[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 107 (Thursday, June 26, 2008)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1369]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         HONORING HOUSE FELLOWS

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. JOHN B. LARSON

                             of connecticut

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, June 26, 2008

  Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Madam Speaker, I rise today to 
congratulate the participants of the House Fellows Program on the 
completion of their weeklong program. As an initiative of the Office of 
the Historian, this program has been a unique opportunity for a select 
group of secondary education teachers of American history and 
government to experience firsthand how Congress really works. They were 
chosen because they were educators with demonstrated excellence in the 
classroom.
  One of the goals of the program is to develop curricular materials on 
the history and practice of the House for use in schools. Each Fellow 
will prepare his or her brief lesson plan on a Congressional topic of 
their choosing, and these plans will become part of a teaching resource 
database on the House. During the school year following their 
participation in the House Fellows Program, each Fellow will have the 
responsibility to present their experiences and lesson plans to at 
least one in-service institute for teachers of history and government.
  With plans to select a teacher from every congressional district over 
the next 4 years, the House Fellows Program will be able to impact 
thousands of high school teachers and their students, providing an 
inside account of how the House of Representatives functions, 
energizing thousands of students to become informed and active 
citizens.
  I had the honor of meeting the Fellows this week and know that all 
Members will join me in congratulating the following teachers who have 
successfully completed the program:
  Ms. Gale Carter, East Chicago Central High School, East Chicago, 
Indiana (INOl, Visclosky); Ms. Jennifer Fine, New Canaan High School, 
New Canaan, Connecticut (CT04, Shays); Mr. Todd Hodkey, Wellington High 
School, Wellington, Ohio (OH09, Kaptur); Mrs. Amy Koelsch, Sterling 
Heights High School, Sterling Heights, Michigan (MIl2); Mrs. Gerry 
Kohler, Wood County Schools, Wood County, West Virginia (WVOl); Mr. 
Erik Korling, Willows High School, Willows, California (CA02); Mr. 
Steven Kwiatkowski, Clay High School, Oregon, Ohio (OH09); Ms. Evelyn 
Longino, Red River High School, Coushatta, Louisiana (LA04, McCrery); 
Mr. Jake Miller, Panther Valley High School, Lansford, Pennsylvania 
(PAll, Kanjorski); Mr. Tony Storch, Caldwell Academy, Greensboro, North 
Carolina (NC06, Coble); Mr. Jonathan Waldron, Mattawan High School, 
Mattawan, Michigan (MI06, Upton).
  As many of my colleagues already know, the first bill I sponsored 
upon becoming a Member of Congress in 1999 was the History of the House 
Awareness and Preservation Act, which directed the Librarian of 
Congress to oversee the writing of a history of the House of 
Representatives. Once this bill was signed into law (P.L. 106-99), the 
Librarian of Congress very wisely chose the eminent historian and 
author, Dr. Robert V. Remini, to write the history, which was published 
in 2006 under the title of The House. The project was so well received 
that the Speaker of the House reestablished the Office of the Historian 
in 2005 and appointed Dr. Remini as the House Historian.
  Madam Speaker, I would like to urge all of my colleagues to join me 
in thanking the Office of the Historian for sponsoring this program. 
Under the leadership of Dr. Remini and Dr. Fred Beuttler, along with 
their staff; Michael Cronin, Anthony Wallis, Andrew Dodge, and Dr. 
Charles Flanagan; interns George Dise, Parker Williams, and Mike 
Ferrin; the Office of the Historian is dedicated to fulfilling the 
goals of the History of the House Awareness and Preservation Act by 
conserving and presenting the history of the House of Representatives, 
the ``People's House.''

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