[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 53 (Monday, March 24, 2025)]
[Senate]
[Page S1800]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        TRIBUTE TO MARK SWEENEY

  Mr. VAN HOLLEN. Mr. President, I rise today to pay tribute to a 
dedicated public servant and Marylander Mark Sweeney, Principal Deputy 
Librarian of Congress. With almost 40 years of unwavering service to 
the Library of Congress, Mr. Sweeney has faithfully served our Nation 
by preserving our knowledge, history, and culture.
  Throughout his distinguished career, Mr. Sweeney served the Library 
of Congress in multiple positions. He began his career at the Library 
in 1985 as a Library technician. His hard work, expertise, and 
dedication led to multiple promotions, including to Chief of the 
Preservation Reformatting Division, Chief of the Humanities and Social 
Sciences Division, and the Library's Director of Preservation.
  Throughout his career, Mr. Sweeney's dedication to preserving and 
enhancing knowledge strengthened the experiences of visitors to the 
Library of Congress. As Principal Deputy Librarian of Congress, he 
envisioned the Library's first user-centered strategic plan and 
contributed to the implementation of the Visitor Experience Master 
Plan.
  In addition, through Mr. Sweeney's leadership and support, access to 
our Nation's historical newspapers increased, conserving our history 
and culture. As the Library's technical adviser to the U.S. Newspaper 
Program, Mr. Sweeney contributed to the locating, preservation, 
cataloging, and dissemination of newspapers from the 18th century to 
the present that were published in the United States. In addition, Mr. 
Sweeney guided and supported the Library's team for the National 
Digital Newspaper Program to strengthen access to newspapers through 
technology. Mr. Sweeney's leadership also extends past the Library of 
Congress; his efforts to increase the accessibility of America's 
history and culture have been used as a model throughout our Nation to 
better the conservation of newspapers.
  I commend Mr. Sweeney for his remarkable commitment to preserving our 
Nation's history and strengthening accessibility to sources of 
knowledge. His legacy is one of drive, passion, and encouragement of 
his colleagues and many others. I congratulate and thank Mr. Sweeney 
for his dedication to our Nation. I ask my colleagues to join me in 
thanking him and wishing him a well-earned, enjoyable, and fulfilling 
retirement.

                          ____________________