[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 36 (Wednesday, March 13, 2013)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1783-S1784]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         ADDITIONAL STATEMENTS

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                    REMEMBERING DR. DONALD ZACHARIAS

 Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, Mississippi State University and 
my State of Mississippi lost one of its most outstanding leaders with 
the passing of Dr. Donald Zacharias on March 3 at the age of 77. Dr. 
Zacharias served as the president of Mississippi State University from 
1985-1997. His name became synonymous with the highest qualities of 
leadership, vision, and humanity. He was blessed with gifts that 
enabled him to make important contributions to higher education 
throughout the country.
  I ask that a March 3, 2013 article from the Clarion-Ledger newspaper 
titled ``Former MSU president Donald Zacharias' legacy one of 
transformation,'' be printed in the Record.
  The article follows.

                [From the Clarion-Ledger, Mar. 3, 2013]

  Former MSU President Donald Zacharias' Legacy One of Transformation

                           (By Therese Apel)

       Former Mississippi State University President Donald 
     Zacharias is being remembered among friends, family and MSU 
     faithful as a man with a vision for the university--and a man 
     who left a legacy of growth and progress at the school he 
     loved.
       Zacharias, who led the Starkville university from 1985-97, 
     died Sunday of complications from multiple sclerosis after an 
     extended illness. He was 77.
       ``He had an influence not just on MSU but on higher 
     education at large in Mississippi,'' said Sid Salter, 
     director of University Relations. ``He had some rather 
     tumultuous battles with the Legislature over funding higher 
     education. I think that's really where he could shine in his 
     ability and his willingness to fight for what he believed 
     in.''
       Roy Ruby was vice president for student affairs when 
     Zacharias joined the MSU family and later was dean of the 
     College of Education and interim president of the university. 
     Until a year ago, when Zacharias was admitted to a nursing 
     home, the two were neighbors.
       ``He was a man of solid integrity, and he was a man of his 
     word,'' said Ruby. ``He was a man who, in all aspects of his 
     life, tried to do right. He was a good family man, a good 
     citizen of the state, and an exemplary college 
     administrator.''
       Current MSU President Mark Keenum said Zacharias was 
     someone he looked up to.
       ``I counted him as a friend, a mentor and an inspiration. 
     Don Zacharias was a man of

[[Page S1784]]

     great courage and dignity--and he was one of the most 
     influential leaders in the history of Mississippi higher 
     education,'' Keenum said.
       Salter said he and his late wife, Paula, who also had 
     multiple sclerosis, were friends with Zacharias and his wife 
     of 53 years, Tommie.
       ``They took an interest in Paula, and, ironically, he would 
     later be diagnosed with MS,'' Salter said. ``He had a 
     tremendous impact on me. He was a solid guy and a man of 
     great integrity.''
       Zacharias brought Mississippi State to a new level of 
     prominence during his 12\1/2\ years of service.
       He raised MSU's visibility and reputation nationally, and 
     enrollment climbed to the largest in the state at almost 
     16,000. African-American enrollment more than doubled to 
     2,200, 15 percent of the student body and the highest 
     percentage among SEC schools, according to a Sunday news 
     release from the university.
       Enrollment, private contributions, research and athletic 
     achievement all grew significantly as part of Zacharias' 
     legacy.
       ``Dr. Donald Zacharias was a transformative figure at 
     Mississippi State University,'' Keenum said. ``He really 
     helped bring MSU into the modern era, and he did so by 
     developing a broad vision for the leadership that Mississippi 
     needed from a land grant university.''
       Zacharias, upon his retirement from MSU, said: ``I saw 
     things in Mississippi State University that others might not 
     have seen. I felt that I had made the right decision to be at 
     this university because I liked both what it stood for and 
     its overall character. I liked its mission, and I liked the 
     students and alumni. I saw the potential.''
       Gary Harris, a coach and educator at Heritage Academy in 
     Columbus who graduated from MSU in the early 1990s, said he 
     remembers Zacharias as someone who was able to connect with 
     everyone, regardless of their backgrounds.
       ``Because of my involvement in several campus 
     organizations, I was around Dr. Z many times,'' he said. ``He 
     was a very kind, knowledgeable man who always seemed to know 
     how to make everyone in the room seem important. He was a 
     tremendous leader for our campus during some very difficult 
     financial times.''
       Salter said many of Zacharias' dreams for the university 
     continue to be fulfilled.
       ``He had a long reach, and his influence extended past his 
     own tenure as president.''
       Funeral arrangements are incomplete, but the Zacharias 
     family will communicate details through the university. A 
     public memorial service is tentatively planned for Thursday 
     on the Starkville campus of MSU.

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