[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 151 (2005), Part 16]
[House]
[Page 21895]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




             CONGRATULATING ST. MARY'S COLLEGE OF MARYLAND

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Hoyer) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. HOYER. Mr. Speaker, one of the biggest cliches in sports is that 
you do not want your team to be number two.
  However, the same does not hold true in other areas. That is why 
today I want to congratulate the entire St. Mary's College of Maryland 
community, including the students, alumni and parents and President 
Margaret O'Brien and the extraordinary faculty, for being ranked the 
number two public liberal arts college in the Nation.
  Mr. Speaker, it will surprise no one that St. Mary's College is in my 
district. Furthermore, for full disclosure, I am on the board of 
trustees of St. Mary's College. It is an extraordinary institution of 
higher learning.
  In fact, according to the latest college rankings by the magazine 
U.S. News and World Report, St. Mary's College is again one of the top 
100 liberal arts colleges in the Nation, rising to 84 from 87 the year 
before. So not only is it number two of small colleges; it is number 84 
in the entire Nation of all colleges.
  When it comes to public liberal arts colleges, St. Mary's finished 
only behind the Virginia Military Institute in the U.S. News rankings.
  Those rankings are based upon several criteria of academic 
excellence, including graduation and retention rates, faculty resources 
and peer assessment.
  And this year, St. Mary's peer assessment rose to 2.9 out of a 
possible 5.0, and the freshmen retention rate rose to 88 percent.
  Mr. Speaker, with roots going back to 1840, St. Mary's College is the 
State of Maryland's only public honors college, offering the academic 
excellence of a top private college with the openness and affordability 
of public education.
  Today, about 1,950 men and women from 35 States and 23 countries 
attend St. Mary's, and the average SAT score for the entering freshmen 
is 1,252. The faculty also has distinguished itself, and more than 94 
percent hold doctorate degrees.
  By combining the virtues of public and private education, St. Mary's 
provides a unique alternative for students and their families. This 
special identity underpins the college's success and its reputation for 
excellence, in a waterfront setting in the heart of the Chesapeake Bay 
region just 70 miles southeast of Washington. It is an extraordinarily 
beautiful setting for an extraordinarily excellent college.
  Mr. Speaker, as a member of the college's board of trustees since 
1995, I have seen this wonderful institution flourish over the last 
decade, and I am particularly pleased to see St. Mary's is winning 
national recognition among it peers. This is not the first time that 
has been the case, but it is a continuing affirmation of the excellence 
at St. Mary's.
  Our 34th President, John F. Kennedy, once said: ``Education is the 
mainspring of our economic and social progress. It is the highest 
expression of achievement in our society, ennobling and enriching human 
life.''
  Mr. Speaker, St. Mary's College of Maryland truly enriches southern 
Maryland and our entire State. I want to congratulate the entire St. 
Mary's College community on receiving this latest national recognition. 
Well done, well deserved.

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