[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 21 (Monday, February 5, 2007)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E254]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                HONORING THE LIFE OF PERCY LAVON JULIAN

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                         HON. CHARLES B. RANGEL

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, January 30, 2007

  Mr. RANGEL. Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of H. Con. Res. 
34, to honor Percy Julian, an American research chemist of 
international renown, and a pioneer in the chemical synthesis of 
medicinal drugs. During his lifetime, Percy Julian received more than 
100 chemical patents.
  Percy Julian attended elementary school in Birmingham and later moved 
to Montgomery, Alabama where he attended high school. After high 
school, Julian applied to and was accepted into DePauw University in 
Greencastle, Indiana. At DePauw, he began as a probationary student, 
having to take higher level high school classes along with his freshman 
and sophomore course load. He was named a member of the Sigma Xi 
honorary society as well as a Phi Beta Kappa member.
  Upon graduation from DePauw in 1920, he was selected as the class 
valedictorian. Julian was awarded the Austin Fellowship in Chemistry 
and moved to the distinguished Harvard University in Cambridge, 
Massachusetts, where he achieved straight A's, finished at the top of 
his class and received a Masters Degree in 1923.
  Percy Julian proved himself to be a brilliant chemist. Among his many 
patents, most notable are--a foam fire retardant, a treatment for 
glaucoma and a low-cost process to produce cortisone. His innovative 
approach to chemistry helped to make important medicines more 
accessible to millions.
  Please join me in supporting H. Con. Res. 34, honoring the life of 
Percy Lavon Julian, a pioneer in the field of organic chemistry 
research and development and the first and only African American 
chemist to be inducted into the National Academy of Sciences.

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