Floor Statements

Madam Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to a trailblazing educator and a good friend, Dr. Rose Ann Davis Hilliard Wilder, who transitioned on August 30, 2022 after a valiant battle with cancer. Her impact on the State of South Carolina will be felt for generations to come.

Born Rose Ann Davis on November 4, 1955, in Santee, South Carolina, Dr. Wilder was a daughter of the late Laco and Ruby Mae Fogle Davis.

From a young age, Dr. Wilder was passionate about education. It led her to earn an undergraduate degree in guidance and counseling, a master's in special education, and a PhD in education administration.

Dr. Wilder began her teaching career in 1979, and 8 years later she became assistant principal at Manning Primary School in Clarendon County. She went on to serve as the first principal of the new Manning Elementary School and later returned as principal of Manning Primary.

In 1994, Dr. Wilder was appointed assistant superintendent of instruction for Clarendon School District 2. Later that year, she was chosen to lead the school district and made history by becoming the first African American female superintendent in South Carolina since the Reconstruction era. She served in that capacity for seven years, and in 1999, was named Outstanding Superintendent by the South Carolina School Board Association.

She left Clarendon County to serve as superintendent for the Fairfield County School District, but in 2004 returned to Clarendon County to serve as superintendent of Clarendon School District 1 in the Summerton area. While there, Dr. Wilder was recognized as the South Carolina Superintendent of the Year in 2014.

She retired in 2017, and became Director of Teaching Education at Morris College. In 2018, South Carolina Superintendent of Education Molly Spearman named her the Superintendent of Williamsburg County School District where she led the district under the supervision of the state department until her passing.

Dr. Wilder was an active member of several professional organizations and previously served as President of the South Carolina Association of School Administrators. In 1999 and 2020, the South Carolina General Assembly passed resolutions commending Dr. Wilder for her outstanding service in education.

In 2020, the Clarendon School District 1 Board of Trustees voted to officially rename St. Paul Elementary School the Dr. Rose H. Wilder Elementary School after receiving overwhelming community support to rename the school in Dr. Wilder's honor.

She was married to Dr. James C. Wilder, and they shared three children, Warren Lamont Wilder (deceased), Sharon Hilliard Horace, and Michelle Wilder Bedford. They also shared two grandchildren, Jaleah Wilder and Blake McKinely Horace.

Madam Speaker, I ask you and our colleagues to rise to celebrate the life and legacy of Dr. Rose Wilder. This remarkable woman helped shape the education and future of countless children throughout her career. They were her passion and her purpose, and she left no stone unturned in her determination to educate future generations and improve their quality of life. This giant and lifelong educator will be sorely missed.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to a dedicated public servant, highly respected educator and a longtime personal friend. Recently retired Orangeburg County Councilman Willie B. Owens, Sr. transitioned from this life on August 5, 2022. He has left an indelible mark on his community and all of those who were fortunate to know him.

Willie B. Owens, Sr. was born on November 8, 1938, in Branchville, South Carolina to the late Bennie C. Owens and Lillie Ruth Warren Owens. Willie B., as he was always affectionately known, graduated from Wilkinson High School in 1956. He earned a Bachelor of Science Degree in Agriculture in 1960 and a Master of Education Degree in 1966 from South Carolina State College. He went on to earn his E.D. from the Citadel and did further study at Clemson University and the University of South Carolina.

I knew Willie B. from our days together on the campus of South Carolina State where we both were active as students in campus activities and civil rights protests in Orangeburg County. He continued his activism throughout his life participating in voter registration drives and taking people to the polls to vote. He was also a Life Member of the NAACP, and always stood up against injustices.

Willie B. spent his professional career working in education. He began in the public schools serving as an agriculture teacher at Richard Carroll High School and Bamberg-Ehrhardt High School. He served as Bamberg-Ehrhardt High School's Director of Transportation and then Principal. He also had a stint as Director of the Future Farmers of America Camp in Orangeburg, and as Director of Vocational Programs for Bamberg School District One.

Willie B. went on to work in higher education. He held two different positions at Voorhees College, Assistant Vice President for Academic Affairs and Executive Director of the South Carolina Regional Community Development Corporation on the Denmark campus. He also served as Assistant Vice President for Academic Administration and Director for Professional and Continuing Studies at Claflin University .

