[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 123 (Tuesday, July 18, 2023)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2970-S2971]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                       Tribute to Dr. Nido Qubein

  Mr. BUDD. Mr. President, I rise today to honor a distinguished North 
Carolinian and a dear friend, High Point University President Dr. Nido 
Qubein.
  Dr. Qubein immigrated to the United States from the Middle East when 
he was 17 years old. He came to our country to pursue his education and 
attend college. Needless to say, his academic achievements were 
impressive, and they were an early indication of the success he would 
build in North Carolina.
  He received his associate's degree in business from Mount Olive 
College, a bachelor's degree in human relations from High Point 
University, and a master's in business education from the University of 
North Carolina at Greensboro.
  My family and I have had the pleasure of knowing Dr. Qubein and his 
family and his wife Mariana for decades. We have been inspired by their 
dedication to education and their service to others.
  During his career in business, philanthropy, and education, Dr. 
Qubein has been widely recognized for his work. He received the Ellis 
Island Medal of Honor, the Horatio Alger Association for Distinguished 
Americans designation, the Daughters of the American Revolution 
Americanism Award, and has been inducted into the National Speakers 
Hall of Fame.
  But of all of his accomplishments, what he has been able to achieve 
for his hometown of High Point, NC, is perhaps his most indelible 
legacy. In 2005, High Point University trustees asked him to become its 
seventh President. Dr. Qubein decided to scale back his business career 
and to accept their offer to lead his alma mater. That decision 
launched a huge golden age.
  What has happened under Dr. Qubein's tenure is nothing short of a 
complete transformation of High Point

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University. Enrollment at the school has more than quadrupled--now over 
6,000. Nearly every year, HPU has topped itself, increasing the number 
of students in each year's class. In 2005, HPU had three specialized 
academic schools. Today, there are 13, including dental, law, and 
engineering. In 2005, the university had 108 full-time faculty. Today, 
they have 500. In 2005, the university's endowment was just over $45 
million. Today, it has quadrupled to $180 million. The size of the 
campus has skyrocketed by over 400 percent to 520 acres. Under Dr. 
Qubein's leadership, the university established a full-time, pro bono 
physical therapy clinic, as well as new schools for business, 
communications, law, natural sciences, health sciences, nursing, a 
school of pharmacy, a conservatory, and so much more.
  All of this growth has led to this amazing fact: The percentage of 
graduates who either begin a career or enroll in graduate school within 
180 days of earning their degree is 99 percent. That outcome is 14 
percent higher than the national average.
  The success is all the more exceptional because High Point University 
is an institution led by the values of its president. HPU is a God, 
family, and country institution. They welcome students of all 
backgrounds, but the values of faith in God and patriotism are at the 
core of what defines High Point University. They lead, and they lead 
with purpose.
  Simply put, Dr. Qubein has transformed High Point University from a 
small, little-known southern college into a nationally known and 
respected institution that now draws students from all 50 States and 
more than 50 countries around the world.
  So on behalf of the citizens of North Carolina, I would like to 
extend my sincere thanks to Dr. Nido Qubein for everything he has done 
for the city of High Point and the university that bears its name and 
for setting the standard for what it means to be an extraordinary 
American citizen.
  I yield the floor.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator from Tennessee.