[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 163 (2017), Part 7]
[Senate]
[Page 8874]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                       TRIBUTE TO DANIELLE RIPICH

 Mr. KING. Mr. President, today I wish to recognize Danielle 
Ripich, who is retiring from over a decade of service not only to 
students but also to the State of Maine as president of the University 
of New England, UNE, this month.
  Even though Danielle is not a native of Maine, she has, in every 
regard, embraced, cherished, and served the State just as any Mainer 
would. Under her tenure, UNE grew from 4,000 students to more than 
10,000, increased its operating surplus by $127 million, expanded its 
campuses in Biddeford and Portland while opening a campus in Tangier, 
Morocco--making UNE the only U.S. institution of higher education to 
own a study-abroad campus specifically designed for the needs of 
science students--and launched three new colleges within the 
university. Additionally, in the midst of a national crisis over 
student loans, Danielle presided over one of the lowest default rates 
nationally on student loans at only 2.5 percent, even with 95 percent 
of students at the university taking out loans.
  A native of Ohio, Danielle began her impressive scholarly journey on 
her home turf, receiving her Ph.D. in speech pathology from Kent State 
University and both her bachelor's and master's degrees in speech 
pathology from Cleveland State University. She then went on to serve in 
leadership roles at Case Western Reserve University and later became 
dean of the college of health professions, as well as a professor in 
the college of medicine's department of neurology at Medical University 
of South Carolina before joining UNE.
  Danielle's accomplishments span beyond her work in higher education. 
As a result of her successful efforts in expanding both accessibility 
and opportunities at UNE for Maine's best and brightest, UNE's 
contribution to the Maine economy has topped more than $1 billion per 
year, with an annual donation of more than $21 million worth of health 
services to the community. The university is considered the leading 
supplier of healthcare professionals for the State of Maine. Danielle 
was named the 2016 Mainebiz Nonprofit Business Leader of the Year and 
is internationally recognized for her language research, particularly 
in the areas of child language and Alzheimer's disease and other forms 
of dementia. Adding to her already remarkable and diverse portfolio of 
accomplishments, she was named a congressional fellow by the American 
Association for the Advancement of Science.
  Throughout her years of service to the State, our country, and the 
world at large in her roles including president of UNE, mentor to 
student, and trailblazer in child language and Alzheimer's disease 
research, Danielle has demonstrated remarkable citizenship and a 
commitment to higher education, medicine, and community progress that 
is rarely seen. The UNE that has evolved from Danielle's vision is 
bold, innovative, eager to disrupt the status quo, socially conscious 
and committed to imbuing its students with global awareness. I am glad 
to add my voice to all those who are recognizing Danielle's 
distinguished career, and I thank Danielle for her service and many 
contributions to our State.

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