To designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 11110 Sunset Hills Road in Reston, Virginia, as the "Martha Pennino Post Office Building".

Mr. Speaker, I very much thank my friend and colleague, the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Davis), and the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Tom Davis), the chairman of the committee, who I know felt very strongly about Martha, having served with her, and was a close friend to her.

As my friend said, on September 17, Fairfax County lost one of its most important and influential citizens ever. Martha Pennino was known as Mother Fairfax. Through her leadership, Martha Pennino helped oversee development of Fairfax County into one the most successful jurisdictions in the entire country. She was a kind and compassionate public servant who made sure that all people were treated fairly, regardless of their circumstance.

Born in Roanoke, Virginia, as the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Tom Davis) said, she grew up in Gloucester, Massachusetts. She lived for many

years in Massachusetts and went to Emerson College in Boston.

Early on she had dreams of becoming a ballerina or an actress. She did have a flare for the dramatic. But her plans changed upon meeting Walter Pennino. She says she knew at the outset that she would be with him for life. They moved to Vienna, Virginia, in the 1950s after her husband took a job at the Pentagon and began searching for a typically American place to live.

What she did not know when she moved to the small town of Vienna, Virginia, in Fairfax County was that through her work she would help transform the county into one of the premier locations, attracting thousands of families from all over the country.

Knowing that she wanted to get involved in her community, not just wanting to stand on the sidelines, Martha Pennino began her public life by serving three terms on the Vienna Town Council. In 1968 she was elected to the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors as a representative of the Centreville District. As the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Tom Davis) said, she served for many years with him. At the time of her election, though, she was only the seventh woman elected to office in Virginia, paving the way for women throughout Northern Virginia.

She continued to serve on the Board of Supervisors until 1991, including 17 years as vice chairman. By the time she left the board, she was the longest-serving woman in office in Virginia. During her tenure, she was involved in most of the major decisions affecting the county and was instrumental in seeing Reston develop into a successful planned community. From the moment she saw Reston as conceived by its founder, Robert E. Simon, she was determined that Reston would be a place where all people would be welcomed and no one would be excluded.

Through her commitment, she saw the very rapid development of projects that included the Dulles Toll Road, South Lakes High School, and the Reston Regional Library, among many other things. She helped create a true sense of community for all those living in this new area.

Martha Pennino also helped establish the Fairfax County Human Rights Commission to help fight discrimination throughout the county. Having lived through the Jim Crow era, she knew that too often people were being treated differently because of their income level or their race, and Martha wanted to ensure that past discrimination had no place in her community.

Martha Pennino will best be remembered by the citizens of Fairfax County for her commitment to the poor and to the homeless in her community. As the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Tom Davis) has said, she opened her office at night for people without a home and provided them a bed and a warm place to rest. She also ensured that with the enormous development occurring in Fairfax County, there would be low-cost housing options for those who needed them and that these buildings would be as aesthetically pleasing as other housing options in the area.

One story that has followed Martha Pennino and perhaps best characterizes her style involves former President Jimmy Carter. When then-Governor Jimmy Carter was running for President, Martha Pennino hosted a party for him. During the party, they ran out of ice. As only Martha could, she asked Jimmy Carter to run out and pick up some more ice at the 7-11, and he did.

I would also like to take a minute again to thank my friend and colleague, the gentleman from Virginia (Chairman Tom Davis), for his efforts in seeing this legislation come to the floor, and my colleague and friend, the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Davis), who has helped us bring so many good pieces of legislation to the floor. I know that the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Tom Davis) was a close friend of Martha Pennino, and I know that he as well as we regret her passing.

So in honor of her work to help all residents of Fairfax County, for being an instrumental part in managing the growth of the county, I ask that the Reston Post Office be named after Martha Pennino. In doing so, we honor and remember this remarkable woman so future generations can know what one person can do and what this very special person has accomplished for the benefit of her entire community.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 5133) to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 11110 Sunset Hills Road in Reston, Virginia, as the ``Martha Pennino Post Office Building''.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on H.R. 5133.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, H.R. 5133, sponsored by my friend and colleague, the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Moran), designates the postal facility in Reston, Virginia, as the Martha Pennino Post Office. The entire Virginia delegation supports this legislation, and I am pleased to join them tonight.

