[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 161 (2015), Part 14]
[Senate]
[Page 20133]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                TRIBUTE TO DR. ROBERT E. WOLVERTON, SR.

 Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, I am pleased to commend the 
remarkable 66-year, and still counting, career of Mississippi State 
University professor and lifelong educator, Robert E. ``Bob'' 
Wolverton, Sr., of Starkville, MS. His many years of hard work and 
dedication continue to inspire the Mississippi State family to learn 
more and achieve more for the betterment of our State and Nation. I 
congratulate Dr. Wolverton for his important contributions to higher 
education throughout his distinguished career. He and his wife, Peggy, 
are well respected and admired throughout the university and community.
  Mr. President, I ask that a December 1, 2015, article from 
Mississippi State University, titled ``MSU honors Wolverton with naming 
of new building rotunda,'' be printed in the Record.
  The material follows:

                [From the Mississippi State University, 
                             Dec. 1, 2015]

        MSU Honors Wolverton With Naming of New Building Rotunda

                           (By Harriet Laird)

       Starkville, MS.--An accomplished professor and lifelong 
     educator whose career spans more than six decades will be 
     honored by Mississippi State with the naming of a select area 
     in one of the university's newest and largest buildings.
       Robert E. ``Bob'' Wolverton Sr., former vice president for 
     academic affairs and longtime professor of classics, will see 
     his name etched into the rotunda of MSU's new classroom 
     building, a 150,000 square foot structure currently under 
     construction in the heart of the 137-year-old campus. The 
     honor comes while the 90-year-old educator is still active as 
     a member of the MSU faculty.
       Seeing more than 2,000 students walk each day through the 
     facility's rotunda once construction is completed in the fall 
     of 2016, this naming reflects Wolverton's dedication to 
     educating students for 66 years, 38 of those at Mississippi 
     State.
       ``Simply put, Dr. Wolverton is a venerable institution at 
     our university,'' said MSU President Mark E. Keenum. ``At an 
     age where most professors have long since retired, Dr. 
     Wolverton continues to inspire his students, his colleagues, 
     and this administration through his true wisdom and the 
     passion he still has for the subject matter he imparts. What 
     a fitting honor that the rotunda in one of our soon-to-be 
     iconic buildings will forever bear his name.''
       Wolverton began his tenure at MSU in 1977 when he became 
     the university's vice president of academic affairs, having 
     served previously as president for the College of Mount St. 
     Joseph in Ohio. In 1986, he began teaching in the Department 
     of Foreign Languages, now the Department of Classical and 
     Modern Languages and Literatures, serving as the unit's head 
     from 1991-1996.
       A two-term chair of MSU's Robert Holland Faculty Senate, he 
     last held the title eight years ago at age 82, with many 
     regarding him as the ``elder statesman'' in such a position 
     at any college or university.
       Also an MSU John Grisham Master Teacher, the highest honor 
     given for excellence in classroom instruction, Wolverton has 
     been honored with the MSU Alumni Association Faculty 
     Achievement Award and College of Arts and Sciences Humanist 
     Award.
       ``All of us admire Bob Wolverton for his unwavering 
     commitment to excellence in teaching and to the students of 
     MSU,'' said Jerry Gilbert, MSU provost and executive vice 
     president. ``Through his many years of service, he has 
     established himself as a tremendous asset to the university. 
     I am so proud that we have chosen to recognize Bob by naming 
     the rotunda in his honor.''
       Wolverton holds a bachelor's degree in classics from 
     Hanover (Indiana) College, a master's from the University of 
     Michigan, and a doctorate from the University of North 
     Carolina. He has been on the faculty at the University of 
     Georgia, and Tufts and Florida State universities.
       Active in the community, he was honored in 2001 as one of 
     Mississippi's ``Ageless Heroes'' by Blue Cross and Blue 
     Shield of Mississippi. He has served as a board member for 
     the Starkville Friends of the Library, president of the 
     Starkville-MSU Symphony Association, and was a founding 
     member of the Starkville Community Theatre.

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