[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 76 (Tuesday, May 20, 2014)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E775-E776]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      HONORING MS. MARY ANN TYLER

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. BENNIE G. THOMPSON

                               of georgia

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, May 20, 2014

  Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor an 
outstanding young lady making a difference in her school and her life. 
She is a student at West Tallahatchie High School in Tallahatchie 
County, MS, Ms. Mary Ann Tyler.
  Ninth grade is a time when most fourteen year olds are just entering 
their first year of high school and getting acclimated to it. Ms. 
Tyler's life changed in the ninth grade. She became a teenage mother. 
But she did not let that change define her future.
  Ms. Tyler said she started believing in herself and taking steps to 
define and construct her future. She started by attending class more 
often, turning those absentees into presents; she began joining school 
organizations and clubs. Those among other changes have been the 
turning point of life.
  There is a saying that ``attitude can help determine your altitude.'' 
Well, Ms. Tyler has embraced that philosophy which has yielded her some 
positive returns. During her tenth grade year, she joined the Future 
Business Leaders of America (FBLA), and the Student Government 
Association (SGA) where she did more than just join, she was elected by 
her peers as the secretary. Organization and reliability is a great 
attribute.
  As a member of the Future Business Leaders of America she progressed 
to the state competition to represent her school and there she placed 
third in the Community Service Project division of the FBLA 
competition.
  The years just kept getting better and the growth and development in 
Ms. Tyler was starting to take notice. She rejoined the FBLA and SGA 
school organizations in her junior year of high school. This time she 
served as the Vice-President of both organizations, a position bestowed 
upon her through the voting process of peer election. She was also 
inducted into the Beta Club and voted the ``Most Improved Student.''
  By the time Ms. Tyler was a senior in high school, leadership was 
natural and parenting was a role that she did not take for granted. She 
not only wanted to challenge herself to reach higher ground but, she 
also wanted to use her climb as an example for her child, knowing that 
someday she would tell her story of being a teen mom but not letting 
that define her future. During her senior year, Ms. Tyler became the 
president of SGA and the treasurer of the Beta Club.

[[Page E776]]

  Her grade point average has soared to 3.79, which was commendable, 
given her responsibilities.
  Ms. Tyler's plans beyond high school include college with her sights 
set on a degree in Business Administration, then on to graduate school 
to pursue her MBA. You see all those years in FBLA and SGA have paid 
off because they have motivated her to think about her future. She has 
a dream of owning her own business. I am proud to have Ms. Tyler as a 
citizen of the Second Congressional District of Mississippi.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in recognizing Ms. Mary 
Ann Tyler, an amazing student for her dedication to succeed.

                          ____________________