[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 149 (2003), Part 14]
[Senate]
[Pages 19608-19609]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                          MARTIN BAILEY PIERCE

  Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. President, it is with a tremendous amount of pride 
that I take to the floor today to discuss the accomplishments of one of 
Alabama's native sons, 2LT Martin Bailey Pierce. This remarkable young 
man has achieved a truly auspicious honor: he has been named the 
valedictorian of West Point's class of 2003. In both word and deed, 
this is a young man who truly has lived up to the Army's challenge to 
``be all that you can be.''
  When the selection committee I have established to review potential 
service academy nominations forwarded Martin Pierce's name to me, I 
knew that he had the potential to be a fine selection. After all, he 
had been the 1999 valedictorian at UMS-Wright, formerly

[[Page 19609]]

known as University Military School, which is a prestigious school in 
Mobile, AL. Additionally, he had the full support of his two loving 
parents, Bailey and Susann, who had obviously instilled a sense of 
duty, honor and commitment in their son. There was little doubt in my 
mind that the traits 2LT Pierce had exhibited up to that point in time 
would serve him well at West Point.
  However, the same could be said of most of the 846 cadets who 
graduated alongside Martin in the class of 2003. The service academys 
attract a special kind of applicant, and those that are accepted tend 
to be individuals of great capabilities. Therefore when someone 
achieves the kind of academic success that 2LT Pierce has, there is a 
special satisfaction that he has done so while placed among the best 
and brightest.
  I would like to take a few moments to place Mr. Pierce's West Point 
record in perspective. He became valedictorian by posting a GPA of 
4.086 in the field of electrical/chemical engineering, and he was a 
dean's list member throughout his time at the academy. He also was one 
of only 144 recipients of the Gold Star and Wreath. This honor required 
Martin to achieve distinguished cadet status and to also become a 
Superintendent's Individual Award winner. In order to qualify for the 
Gold Star, Martin had to not only maintain a GPA of 3.67 or greater, 
but he also had to excel in West Point's academic, military and 
physical programs.
  And excel in these programs he did. In addition to his exceptional 
work in the classroom, 2LT Pierce was a 4-year member of the Army's 
Black Knights football team, where he lettered as an outside 
linebacker. His accomplishments on the field and in the classroom also 
led him to be recognized nationally when he was awarded the Home Depot 
Scholar Athlete Award during the December 7, 2002 telecast of the Army/
Navy game.
  If these achievements weren't enough, Martin saved his best for last. 
On June 1, 2LT Pierce married the former Michelle Ann Czyz in a 
ceremony in West Point, NY. Who knows? Perhaps this union foreshadows 
another valedictorian in a future West Point class.
  And so 2LT Martin Bailey Pierce has left a mark upon the U.S. 
Military Academy as indelible as the mark the service academy has left 
on him. In doing so, he has come to exemplify the West Point's mission 
``to educate, train, and inspire the Corps of Cadets so that each 
graduate is a commissioned leader of character committed to the values 
of Duty, Honor, Country; professional growth throughout a career as an 
officer in the United States Army; and a lifetime of selfless service 
to the nation.'' I am proud he is an Alabamian, and proud to know that 
he will continue and add to our State's remarkable record of producing 
outstanding cadets and soldiers. I congratulate 2LT Pierce for his 
accomplishments, and look forward to what I am sure will be a career 
that will make all members of the long gray line proud.

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