[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 153 (Wednesday, October 21, 2009)]
[House]
[Pages H11536-H11538]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           RECOGNIZING LAURINBURG NORMAL INDUSTRIAL INSTITUTE

  Mrs. DAVIS of California. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules 
and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 660) recognizing the distinguished 
history of the Laurinburg Normal Industrial Institute, as amended.
  The Clerk read the title of the resolution.
  The text of the resolution is as follows:

                              H. Res. 660

       Whereas the Laurinburg Normal Industrial Institute 
     (referred to as the ``Laurinburg Institute'') was founded on 
     September 15, 1904, in Laurinburg, North Carolina, by 
     Emmanuel McDuffie and his wife Tinny Etheridge McDuffie at 
     the request of Booker T. Washington of the Tuskegee Institute 
     and William Edwards of the Snow Hill Institute;
       Whereas the Laurinburg Institute is the oldest of only four 
     historically African-American boarding schools still 
     remaining in the United States;
       Whereas the Laurinburg Institute was founded to help 
     provide suitable education and training in the common 
     pursuits of life for African-Americans in the area of 
     Laurinburg, North Carolina;
       Whereas, on September 15, 1906, Emmanuel McDuffie, J.H. 
     Davis, and Robert Leach incorporated the Laurinburg Institute 
     at Laurinburg, North Carolina, for the instruction of 
     African-American teachers and youth in various academic 
     branches of study and in the best methods of theoretical and 
     practical industry applicable to agriculture and the 
     mechanical arts;
       Whereas in 1956, the Laurinburg Institute began to build a 
     new campus, integrated its faculty and student body, expanded 
     its foreign student program, which consisted of students from 
     Russia, Africa, South America, Brazil, Portugal, the 
     Caribbean, and other countries, and further solidified its 
     nationally and internationally recognized athletic and music 
     programs;
       Whereas since 1904, the Laurinburg Institute has graduated 
     students of color, and since 1954 many graduates have 
     finished college or other post-secondary training;
       Whereas the Laurinburg Institute's distinguished alumni 
     include Sir John Swann, the former Premiere of Bermuda and 
     one of the first blacks to be a head of state in the Western 
     Hemisphere, Joy Johnson, one of the first African-Americans 
     elected to the North Carolina General Assembly after the 
     Reconstruction era, John Birks ``Dizzy'' Gillespie, an 
     internationally renowned jazz trumpeter, and Charles 
     ``Charlie'' Scott, the first African-American scholarship 
     athlete at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 
     who later became a National Basketball Association (NBA) All-
     Star where he played for such teams as the Boston Celtics, 
     Denver Nuggets, Los Angeles Lakers, and Phoenix Suns, winning 
     an NBA championship with the Boston Celtics and a gold medal 
     in the 1968 Summer Olympics;
       Whereas in 2005, the North Carolina General Assembly passed 
     Senate Joint Resolution 1178 which honored the lives of Frank 
     and Sammie McDuffie, who were the second generation of 
     McDuffie's to serve as administrators of the Institute, and 
     the work of the Laurinburg Institute in producing educators, 
     humanitarians, athletes, and civil rights and leaders;
       Whereas in 2009, the Laurinburg Institute's President and 
     Chief Executive Officer is Frank ``Bishop'' McDuffie, Jr., 
     and his daughter, Frances McDuffie, serves as the Institute's 
     Vice President and President; and
       Whereas Frank ``Bishop'' McDuffie and Fraces McDuffie are 
     the third generation of McDuffie administrators of the 
     Laurinburg Institute: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
       (1) recognizes the distinguished history of the Laurinburg 
     Normal Industrial Institute;
       (2) acknowledges the Laurinburg Institute's remarkable 
     contribution to the education of African-Americans and other 
     people in the State of North Carolina and the Nation; and
       (3) commends the enterprise and dedication of the McDuffie 
     family in creating and sustaining the Laurinburg Institute.

  The Speaker pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from 
California (Mrs. Davis) and the gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Roe) each 
will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from California.


                             General Leave

  Mrs. DAVIS of California. Mr. Speaker, I request 5 legislative days 
during which Members may revise and extend and insert extraneous 
material on House Resolution 660 into the record.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentlewoman from California?
  There was no objection.
  Mrs. DAVIS of California. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I 
may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of House Resolution 660, which 
recognizes the historical significance of the Laurinburg Institute, one 
of the Nation's oldest African American boarding high schools in the 
United States.

[[Page H11537]]

