[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 161 (2015), Part 4]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 4862]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                  TRIBUTE TO DR. DAVID HOLMES SWINTON

                                  _____
                                 

                         HON. JAMES E. CLYBURN

                           of south carolina

                    in the house of representatives

                         Monday, April 13, 2015

  Mr. CLYBURN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to Dr. David 
Holmes Swinton in recognition of his 20 years of service as president 
of Benedict College. In commemoration of his two decades of leadership, 
he has been presented with the college's Legacy Award, an honor of 
which he is most deserving.
  Dr. Swinton's tenure at Benedict has been exemplary. He has guided 
the institution through two successful regional accreditations as well 
as the national accreditation of seven schools and programs. He has 
overseen a remarkable transformation of the Benedict campus, acquiring 
over 120 acres of new land and overseeing the construction or 
acquisition of numerous facilities, including a football stadium, six 
residence halls, a business development center, an administration 
building, a student health center, and a state-of-the-art campus center 
and dining hall. He also spearheaded the redevelopment of the 
surrounding neighborhood through Benedict's nationally recognized 
Community Development Corporation, led negotiations with the U.S. 
Department of Education for the MSIs/HBCUs on Title IV issues, and 
served as Chairman of the United Negro College Fund Member Presidents.
  Dr. Swinton's able stewardship has achieved results. Last year, 
Benedict ranked 14th in Washington Monthly's baccalaureate college 
rankings, which rated schools based on their contributions to social 
mobility, research, and service. In 2011, the college received the 
Higher Education Civic Engagement Award from the Washington Center in 
recognition of its outstanding contributions to our community. People 
have taken notice--since Dr. Swinton became president, the college's 
enrollment has more than doubled.
  The presidency of Benedict College is only the most recent position 
in which Dr. Swinton has distinguished himself. He previously served as 
Dean of the School of Business at Jackson State University and as 
Director of the Southern Center of Studies in Public Policy at Clark 
College. He is a renowned scholar, specializing in the economic status 
of African Americans. His scholarly work has been featured in an 
impressive array of publications, including the National Urban League's 
The State of Black America, American Economics Review, The Review of 
Black Political Economy, Public Administration Review, Journal of Urban 
Analysis, Business in Society, and ``. . . And Miles to Go Before I 
Sleep,'' a scholarly collection published by the Institute for Public 
Service and Policy Research of the University of South Carolina in 
commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the Brown v. Board of 
Education decision.
  With Benedict's emphasis on community service, it is fitting that Dr. 
Swinton has used his economic expertise to benefit the public. He was 
the first African American Chairman of the Greater Columbia Chamber of 
Commerce Board in the organization's 92-year history. He helped 
organize a group of investors to create South Carolina Community Bank, 
the only minority-owned bank in the state. Dr. Swinton has shown his 
commitment to be long-term, having served as an economic advisor to the 
National Urban League since 1980 and on Black Enterprise magazine's 
Board of Economists since 1990.
  With such an illustrious career, it is no surprise that Dr. Swinton 
has received numerous honors and awards, including the National 
Economic Association's Samuel Z. Westerfield Award, the Phi Beta Sigma 
Lifetime Achievement Award in Education, and the Order of the Palmetto, 
South Carolina's highest civilian honor. In 2007, he was elected to the 
South Carolina Black Hall of Fame.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask you and my colleagues to join me in congratulating 
Dr. Swinton on this milestone. I look forward to continuing to work 
with him in the years to come, and I wish him Godspeed.

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