[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 128 (Thursday, September 20, 2012)]
[Senate]
[Page S6541]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         TRIBUTE TO BILL SHUEY

 Mr. WHITEHOUSE. Mr. President, today I wish to recognize Bill 
Shuey, Director of the International Institute of Rhode Island. Bill is 
retiring after nearly three decades of service to the Rhode Island 
community.
  I have witnessed Bill Shuey's effective and innovative leadership 
since my days as a member of the International Institute's Board of 
Directors in the 1980s. The Institute's mission is to provide the 
educational, legal, and social tools immigrants and refugees need to 
gain self-sufficiency and contribute to their communities--the very 
building blocks of the American dream. Since taking the helm of the 
Institute in 1984, Bill has overseen the growth of the Institute's 
budget and highly skilled staff, as well as its relocation to a new 
home on Elmwood Avenue in Providence. Bill and his staff have served 
immigrants and refugees who have come to Rhode Island and southeastern 
New England from the Dominican Republic, Colombia, Guatemala, Eritrea, 
Ethiopia, Liberia, Cambodia, Burma, Laos, Bhutan, Iraq, Lebanon, 
Armenia, and many other countries.
  Bill's father was a school principal who started an American school 
in Addis Ababa in 1966. In 2000, Bill made him proud when the 
International Institute founded a K-5 multilingual charter school in 
Pawtucket. About 300 students now attend the school, which immerses 
students in Spanish, Portuguese, and English.
  Thanks to Bill's vision, the International Institute has plans to 
expand its services further through a merger with Dorcas Place, an 
adult education organization that focuses on literacy and language 
skills as well as job training and preparation.
  I should mention that Bill's dedication to making a difference in the 
lives of others carries over into his private life. In addition to 
being a proud father, step-father, and grandfather, Bill is the foster 
parent of the son of Cambodian immigrants, who is now a student in law 
school.
  Through building effective partnerships between non-profits, 
government, and the private sector, Bill has helped knit the fabric of 
our community in Rhode Island to connect thousands of individuals with 
the skills they need to become productive members of Rhode Island's 
workforce and society. Rhode Island has a long tradition of being 
enriched, culturally and economically, by immigrants who came to our 
shores with the American dream in their hearts. Bill has helped so many 
of them get a welcome start. I wish him heartfelt congratulations and 
gratitude for his years of service to the people of Rhode 
Island.

                          ____________________