[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 60 (Thursday, April 3, 2025)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E284]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




      CELEBRATING THE 160TH ANNIVERSARY OF BOWIE STATE UNIVERSITY

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                          HON. STENY H. HOYER

                              of maryland

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, April 3, 2025

  Mr. HOYER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor a terrific institution 
that I am proud to represent in Maryland's Fifth District: Bowie State 
University. On January 9, 2025. the school marked its 160th 
anniversary. The school will celebrate that historic milestone with a 
gala later this month.
  The oldest historically Black university in Maryland, Bowie State 
University (BSU) has been a beacon of opportunity, innovation, and 
academic excellence in our state and country ever since it was founded 
as the Baltimore Normal School for Colored Teachers in 1865. Many of 
its first students were recently emancipated Marylanders. The school 
offered Black Americans a pathway to educational--and economic--
advancement at a time when they were largely barred from such 
opportunities.
  Back in 1865, the school had only a few small rooms and a handful of 
students. Today, BSU boasts a 339-acre campus and over 6,350 
undergraduate and graduate students. It offers more than 65 bachelor's, 
master's, doctoral, and certificate programs. From quantum computing 
and artificial intelligence to biotech and pharmaceutical development, 
BSU students are producing cutting-edge research in the fields that 
will define the global 21st-century economy. Indeed, just this year, 
BSU received the distinguished 2025 Carnegie Research Activity 
Classification in recognition of its trailblazing research.
  Mr. Speaker, I've worked with many BSU students, faculty, and staff 
over the decades, and I can personally attest to how impressive they 
are. They are leaders not only in their fields but also in our 
community.
  I ask my colleagues to join me in congratulating them on this 
milestone. I have no doubt that BSU's next 160 years will be just as 
successful as its first 160 years.

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