[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 50 (Tuesday, March 24, 2009)]
[Senate]
[Page S3735]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




       HONORING GALLAUDET UNIVERSITY ESTABLISHMENT AUTHORIZATION

  Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the 
Judiciary Committee be discharged from further consideration of S. Con. 
Res. 12, and the Senate proceed to its immediate consideration.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered. The clerk 
will report.
  The legislative clerk read as follows:

       A concurrent resolution (S. Con. Res. 12) recognizing and 
     honoring the signing by President Abraham Lincoln of the 
     legislation authorizing the establishment of collegiate 
     programs at Gallaudet University.

  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the 
concurrent resolution.
  Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the 
concurrent resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, the 
motions to reconsider be laid upon the table, with no intervening 
action or debate, and that any statements relating to the measure be 
printed in the Record.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The concurrent resolution (S. Con. Res. 12) was agreed to.
  The preamble was agreed to.
  The concurrent resolution, with its preamble, reads as follows:

                            S. Con. Res. 12

       Whereas in 2009, the United States honored the 200th 
     anniversary of the birth of President Abraham Lincoln;
       Whereas on July 4, 1861, President Lincoln stated in a 
     message to Congress that a principal aim of the United States 
     Government should be ``to elevate the condition of men--to 
     lift artificial weights from all shoulders--to clear the 
     paths of laudable pursuit for all--to afford all, an 
     unfettered start, and a fair chance, in the race of life'';
       Whereas on April 8, 1864, President Lincoln signed into law 
     the legislation (Act of April 8, 1864, ch. 52, 13 Stat. 45) 
     authorizing the conferring of collegiate degrees by the 
     Columbia Institution for Instruction of the Deaf and Dumb and 
     the Blind, which is now called Gallaudet University;
       Whereas that law led for the first time in history to 
     higher education for deaf students in an environment designed 
     to meet their communication needs;
       Whereas Gallaudet University was the first, and is still 
     the only, institution in the world that focuses on 
     educational programs for deaf and hard-of-hearing students 
     from the pre-school through the doctoral level;
       Whereas Gallaudet University has been a world leader in the 
     fields of education and research for more than a century; and
       Whereas since 1869, graduates of Gallaudet University have 
     pursued distinguished careers of leadership in the United 
     States and throughout the world: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives 
     concurring), That Congress--
       (1) congratulates and honors Gallaudet University on the 
     145th anniversary of President Abraham Lincoln's signing of 
     the legislation authorizing the establishment of collegiate 
     programs at Gallaudet University; and
       (2) congratulates Gallaudet University for 145 years of 
     unique and exceptional service to the deaf people of the 
     United States and the world deaf community.

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