  In the early 1900s, there were few educational opportunities for 
black students. The Laurinburg Institute, along with other African 
American boarding schools, answered the needs of many African Americans 
desiring an education.
  The Laurinburg Institute was founded on September 15, 1904, in 
Laurinburg, North Carolina, by Emmanuel McDuffie and his wife, Tinny 
Etheridge McDuffie, at the urging of Booker T. Washington and William 
Edwards. Since then, the McDuffie family has remained committed to the 
school's mission, devoting their lives to its service for more than 
three generations.
  The school has developed and created exceptional music and athletic 
programs. Over the years, Laurinburg Institute has graduated renowned 
musicians and professional athletes, most notably NBA All-Star Charles 
Scott. Other prominent alumni include musician Dizzy Gillespie and 
professional basketball player Sam Jones.
  Today, this school offers a unique atmosphere for all students to 
succeed. The McDuffie family, through generations of hard work and 
dedication, has implemented a curriculum for their students to succeed. 
The institute has an enrollment capacity of 135 students and has a 
student body comprised of young men and women from across the country 
and the globe.
  Once again, I support this resolution and thank Congressman Kissell 
for bringing this bill forward. I urge my colleagues to support this 
bill.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. ROE of Tennessee. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself as much time as I 
may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of House Resolution 660, 
recognizing the distinguished history of the Laurinburg Normal 
Industrial Institute founded in 1904 by Emmanuel McDuffie and his wife, 
Tinny. Laurinburg Institute is the oldest of only four historically 
African American boarding schools still in existence in the United 
States. It was founded to help provide suitable education and training 
in the common pursuits of life for African Americans in the Laurinburg, 
North Carolina, area.
  At the turn of the century, Laurinburg Institute instructed African 
American teachers and youth in various academic branches of study and 
in the best methods of theoretical and practical industrial 
applications for agriculture and the mechanical arts. In 1956, the 
Laurinburg Institute built a new campus, integrated its faculty and 
student body, and expanded its foreign student program, which consisted 
of students from Russia, Africa, South America, and the Caribbean. It 
also further solidified its nationally and internationally recognized 
athletic and music programs. The Laurinburg Institute has graduated 
over 50,000 students.
  Today, we recognize the distinguished history of the Laurinburg 
Institute and acknowledge its remarkable contribution to the education 
of African Americans. I commend the dedication of the McDuffie family 
in creating and sustaining the legacy of Emmanuel and Tinny McDuffie. 
Congratulations to its third-generation administrators, president and 
CEO, Frank McDuffie, and his daughter, Frances McDuffie, who serves as 
vice president and chief operating officer, as well as the faculty, 
staffs and students of Laurinburg Institute.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mrs. DAVIS of California. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to recognize for 
10 minutes the gentleman from North Carolina, the sponsor of this 
legislation, Mr. Kissell.
  Mr. KISSELL. I would like to thank my colleague from California for 
yielding time to me.
  Mr. Speaker, as we look at the Laurinburg Institute, or its official 
name, Laurinburg Normal Industrial Institute, there is a story to be 
told here that goes beyond some of the information that we have already 
received.
  If you can imagine back prior to September 15, 1904, when the 
Laurinburg Institute was officially founded, if you could imagine the 
conversations that took place when Booker T. Washington at Tuskegee 
Institute came to the McDuffies, Emmanuel and Tinny Etheridge, and 
said, I have got an opportunity for you. They weren't talking about how 
they could become millionaires or how they could invest moneys.
  No, it was something much more important than that. They were talking 
about education. They were talking about educating African American 
youth at a time before Brown v. Board of Education, a time when we did 
not talk about equality of education. In some cases we didn't talk 
about education of African American youth at all.
  This was a time in the early 1900s only 40 years after the Civil War. 
We know our Nation was going through some tough times, and these people 
were talking about education.
  There must be something that runs strong in the McDuffie family in 
terms of their genetics, because not only is this one of only four such 
schools that have survived till today; it is still run by the same 
family that started it. Four generations later of McDuffies, they are 
still running the same school. They are still concerned about 
education.
  We know that the opportunity of education is to influence young 
people for generation upon generation because that influence never 
stops. Teachers know, and one of the great rewards of teaching is that 
they know that who they affect may not be the person who is in their 
classroom; it may be someone two or three generations down that is 
affected directly by someone that they had taught and inspired.
  This is what the McDuffie family has offered to us, Mr. Speaker: 
50,000 graduates. Think of all of the families and all of the people 
that were affected by these 50,000 that would not have been if Booker 
T. Washington had not convinced the McDuffies that the best investment 
they could make is in education.
  Now, we have heard a couple of the graduates mentioned. I would like 
to add a couple more names to that list. Sir John Swan was a premier of 
Bermuda, one of the first people of color that was a head of state in 
the Western Hemisphere. We mentioned Charlie Scott, who was the first 
African American ever to be awarded an athletic scholarship to the 
University of North Carolina. Now, as a Wake Forest graduate, I also 
have to mention another basketball player, Charlie Davis, who was the 
first African American Player of the Year in ACC history in basketball 
in 1971.
  Once again, we are talking about thousands of people that came 
through this institute, thousands of people that were affected. Once 
again, the great joy of education is that its influence never ends.
  I congratulate the McDuffie family. I congratulate the faculty and 
alumni and students of this great institution because they have 
survived, and they have made a difference in the lives of not only the 
people of Scotland County, which I am fortunate enough to represent as 
part of North Carolina's Eighth District, but they have also influenced 
the State of North Carolina and this great Nation of ours.
  Mr. ROE of Tennessee. Mr. Speaker, just to dovetail, I do remember, I 
believe Charlie Scott played in the old ABA for the Virginia Squires. I 
have seen him play many times, a great athlete and a great human being.
  As my colleague Mr. Kissell from North Carolina clearly stated, an 
education doesn't just affect one person. It affects a family, it 
affects a community, it affects a nation. So this family that has had 
this commitment to education for over a century is to be commended.
  I urge my colleagues to support this resolution.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mrs. DAVIS of California. Mr. Speaker, I am honored. I certainly want 
to thank Mr. Kissell for really giving us a more expanded view of the 
Laurinburg Institute. I appreciate his passion and interest in it.
  I want to encourage my colleagues to support this resolution, House 
Resolution 660, recognizing the historical importance of the Laurinburg 
Institute.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentlewoman from California (Mrs. Davis) that the House suspend the

[[Page H11538]]

rules and agree to the resolution, H. Res. 660, as amended.
  The question was taken.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds 
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
  Mrs. DAVIS of California. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and 
nays.
  The yeas and nays were ordered.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX and the 
Chair's prior announcement, further proceedings on this motion will be 
postponed.

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