[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 160 (2014), Part 13]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages 18857-18858]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                      RECOGNIZING DONALD E. GRAHAM

                                 ______
                                 

                       HON. ELEANOR HOLMES NORTON

                      of the district of columbia

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, December 11, 2014

  Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to ask my colleagues to join me 
in recognizing Donald E. Graham for his outstanding contributions to 
the nation and to the people of the nation's capital. Don Graham is 
best known for his unique contributions to the field of journalism, but 
he is also greatly admired in the District of Columbia, his hometown, 
as a citizen and leader.
  For more than four decades, Don Graham has played a significant role 
in the life of the nation and here in the District of Columbia. Don 
served his country for two years during the Vietnam War, prior to 
returning to the District of Columbia and joining the D.C.'s police 
department, the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD). At MPD, Don 
courageously dedicated himself to serving the residents of the District 
as a patrol officer in the Ninth Precinct in the Northeast section of 
the District of Columbia. Only after charting his life with these 
experiences, life changing in themselves, did Don begin his career in 
professional journalism, in 1971, when he joined the family business as 
a reporter. Don Graham proceeded to come up through the ranks of the 
Washington Post and eventually became Publisher of the paper and then 
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Washington Post Company. 
During his tenure, Don Graham shepherded a historic era at the Post. 
Under his leadership, the Post not only won more than 20 Pulitzer 
Prizes, it entered into the digital age, launched a website, and began 
printing in color.
  Beyond his stellar accomplishments in journalism, Don Graham also has 
made notable contributions to the District of Columbia and its 
residents. He has continued a family tradition of service to the 
District with special attention to secondary education and higher 
education. Don was the driving force behind the D.C. Tuition Assistance 
Grant program (DCTAG), not

[[Page 18858]]

only in our ability to achieve federal funding for higher education 
unique to the District, but in what it has taken to maintain it for 15 
years. DCTAG has doubled college attendance in the District of 
Columbia, allowing D.C. students, who have no state university system, 
to attend any state university in the country with up to $10,000 per 
year in assistance. Moreover, Don has gone even further in pursuit of 
higher education opportunities for D.C. residents. He is a co-founder 
of the D.C. College Access Program, which has assisted over 13,000 D.C. 
students and provided over $18 million in scholarships. Most recently, 
Don has formed TheDream.US, a new scholarship program that seeks to 
assist undocumented students, who cannot qualify for federal financial 
aid programs. Don sold the Post to engage in other pursuits, leaving 
the paper in good hands to continue its distinctive contributions. 
However, Don Graham's dedicated public service as a private citizen 
continues to this day.
  Mr. Speaker, I could only summarize Donald E. Graham's achievements. 
Even so, it should now be clear why I ask my colleagues to join me in 
honoring Donald E. Graham for his service to American journalism and 
for his continuing service to the residents of the District of 
Columbia.

                          ____________________