[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 37 (Monday, February 27, 2023)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E153]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       HONORING DR. CHARLES MAGEE

                                 ______
                                 

                      HON. SANFORD D. BISHOP, JR.

                               of georgia

                    in the house of representatives

                       Monday, February 27, 2023

  Mr. BISHOP of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor a dedicated 
husband, loving father, accomplished professor, stellar researcher, and 
admiring trailblazer, Dr. Charles Magee. Dr. Magee was honored on 
Sunday, February 26, 2023, at an African American History Program at 
Mount Calvary Missionary Baptist Church in Cairo, Georgia.
  The genesis of Dr. Magee's began in Prentis, Mississippi. He is a 
proud graduate of Johnson High School. Dr. Magee's higher education 
journey began at Alcorn State University where he received a bachelor's 
degree in Animal Science in 1970. He went on to receive a master's 
degree in Agricultural Engineering from the University of Minnesota at 
St. Paul in 1973. Finally, he received his Ph.D. in Agricultural and 
Biological Engineering from Cornell University in 1980.
  Excellence has defined his extraordinary professional life. His 
professional career has taken him to some of the finest universities in 
the world to include the University of Minnesota at St. Paul, North 
Carolina A and T, Cornell University; the University of Arkansas at 
Fayetteville, Fort Valley State University, and Florida A and M 
University.
  Throughout his career he has been a trailblazing professor and 
scholar. He was the first African American to earn a master's degree 
from the University of Minnesota; the first African American to earn a 
Ph.D. in Agricultural and biological engineering from Cornell 
University; the first African American graduate of a historically black 
college or university (Alcorn State University) to earn a Ph.D. in 
Agricultural and Biological Engineering; and the first African American 
assistant professor in the college of Agriculture at the University of 
Arkansas-Fayetteville. He developed the first patent in the history of 
Fort Valley State University and the Biological Systems Engineering 
(BSE) program at FAMU. He is a founding and charter member of the 
National Society of Minorities in Agriculture, Natural Resources, and 
Related Sciences and the first African American Engineer to be elected 
in the National Institute of Food and Agriculture Hall of Fame in 2020. 
Although he has been a trailblazer, his life has not been without his 
share of difficulties and obstacles. He has persevered and our Nation 
and world are better for it. Sometimes he had to stand alone, but he 
stood tall.
  A selfless servant, Dr. Magee has always had at the forefront of his 
mind the fact that he must address the issue of underrepresented 
populations in STEM careers. Dr. Magee has meant the world to his 
students through his mentorship, some have even followed in his 
enormous footsteps. His influence has been paramount in their lives.
  Dr. Magee is a creative genius who has had eight U.S. patents that 
have been approved and eight that are pending. His life is an example 
of how one person can make a difference when carrying out God's plan 
for their life.
  The great Agricultural Chemist, George Washington Carver once said, 
``It is not the style of clothes one wears, neither the kind of 
automobile one drives, nor the amount of money one has in the bank that 
counts. These mean nothing. It is simply service that measures 
success.'' Charles Magee is truly a servant.
  Dr. Magee has accomplished much in his life but none of this would 
have been possible without the love and support of his wife, Audrey and 
his children, Candace and Darian.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues in the House of Representatives to 
join my wife, Vivian, and me, along with the more than 765,000 people 
in Georgia's Second Congressional District in extending our sincerest 
gratitude to Dr. Charles Magee for his service to God, humankind, and 
our world. To God be the Glory.

                          ____________________