economic development opportunities, and we all know how critical that 
is. I am pleased, as I said, that Mercer University has now secured 
this vital funding and is finalizing this project. As this project 
becomes a true reality, we will all be able to recall Dr. Godsey's hard 
work on this effort.

  There is no question, Kirby Godsey has been a strong advocate for his 
community. Under his leadership, the Mercer Center for Community 
Development, which promotes stronger community ties by working to 
socially and economically revitalize neighborhoods around the school, 
received the Jimmy and Rosalyn Carter Campus-Community Partnership 
Award in 2002.
  He has served as chairman of New Town Macon since its beginning in 
1996 and has worked hard to revitalize the downtown area in Macon, 
Georgia. Incidentally, my Middle Georgia Senate office is located 
there, and I can say without question, the revitalization efforts have 
been incredible. In 2003, Dr. Godsey was named the Citizen of the Year 
by the Greater Macon Chamber of Commerce and presented him with its 
highest honor, the prestigious Meritorious Service Award.
  He has also been recognized for influencing the quality of education 
across the Southeast as a leader with the Southern Association of 
Colleges and Schools. In 2002, the Council for the Advancement and 
Support of Education recognized him as the Southeast's CEO of the year. 
It is also fitting that in 2006, the Georgia Legislature honored him at 
the State capitol for his many accomplishments during his 27-year 
presidency.
  Kirby Godsey is an inspirational leader whose dedication to Mercer 
University has enabled great advancements in our community, our State, 
and our Nation. He is a good friend and a true hero to the State of 
Georgia. I ask the Members of the Senate to join me in paying tribute 
to this great Georgian, this great American, and a great friend of this 
Member of the Senate--Kirby Godsey.

                          ____________________