On September 17, Virginia's Fairfax County, which I represent, lost one of its most influential community leaders, Martha Pennino. I rise tonight to honor and remember Martha Virginia Pennino, a former vice chairman of the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors, with whom I served for 12 years on the board.

Mrs. Pennino died September 17, 2004, at Inova Fairfax Hospital at the age of 86, leaving a long and lasting legacy.

Known as Mother Fairfax, Mrs. Pennino was born in 1918 in Roanoke, Virginia, and was raised in Gloucester, Massachusetts. She received a bachelor's degree from Emerson College in Boston.

Mrs. Pennino served three terms on the Vienna Town Council prior to being elected to the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors in November 1967, representing what was then the Centreville District.

From 1968 to 1991, Mrs. Pennino was at the center of nearly every major decision made in Fairfax County. She was involved with such projects as the Dulles Toll Road, the Reston Hospital Center, South Lakes High School, the Reston Community Center, and the Reston Regional Library.

Mrs. Pennino played an instrumental role in the planned community of Reston, which was taking shape when she took office and was also critical in getting Interstate 66 built inside the beltway.

During her years on the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors, Mrs. Pennino was deeply committed to helping the poor and homeless. She pushed for the building of the Embry Rucker shelter for the homeless, supported building low-cost housing, and buying and renovating the rundown Stonegate apartment complex. Prior to the construction of the shelter, she even provided cots in her supervisor's office and opened it at night for people with nowhere else to go.

Mrs. Pennino received many accolades for her work in Fairfax County. In 1985, she was awarded the Tom Bradley Regional Leadership Award from the National Association of Regional Councils. The group cited her efforts in developing the first energy policy for a metropolitan area, the region's car-pool program, and a fair-share housing program. Washingtonian Magazine named her Washingtonian of the Year.

Mrs. Pennino was also involved with many community boards and foundations. She was a member of the Advisory Board of the Northern Virginia Youth Services Coalition, director of the Northern Virginia Community Foundation, a commissioner on the Northern Virginia Regional Commission, and a member of the Board of Visitors of George Mason University.

Additionally, Mrs. Pennino served as President of the Virginia Association of Counties of the Virginia Municipal League and was a member of the Board of Directors of the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments for 17 years, holding posts of president and chairman.

Mr. Speaker, in closing, I want to express my gratitude to Martha Virginia Pennino for her service to Fairfax County and the mark she has left on her community. She will be sorely missed. In recognition of her dedicated service, I ask that the Reston Post Office be renamed in her honor.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, again, I had the pleasure of serving on the Fairfax Board of Supervisors with Martha Pennino for 12 years. I want to say I am very grateful for the opportunity to have known her and to have worked with her on so many projects. She was a classy lady, and I am going to miss her.

Mr. Speaker, I urge passage of H.R. 5133.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to re-introduce H.R. 5133, the ``Teacher Recruitment Act of 2003'' to expand the eligibility of individuals to qualify for loan forgiveness for teachers in order to provide additional incentives for teachers currently employed or seeking employment in economically depressed rural areas, Territories, and Indian Reservations.

Rural and small town schools educate a significant number of America's students. Nearly forty percent of America's school-age children attend public schools in rural areas or small towns with populations of less than 25,000. Forty-nine percent of the nation's public schools are located in rural areas and small towns and 41 percent of public school educators teach in rural community schools. Rural school districts are often the largest single employer in their area and rural schools serve as the social, recreational, and cultural foundation of their communities.

Although rural and small schools educate nearly 40 percent of America's students, they receive less than 25 percent of the total federal, state, and local spending on public education. Rural and small schools tend to be located in areas with low property values and few industries, making it more difficult to raise additional revenues. Additionally, because federal grants are awarded based upon student population, rural districts often receive insufficient grant funds to accomplish the stated purpose.

