[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 16 (Monday, February 4, 2013)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E88-E89]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




        DR. PETER R. BETZER HONORED FOR HIS VISIONARY LEADERSHIP

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. C.W. BILL YOUNG

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                        Monday, February 4, 2013

  Mr. YOUNG of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I rise to join the leaders of the 
science and education community of the Tampa Bay area who are honoring 
Dr. Peter R. Betzer of St. Petersburg, Florida this Saturday with the 
2013 ARCS STEM Visionary Catalyst Award for his life-long work to 
inspire generations of students to pursue the study of science, 
technology, engineering and math, STEM.
  There is no more appropriate award with which to honor Peter than one 
that pays tribute to his vision because he has brought vision and 
strong leadership to every area in which he has been involved over the 
more than 40 years he has lived and worked in our community.
  Peter found his way to St. Petersburg in 1971 after receiving his 
Ph.D. from the University of Rhode Island. He taught chemical 
oceanography at the University of South Florida's Department of Marine 
Science. By 1982 he became Chairman of the Department and in 2000 he 
was named Dean of the newly established College of Marine Science. I 
still remember my first meetings with Peter as the Department and 
College grew. We agreed at the time that we would do all we could to 
make the University of South Florida in St. Petersburg a world-class 
center for the study of marine science. With Peter's vision and his 
passion we have done just that.
  Under Peter's guidance, the College became an important partner of 
the United States Navy in developing systems to protect our nation's 
ports and waterways as well as those of our allies. The technology and 
systems developed there have proven extremely useful to our nation's 
homeland and environmental security agencies. These include an 
underwater mass spectrometer and an underwater mapping system that have 
created tremendous commercial opportunities and were critical to 
monitoring the impact of oil from the 2010 Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill.
  The development of these systems only enhanced the growth of the 
University's reputation as a world-class center for the study of marine 
science, and strengthened Peter's efforts to bring other agencies and 
businesses to St. Petersburg: this to create a true marine science hub 
in the southeast U.S. Together, the community developed an innovative 
plan to bring the United States Geological Survey to campus and 
established an office of NOAA's National Marine Fisheries Service in 
downtown St. Petersburg. Along with the city, we developed a public/
private partnership to bring the world-renowned SRI International to 
the port and to bring nearby a new division of Draper Labs. Peter was 
at the center as the architect of all these developments. With each 
one, the opportunities to study the sciences grew along with the 
interests of local, national and international students.
  It is Dr. Peter Betzer's ability to provide the vision and act as the 
catalyst that the ARCS Foundation, which stands for Achievement Rewards 
for College Scientists, will be honoring at a dinner to raise funds to 
support Tampa Bay area students pursuing the study of science, 
technology, engineering and math.
  As a leader in Marine Science education at the University of South 
Florida, Peter recognized early-on the importance of promoting the 
broad spectrum of STEM to USF's students. Back in the early 1990's, a 
bright marine science student named Mike Morris started with an idea 
born of studying ocean chemical processes and created a company worth 
tens of millions of dollars in a few short years--

[[Page E89]]

Ocean Optics. Peter is quick to recognize that the success took a team 
led by Mike Morris, but it would not have happened if not for Peter's 
leadership, mentorship and behind-the-scenes support.
  In the world of business, Ocean Optics was just the beginning. Other 
companies, like Claro Scientific, came to St. Petersburg because of 
Peter's efforts. And, Peter's behind-the-scenes support for the ``STEM-
business'' connection was ultimately a deciding element in both SRI 
International's and Draper Lab's decisions to locate in St. Petersburg. 
Those organizations brought dozens of high-paying knowledge jobs to the 
region and thus helped to establish an emerging regional technology 
cluster.
  While Peter has always understood the importance of developing new 
businesses, for him an emphasis on education has been his highest 
priority. While leading the world-class ocean research programs at the 
College of Marine Science, Peter spearheaded the creation of the 
Oceanography Camp for Girls to inspire them to consider career 
opportunities in the sciences, with nearly 1000 ``teenaged scientists'' 
attending the camp so far. He also established a marine science-based 
remote learning program which televises informative middle-school 
marine science lessons across the country reaching tens of thousands 
more.
  When Peter retired from academic life, he decided to push the 
throttle further forward. Leading the St. Petersburg Downtown 
Partnership as its President and CEO, Peter continued to perform 
miracles. From providing vision for the downtown waterfront, to making 
international connections with world-class groups such as Cousteau 
Divers to securing businesses like LumaStream for St. Petersburg, his 
many accomplishments seem to have no end. Most noteworthy is Peter's 
passionate championing of the SunBay Digital Math program for Pinellas 
County middle schools. The SunBay math program, through a collaborative 
partnership of SRI International and the University of South Florida 
St. Petersburg, has positively impacted more than 2500 students by 
enhancing their understanding of the principles of algebra--a crucial 
element in the future success of anyone in a STEM-related career.
  Mr. Speaker, at a time when this Congress and our nation are doing 
all we can to encourage our youth to consider careers in math and 
science, let there be no doubt of Dr. Peter Betzer's life-long passion 
in this regard. For Peter, it has been a multiplier effect as the 
students he has inspired throughout his career have in turn passed 
along Peter's passion to their students and coworkers to bring more 
interest and more focus to STEM education and careers. There is clearly 
no one more deserving of the ARCS STEM Visionary Catalyst Award than 
Dr. Peter Betzer and I am proud to say to him thank you for a job well 
done.

                          ____________________