[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 24 (Friday, February 6, 2009)]
[Senate]
[Page S1863]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




    CONGRATULATING THE FIRST GRADUATING CLASS OF THE ERICKSON SCHOOL

 Mr. CARDIN. Mr. President, I congratulate the first graduating 
class of the Erickson School at the University of Maryland, Baltimore 
County, UMBC. In December 2008, the Erickson School awarded degrees in 
the Management of Aging Services to 4 bachelors and 24 masters 
candidates.
  In just 4 years, the Erickson School has grown from a vision of its 
founding benefactor, John Erickson, to a fully operational professional 
school addressing the leadership needs in the burgeoning arena of aging 
services. With the graduation of its first class, the school has begun 
to establish a community of change agents dedicated to improving the 
lives of older Americans.
  Our Nation faces an urgent need for qualified professionals in the 
public and private sectors of health care and aging services to deal 
with our growing aging population. Every 8 seconds, a U.S. resident 
turns 60 years of age. By 2030, Americans 65 and over will increase 
from 12.5 percent to 20 percent of the population. Of particular 
significance is that the fastest growth is among those ages 85 and 
over. Between today and 2040, this group will increase by another 258 
percent, a tribute to improvements in medicine and public health.
  The job of caring for an aging population is one that cannot be 
outsourced. The demographic shift we are witnessing will demand the 
development of innovative and entrepreneurial services and products. 
Every aspect of our society will likely be transformed, from the 
workplace, to the way in which we provide health care, to the 
assumptions underlying fundamental Government programs.
  The Erickson School's first graduates are positioned to respond to 
the urgent challenges and opportunities presented by the speed and 
scale with which the U.S. population is aging. This class includes the 
CEO of a Maryland retirement community, the executive directors of the 
Baltimore City and County departments of aging, and other experienced 
aging services professionals from across the Nation.
  I ask my colleagues to join me in commending the leadership of Dean 
J. Kevin Eckert and congratulating the graduates. They are: Jessica 
Hallis, Tara McDonnell, Jena Rathell, Juliet Strachan, Eleanor Alvarez, 
Brenda Becker, Rebecca Bees, Mimi Burch, Richard Compton, Benjamin 
Cornthwaite, Seth Dudley, Christopher Emmett, Arnold Eppel, Diana 
Givens, Christopher Golen, Steve Gurney, William Holman, Jennifer Holz, 
Dorothea Johnson, Waclawa Kludziak, Susan Kraus, Jonathan May, 
Christine Mour, Margaret Mulcare, Elizabeth O'Connor, George Pasteur, 
Jr., Judith Shapiro, Chris Stewart, John Stewart, Nathaniel Sweeney, 
and Leonard Weiser.
  The Erickson School will be a world leader in meeting the demands for 
new human capital, as well as policy analysis, research, and executive 
education. Erickson School alumni are at the leading edge, a new group 
of professionals that will revolutionize not only the field of aging 
services but also the way society views aging. They are part of a 
transformative force that will steer the field of aging services in new 
directions, and I am pleased to honor them today.

                          ____________________