[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 153 (2007), Part 4]
[Senate]
[Page 4651]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                     TRIBUTE TO DR. CECIL J. PICARD

  Ms. LANDRIEU. Mr. President, my remarks about Senator Kennedy were 
for a happy occasion, but this is on a sad occasion. Last week--very 
close, actually, around the Senator's birthday--we lost our 
superintendent of education, Dr. Cecil Picard. Cecil Picard died 
prematurely of Lou Gehrig's disease, but he died in the arms of his 
loving wife of many years, surrounded by his children and his 
grandchildren.
  We knew for a time--and he knew, of course--that the disease that he 
had been diagnosed with 2 years earlier was going to be fatal. Although 
he fought it bravely and courageously, it took his life last week.
  My husband, Frank Snellings, served on the board of elementary and 
secondary education, and I want to say publicly what an inspiration Dr. 
Picard was to us, to our family but, more importantly, what an 
outstanding leader he was in the area of education reform in a State 
that he loved, a community which he loved and in which he served as a 
teacher, principal, superintendent, and then as superintendent of 
education of our State.
  His passion and commitment to early childhood education was 
contagious. In fact, in the last several years of my knowing Dr. 
Picard, I never had a conversation with him when he did not mention 
this subject to me. He would say: Senator, when is the next meeting 
with the Department of Education? Senator, do the other Senators 
understand how important early childhood is to this country? Do they 
really understand that without this, our children will never be ready 
to learn and will never be able to access the great benefits of the 
education infrastructure that we put together for them? Don't they 
understand?
  I would say to him: Cecil, unfortunately, they don't understand it 
the way you do. If everybody in this country had your passion and 
intellectual grasp of early childhood education, we would not be so 
grossly underfunded. Because of his work in Louisiana, we now have--and 
it is his legacy--LA4, Louisiana 4, which the majority--not all, not 
because of his lack of trying--our 4-year-olds in Louisiana are almost 
covered for early childhood opportunities. So when they show up and 
knock at that kindergarten door and that teacher welcomes them with 
open arms, those children can sit down at that desk or at that table 
and open a book and begin to really grasp and understand the letters 
and the meanings of words because they have been taught up to that 
point how to get their education started.
  Of course, learning those early language symbols and numbers and 
social interaction is so important in those early years. Cecil knew 
this. His life was committed to education, to being a leader and an 
advocate for children, a champion for the profession of teaching, with 
his enthusiasm and ability as a legislator, which is where I met him as 
a State senator and as a legislator before he was a superintendent.
  So as a father, a grandfather, a coach, a teacher, a principal, a 
senator, and as an education advocate, we cannot say strongly enough in 
Louisiana that we have truly lost a champion. We have truly lost 
someone who, in my lifetime, probably cannot be replaced. Hopefully, 
another Cecil Picard will come along, but they are few and far between.
  So I wanted to say on behalf of the 4.5 million people I represent--
and I can say this without fear of being contradicted--that he will be 
missed, but his legacy will be long remembered, not only in our hearts 
and minds but in the way people live. His legacy will be reflected in 
their life, in their productivity, and their contributions to our State 
and to our Nation.
  I yield the floor and suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Ms. LANDRIEU. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

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