[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 136 (Wednesday, September 14, 2011)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1622-E1623]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     IN RECOGNITION OF KAREN PHILIP

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. JACKIE SPEIER-

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                     Wednesday, September 14, 2011

  Ms. SPEIER. Mr. Speaker, it is with immense appreciation and a tinge 
of regret that I rise today in honor of Karen K. Philip, who retires at 
the end of this month as Deputy Superintendent of the San Mateo County 
Office of Education.
  There is no doubt that she has earned her retirement, after thirty-
eight years educating the children--and impressing the parents--of 
California's 12th Congressional District.
  Mr. Speaker, I doubt that anyone has ever met Karen Philip where they 
did not learn something. She is the consummate educator, beginning in 
1973 in the South San Francisco Unified School District, where she 
served for seventeen years as a teacher, speech therapist, special 
education administrator and principal, Karen has dedicated her life to 
the children of San Mateo County.
  From there, she was recruited by the Millbrae School District to 
serve as Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction and, 
after just two years, was appointed Superintendent of the District, a 
post she held for fifteen years. During her tenure in Millbrae, the 
schools in her charge received many prestigious awards, including three 
California Distinguished School Awards and the National Blue Ribbon, 
awarded in Washington D.C. to Taylor Middle School.
  Throughout her career, Deputy Superintendent Philip has been tapped 
for numerous leadership positions, including serving as President of 
the San Mateo County Superintendents Association, the Special Education 
Local Plan Area Board, and Soroptomist International of Millbrae/San 
Bruno. She has also been named a ``Woman of Distinction'' by 
Soroptomist International, received the California ``Schoolmasters 
Award'' in 2011 and was inducted into the San Mateo County ``Women's 
Hall of Fame''.
  Mr. Speaker, as with all true educators, Karen's greatest achievement 
is in the many thousands of children--most who are now adults--who have 
benefitted from her passion and extraordinary talent for teaching. No 
doubt, our county's loss is Karen's grandchildren's gain. Now they get 
to spend even more time soaking in all the incredible lessons their 
brilliant grandmother has to offer.
  Karen was born and raised in Michigan and attended Detroit's Wayne 
State University, where she received a Bachelor of Arts in Speech and 
English and her Master Degree in Communication Disorders and Sciences.

[[Page E1623]]

  Mr. Speaker, I have been honored to work with this incredible woman 
on promoting sound education policy for more than two decades. I ask my 
colleagues in the House of Representatives to join me in thanking 
Deputy Superintendent Karen Philip for her remarkable service to our 
nation's children and wish she and her husband, Lou, a phenomenal 
retirement filled with exciting travel, good health and the love of 
their amazing family: Kimberly and her husband Keith, Jeff, and his 
wife Jenn, and grandchildren Lydia, Mark, Caitlin, John, Emma and 
Amelia.

                          ____________________