[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 65 (Monday, April 18, 2022)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E390-E391]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 IN RECOGNITION OF METROPOLITAN COMMUNITY COLLEGE'S ADVANCE TECHNICAL 
                            SKILLS INSTITUTE

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. EMANUEL CLEAVER

                              of missouri

                    in the house of representatives

                         Monday, April 18, 2022

  Mr. CLEAVER. Madam Speaker, for two generations now, the promise of 
college is one on which we as a nation have largely failed to deliver. 
At a time when seven of ten undergraduate students and nine of ten Pell 
Grant recipients must take on debt simply to graduate college--a debt 
load which averages $30,000 per borrower--many families have begun 
considering alternatives. However, the WPA is gone, and with it even 
rhetorical concessions to the idea of full employment. More 
disappointingly evanescent is the yeoman idea which once accompanied 
manual labor. The artisans and mechanics of whom Jefferson wrote so 
fondly--the ideal American citizen--theirs has become an almost 
antiquarian way of life. The Great Emancipator once wrote, ``Labor is 
the superior of capital, and deserves much the higher consideration.'' 
In this vein, and on behalf of Missouri's Fifth Congressional district, 
I rise to honor Metropolitan Community College's Advanced Technical 
Skills Institute's Early College Program.
  The Early College Program allows students to consider their options, 
rather than locking them into a field of study, and allows them to

[[Page E391]]

earn college credit towards certificate and Associates programs. The 
four careers which students can pursue through the program promise 
dignified and liberating labor, livable wages, a community's respect, 
and autonomy. The pathways include HVAC, Construction Careers, 
Engineering and Technology, and Welding. The program delivers the 
institutions promise of bolstering participation in the trades and 
developing a skilled workforce that is prepared to meet the demands of 
the future. The satisfaction, the fulfilment, and the compensation that 
comes with these trades belongs to the tradesperson alone. The graduate 
will carry these with them as a badge of honor; they will wear a proud 
and dignified smile.
  Our infrastructure crumbles around us. Bridges fall. Housing stock 
sits vacant. Our water is unsafe to drink. Missouri's infrastructure 
was recently graded a C- by the White House. I am further ashamed to 
announce that this is one of the higher rankings in the nation. No 
state received a grade above C+. Great disasters--manmade disasters, 
bred of indecision and postponement, of abdication of responsibility--
await us if we do not act. We must provide avenues such as this Early 
College Program, training millions for the labor we all know is 
necessary. The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law marks the largest 
investment in Americas critical infrastructure in nearly a century and 
will create an estimated 2 million jobs per year--particularly for 
those with trade experience and technical skills. Those participating 
in MCCKC's Early College Program will be leaders in the Midwest region, 
charged with the duty to not only tackle the nation's crumbling 
infrastructure, but also in preparing for a greener future. Roosevelt 
met the Great Depression head on with a whole alphabet of innovative 
solutions: CCC, NYA, WPA. I believe this program--the MCCKC ATSI ECP, 
if you will--can serve as a model for higher education reform across 
the country.
  When I consider the endless potential of this program, I reflect on 
these historical lessons. I think of the new opportunities. I think of 
the new future these students will build together with capable hands 
and keen minds. They will become sharp without becoming narrow. They 
will graduate into good, honest careers. I hope this hallowed body 
joins me in honoring Metropolitan Community College in this tremendous 
vision, and in wishing them eternal luck in an uncertain future. They 
have my utmost confidence and support.

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