[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 162 (2016), Part 6]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 8633]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                       HONORING DIANTHIA FORD-KEE

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. BENNIE G. THOMPSON

                             of mississippi

                    in the house of representatives

                         Monday, June 13, 2016

  Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor 
Dianthia Ford-Kee, who is a director, leader, and educator.
  While at Fayetteville State, Ford-Kee competed in basketball and 
softball. There she was a member of the 1979 CIAA Women's Basketball 
Championship Team and the 1982 CIAA Softball Championship Team. Ford-
Kee earned several All Conference and Tournament Team honors and was 
selected MVP of the 1982 Softball Championship Tournament. In 1982, she 
was selected Fayetteville State University's Athlete of the Year and 
was the youngest inductee into Fayetteville State University's Athletic 
Hall of Fame (1997).
  After earning her Master of Arts degree in Public Affairs from 
Northern Illinois University, Ford-Kee joined Shaw University as the 
Lady Bears' head volleyball and softball coach and assumed the role of 
Senior Woman Administrator (SWA).
  She guided her volleyball program to a Tournament Championship in 
1995 while earning four CIAA Softball Championships (1993, 1994, 1996, 
and 2003). Among several other accolades, Ford-Kee was a two-time 
Volleyball Coach of the Year (1995 and 2001) and four-time Softball 
Coach of the Year (1993, 1994, 1996, and 2003).
  In 2004, Ford-Kee became Shaw University's Associate Athletics 
Director. During that time, she was named the National Association of 
Collegiate Women Athletic Administrators (NACWAA)--2006 NCAA Division 
II Female Athletic Administration of the Year.
  Ford-Kee served five impactful years (2008-13) as the Director of 
Athletics at Lincoln University (PA) where she was credited with the 
improvement of retention and graduation rates of student-athletes. She 
successfully headed the transition from NCAA Division III to Division 
II and the return of Lincoln University to the CIAA.
  Ford-Kee was honored by the Black Women in Sports Foundation for her 
accomplishments at Lincoln University and in the field of athletics 
with the Legends Award. She has received several honors in the state of 
North Carolina; she was a 1998 inductee in the Wake County Academy for 
Women for Athletics and a 1999 nominee of the Governor's Distinguished 
Woman Award for Athletics.
  In October of 2009, she was honored as the recipient of the Northern 
Illinois University's College of Liberal Arts & Sciences Golden 
Anniversary Alumni Award. Ford-Kee was one of fifty alumni who have 
distinguished themselves in the careers that have contributed to the 
worlds of education, science, scholarship, business, law, medicine, 
community leadership and engagement, philanthropy and government 
service.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in recognizing Mrs. 
Dianthia Ford-Kee, a Director, Leader and Educator for her dedication 
to serving others and giving back to the African American Community.

                          ____________________