[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 84 (Tuesday, May 22, 2007)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1120]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                TRIBUTE TO DR. MARTHA JEAN ADAMS-HEGGINS

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. JAMES E. CLYBURN

                           of south carolina

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, May 22, 2007

  Mr. CLYBURN. Madam Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to a 
wonderful woman who has dedicated her entire career to ensuring that 
our youngest students receive the best education possible. On Friday, 
May 25, 2007, Dr. Martha Jean Adams-Beggins is retiring as the Director 
of South Carolina State University's Family Life Center. Dr. Heggins' 
retirement is the culmination of a 43-year career in early childhood 
education.
  A native of Florence, South Carolina, Dr. Beggins began her teaching 
career there after graduating from South Carolina State University 
(SCSU) in 1964. She spent 2 years as a first grade teacher at Carver 
Elementary in Florence, and then went on to teach in Cope and 
Orangeburg, South Carolina before deciding to pursue her master's at 
Bank Street College of Education in New York. After she earned her 
advanced degree, Dr. Beggins returned to South Carolina to teach 
kindergarten at Felton Laboratory School at SCSU. The following year, 
she became an instructor at the university and went on to become the 
Assistant Director of Student Teaching.
  However, Martha Heggins knew she wanted to pursue her doctorate and 
moved to New Jersey to attend Rutgers University. While earning her 
PhD, she was an Instructor of Early Childhood Education, a Teaching 
Assistant in the Urban Education Department, and the Director of 
Demonstration Day Care Learning Center in New Brunswick, New Jersey. 
She received a Ford Foundation Research Award for her ``Study of the 
Relationship of Logical Thinking to School Achievement in Elementary 
School Children.''
  Upon earning her doctorate, Dr. Heggins returned home to South 
Carolina and her beloved SCSU. In 1975, she became an Assistant 
Professor of Early Childhood Education and has not left the university 
since. Over the years, Dr. Beggins has become a highly valued member of 
SCSU's education department. She has served as an Associate Professor 
of Early Childhood Education, Director of the Title XX Project, 
Assistant Professor of Early Childhood Education, and in 1982 became a 
full Professor.
  Dr. Heggins has implemented, directed and served as the Coordinator 
of the Undergraduate and Graduate Early Childhood Programs at SCSU. 
Since 1999, she has served as the Director of SCSU's Family Life 
Center. In this position, she oversees a program for at-risk students 
and parents from the poorest neighborhoods in Orangeburg, South 
Carolina. The program focuses on 6 core areas: academic development, 
personal development, career enrichment, cultural enrichment, family 
bonding, and recreational development. Under Dr. Heggins' leadership, 
the program has received national recognition by the Family and 
Community Violence Prevention Program at Central State University in 
Wilberforce, Ohio. Dr. Beggins has also been involved with the 
Orangeburg Gang Summit Task Force.
  She is a member of the America Association of University Women, the 
Association for Childhood Education International, Association for 
Supervision and Curriculum Development, the South Carolina Association 
for Supervision and Curriculum Development, the Southern Poverty Law 
Center, the National Organization for Women, Phi Delta Kappa 
International, and Kappa Omicron Nu. Dr. Heggins has received numerous 
honors including Teacher of the Year 1991-92 for SCSU's School of 
Education; Distinguish Faculty Chair 1982-83 at SCSU; and inclusion in 
a number of Who's Who listings. She is the organizer, founder and vice 
president of the National Black Child Development Institute at SCSU, 
which is the first undergraduate chapter in the United States.

  Madam Speaker, I ask you and my colleagues to join me in applauding 
Dr. Martha Jean Adams-Heggins for her exemplary career. I commend her 
dedication to educating young people and to ensuring that those with 
the least among us are given the tools necessary to succeed in life. I 
wish her a wonderful retirement and Godspeed.

                          ____________________