[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 193 (Monday, November 17, 2025)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1075]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   HONORING JOYCE T. ARCENEAUX-MATHIS

                                  _____
                                 

                        HON. BENNIE G. THOMPSON

                             of mississippi

                    in the house of representatives

                       Monday, November 17, 2025

  Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor a 
remarkable servant, Joyce T. Arceneaux-Mathis.
  Joyce Arceneaux-Mathis is a cum laude graduate of Southern University 
in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, where she earned a degree in Music 
Education. She later received a magna cum laude Master of Music 
Education degree from Loyola University.
  Mrs. Arceneaux-Mathis has 38 years of experience in education, 
including 30 years of dedicated service to students in the Natchez-
Adams County School District, four years in the Detroit Public Schools, 
and four years as President of the Mississippi Association of 
Educators. She currently serves as an adjunct instructor at Copiah-
Lincoln Community College's Natchez Campus, where she teaches Music 
Appreciation.
  In 1996, Mrs. Arceneaux-Mathis became the first Black woman elected 
to the Natchez Board of Aldermen, representing Ward 1. In that 
position, she has chaired the Utilities, Public Properties, Fire, and 
Recreation Committees. In 2008, she was selected by the Board of 
Aldermen to serve as Mayor Pro Tempore, a role she held until 2020. She 
was inducted into the Mississippi Municipal League's Hall of Fame in 
2016.
  Mrs. Arceneaux-Mathis has also been deeply involved in civic and 
political engagement. She was elected as a delegate to the Democratic 
National Convention for three assemblies--1992, 1996, and 2000--and 
served as an At-Large Member of the Democratic National Committee from 
1993 to 2001. In 1998, she made an historic run for Congress to 
represent Mississippi's Fourth Congressional District.
  Joyce is the daughter of Eddie and Thelma Turner. She is married to 
Jewell Mathis and is the proud mother of Joycelyn Yvette Hooker. She is 
a member of St. John United Methodist Church, a retired member of the 
Retired Education Personnel of Mississippi, and Director of The Mathis 
School of Music. She currently serves as President of the Natchez NAACP 
and is a founding member of the Natchez Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma 
Theta Sorority, Incorporated.
  Mrs. Arceneaux-Mathis has been named Woman of the Year by the Bluff 
City Post and has received three citations from the Natchez NAACP, 
including the Medgar Evers Award for ``Enhancing the Dream'' (2014), 
Woman of the year (2016), and the Phillip ``Bucket'' West Public 
Official Award (2018).
  Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in recognizing Joyce T. 
Arceneaux-Mathis for her outstanding leadership, dedication, and 
lifelong service to the Natchez, Mississippi community.

                          ____________________