[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 158 (2012), Part 7]
[Senate]
[Page 9174]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                         ADDITIONAL STATEMENTS

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                         TRIBUTE TO CHRIS BERN

 Mr. HARKIN. Mr. President, Chris Bern retires on July 14 as 
president of the Iowa State Education Association after completing his 
second two-year term in that position. Chris is a longtime advocate for 
quality education within ISEA and is an important voice for teachers at 
the local, State, and national levels. I have valued Chris's views on a 
variety of education issues.
  I am especially grateful to Chris for his leadership on anti-
harassment and anti-bullying issues within the Iowa State Education 
Association and the National Education Association. Chris understood 
the importance of anti-bullying efforts before recent events drew 
national attention to the topic. Chris is a certified trainer for the 
NEA's program on school safety and anti-harassment issues. One of his 
leadership priorities at ISEA has been to promote anti-bullying 
awareness in our schools, traveling to locals around the State to talk 
about how to protect students from mistreatment by their peers.
  After graduation from Buena Vista College, Chris started his teaching 
career as a junior high school math teacher in Woodbine, IA and then 
moved to Knoxville, IA, where he taught high school math. He soon 
became involved in the Iowa State Education Association, serving in a 
variety of local, State and national roles. Chris spent 11 years on 
various committees, including the ISEA Resolutions and New Business 
Committee. He was elected vice president of the ISEA in 2006 and, on 
the national level, was a member of the NEA Resolutions Committee.
  As Chris retires from his presidency of the Iowa State Education 
Association, I wish him the very best. Chris' service to education as a 
teacher and ISEA leader remind me of the quote by American essayist 
Christopher Morley who said, ``Things of the spirit differ from things 
material in that the more you give the more you have.''
  Indeed, Chris Bern has much. I wish him the best in his future 
endeavors.

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