[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 85 (Thursday, May 22, 2008)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1013]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     IN REMEMBRANCE OF DAN J. SMITH

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. DANA ROHRABACHER

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, May 21, 2008

  Mr. ROHRABACHER. Madam Speaker, I rise in this chamber to mark the 
passing of a great American, Dan J. Smith. A resident of Los Angeles, 
Dan passed away on May 6, 2008, at the age of 57, leaving a legacy of 
service to this country. During the first term of President Ronald 
Reagan, Dan served as a Senior Advisor in the White House Office of 
Policy Development, where he worked on issues ranging from 
international trade to NATO defense. The principal achievement he 
should be remembered for is Executive Order 12320, which established 
the White House Initiative on Historically Black Colleges and 
Universities. Dan was the principal architect of the Reagan 
Administration's program to coordinate the activities of Federal 
agencies in supporting HBCUs.
  A 1972 graduate of the University of Southern California, Dan was 
instrumental while still an undergraduate in founding the Norman 
Topping scholarship fund, a voluntary, student-financed program of 
financial support that still stands as a model for private community 
service. After receiving a masters degree from Occidental College in 
1973, Dan spent his early career in banking and non-profit management. 
Still in his twenties, he was appointed by the Governor of California 
in 1976 to the State Economic Development Commission.
  After leaving the White House staff, Dan founded his own higher 
education consulting firm, the Corporation for American Education, 
which he headed for 26 years. In the mid-1980s, he was instrumental in 
assisting Fisk University, one of this country's most-cherished HBCUs, 
in recovering from near insolvency. In 1997, at the request of 
California's Governor, he helped revise California's statutes 
overseeing private postsecondary and vocational education.
  Dan was a writer, a deep thinker, a servant-leader, a devoted husband 
and father, and a friend. He was called early by his Maker, but his 
legacy lives on. America owes a debt to Dan J. Smith and countless 
other unsung heroes whose life's work represent the fabric of our 
Nation.

                          ____________________