Rural schools face formidable challenges in recruiting and retaining quality teachers. Compared with teachers in central city schools and urban schools, rural teachers tend to be less educated, slightly less experienced, younger, and less likely to belong to a minority group. Chronically low salaries and benefits exacerbate the difficulty in attracting quality teachers to rural and small town schools. For example, in the district that I represent, the U.S. Virgin Islands, teachers have not received a substantial raise in over seven years to offset the rising cost of living. There has been no state subsidized programs towards teacher certification, advance education, or teacher training. Adding to the need to expand the Teacher Loan Forgiveness program is the lack of substantive incentives on the local level to incite teacher recruitment and retention within and outside of the rural communities. Similarly, there are many challenges associated with preparing teachers to work with Native American children and parents, and often teachers have not been properly prepared to address these challenges. Consequently, teachers who are less than qualified are working on American Indian reservations, and the retention of qualified teachers remains a challenge.

If ``The Leave No Child Behind Act'' is truly meant to reform our nation's education, we need to pass legislation that adequately addresses the deficiencies in our educational system. To effectively implement the provisions of ``The Leave No Child Behind Act,'' we must attract and keep quality teachers. The American Federation, which represents of 1.2 million members, has urged the support and passage of amendments to expand eligibility for loan forgiveness to those who are teaching in schools in need of improvement, as defined in ``The No Child Left Behind Act.'' The ``Teacher Recruitment Act of 2003'' would expand the eligibility of individuals to qualify for loan forgiveness for teachers beyond that available under section 428J of the Higher Education Act by providing additional incentives for such individuals to teach in economically disadvantaged or depressed and underserved rural areas. Under this bill, teachers may qualify for up to 100 percent student loan forgiveness. The ``Teacher Recruitment Act of 2003'' is a good step toward the continuing challenge of recruiting and retaining teachers in rural areas and I urge its passage.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today as a co-sponsor and in strong support of H.R. 5133, legislation to designate a United States Postal Service facility in Reston, Virginia, as the Martha Pennino Post Office.

Martha Pennino, known as ``Mother Fairfax,'' passed away on September 17. She was a leader in Fairfax County, and was instrumental in helping the county achieve the success it enjoys today. She served from 1968 to 1991 on the Fairfax Board of Supervisors, and served as the board's vice chairman for 17 years. Under her leadership, Reston became a successful developed community, and several important projects, including the Dulles Toll Road, South Lakes High School, and the Reston Regional Library, were undertaken.

It is Martha Pennino's dedication to those in Fairfax County with the least that will also be remembered. She was committed to the poor in the community, often opening her office at night to allow the homeless to rest their heads in a warm, safe place. Under her leadership, a homeless shelter was opened in her district, and she was an advocate for low-cost housing in Fairfax County, to help ensure that as the county grew, its poorest residents would not be left out of the county's progress. Martha Pennino's desire for Fairfax County to be an inclusive community is also reflected in her work to help establish the Fairfax County Human Rights Commission. Martha Pennino wanted everyone in Fairfax County to feel that they truly belonged to Fairfax County.

Mr. Speaker, I am proud to support H.R. 5133, and proud to commemorate the life of Martha Pennino, an outstanding leader in Fairfax County, and a tireless advocate for those in need.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Governmental Affairs Committee be discharged from further consideration of S. 2693, S. 2839, H.R. 5039, H.R. 4381, H.R. 4556, H.R. 4618, and H.R. 4632 en bloc, and that the Senate proceed to their immediate consideration, along with H.R. 4046, H.R. 5027, H.R. 5133, H.R. 5147, and H.R. 5051, which are at the desk, en bloc.

I would be happy to.

We will make that part of our unanimous consent request. And you might consider making it 10 minutes instead of 20 minutes, but you will have up to 20 minutes.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the bills be read a third time and passed, the motions to reconsider be laid upon the table en bloc, and that any statements relating to the bills be printed in the Record.