[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 86 (Wednesday, June 28, 2006)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1299]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     IN HONOR OF DENICE DEE DENTON

                                 ______
                                 

                             HON. SAM FARR

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, June 28, 2006

  Mr. FARR. Mr. Speaker, on behalf of myself and my colleagues, 
Representatives Michael Honda and Anna Eshoo, I rise today to note, 
sadly, the tragic passing of Denice Dee Denton, Chancellor of the 
University of California, Santa Cruz, UCSC. We have lost a colleague of 
immeasurable creativity and intellect. Our hearts go out to her family 
and loved ones in this incomprehensible time. In her memory, we stand 
today to pay homage to her commitment and sacrifice and pledge to 
further her legacy of equity, diversity and academic excellence.
  Chancellor Denton dedicated her professional and personal energy to 
increasing the presence of women and minorities in typically male-
dominated academic fields. While pursuing four advanced degrees from 
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, including a Ph.D., she often 
encountered and fought against prevailing attitudes that were quietly 
or openly hostile to women in science. Remarkably, her academic career 
was just beginning to blossom. She held academic appointments at the 
University of Massachusetts, the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology 
in Zurich, and the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where she worked 
from 1987, leaving as professor in the Departments of Electrical and 
Computer Engineering and Chemistry. Beginning in 1996, Chancellor 
Denton was appointed Dean of the College of Engineering and Professor 
of Electrical Engineering at the University of Washington, the first 
woman to hold the position at a National Research Council-designated 
Research One university.
  On December 14, 2004, Denice Denton was appointed by the University 
of California Regents as the ninth Chancellor of UCSC. While 
Chancellor, Denice incorporated the philosophy of achieving excellence 
through diversity in her agenda. She championed causes on an 
international level to engage the academic community in a dialogue 
pursuing equity and advancement in science, math and engineering. Also, 
as the university's first openly gay Chancellor, Denice embraced her 
identity and empowered young people and professionals across many 
disciplines to do the same. Mr. Speaker, it is with great regret that 
we speak in memory of a life so full of promise and future achievement. 
But we do so secure in the knowledge of a life already lived so full of 
accomplishment. Denice Denton was just 46 years old at the time of her 
death. But in that short time she paved the way for so many to follow.

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