In 2007, Willie B. was elected to the Orangeburg County Council to represent the citizens of District 7, a position he held for 15 years. He stepped down in June 2022, due to health concerns. Willie B. was a leader on the Council and an outspoken advocate for the people. His outstanding accomplishments were numerous. He led the effort to create a Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. monument outside the Orangeburg County Courthouse. The monument serves to honor the great civil rights leader and County residents that have distinguished themselves in the areas of justice, community, government and first responders. The distinctive monument was unveiled in 2021 and was constructed using Capital Project Sales Tax funds. He also spearheaded the building of Whittaker Community Center, which was dedicated just 2-days before he retired from Council.

Willie B. was very active in the community. He was a member of the South Carolina Association for Community Developers, the National Association of Student Affairs Professionals, the South Carolina Task Force for the Study of School Incentive Programs, the South Carolina Department of Education Advance Placement Advisory Committee, and served as an Orangeburg Calhoun Technical College Area Commissioner. Other leadership positions included President of South Carolina AA Athletic Association, Chairman of the Regional Medical Center Board of Trustees, and Chairman of Orangeburg County Peoples Assault on Drugs. He was also a member of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity.

His outstanding contributions were recognized by numerous awards including the Martin Luther King Jr. Distinguished Service Award, the Outstanding Achievement Award in Education, the Excellence in Education Award, the Outstanding Service Award from Bamberg Job Corps, the Omega Man of the Year, the South Carolina Future Farmers of America Honorary Degree, the Outstanding Young Educator Award, the South Carolina Vocational Agriculture Teachers Association Outstanding Presidential Award, and the Star Teacher of the Year Award.

Willie B. was a man of faith and became a member of McBranch Baptist Church in Branchville, South Carolina at an early age. He was married to Arminta Owens for 59 years. They have three sons, Willie B. Owens, Jr., Derrick Owens, and Greg Nell and two granddaughters.

Madam Speaker, I ask that you and our colleagues join me in celebrating the life and legacy of Willie B. Owens, Sr. He spent his entire adult life serving Orangeburg County, South Carolina, and his contributions made a difference in countless lives. Many future generations will benefit from the leadership of Willie B., and that is a great testament to a life well lived.

Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding the time.

Madam Speaker, I rise today in full support of the Inflation Reduction Act. There are few days during a congressional career that feel truly historic. For me this is one of them. We have passed other historic legislation to help our economy overcome the pandemic, create jobs, repair and invest in our infrastructure, and bolster critical supply chains. Passage of the Inflation Reduction Act, however, will lead to the transformative change Democrats in Congress have been working with President Biden to achieve for the past year and a half.

The Inflation Reduction Act will check inflation by reducing the deficit by $300 billion over the next decade. It achieves that by ensuring tax fairness that requires corporations to pay a minimum tax of 15 percent and protecting families making less than $400,000 a year from paying even one penny more in taxes.

In addition, the Inflation Reduction Act will assist families by extending subsidies for the purchase of health insurance through the Affordable Care Act. Seniors on Medicare will benefit from the government's ability to negotiate prescription drug prices and by capping out-of-pocket drug costs at $2,000 per year.

Having experienced my late wife's 30-year battle with diabetes, I am especially pleased this bill would cap insulin costs at $35 per month for those on Medicare.

This is a giant step forward, but we will continue working to overcome the Republican opposition that blocks extending the same lifesaving measures to those on private insurance.

Finally, this bill will cut climate pollution by 40 percent by 2030. It does so by building a new, clean energy economy that invests in a healthy future for all our citizens, creating more than 9 million new jobs.

This legislation creates a nuclear production tax credit for existing reactors, ensuring that my home State of South Carolina continues to be a leader in clean energy generation while also making electricity affordable and accessible.

It also puts $60 billion toward environmental justice to help communities, especially communities of color, address the legacy of pollution in their neighborhoods.

I believe today we are demonstrating what we Democrats mean when we say we are putting people over politics, while our Republican colleagues continue to put their politics over the people's health and well-being.

Madam Speaker, I am proud to stand with the people of America and help with this bill.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to a dear friend, whose life was a testament to the biblical admonition ``faith without works is dead.'' Reverend McKinley Washington, Jr. spent his career in the pulpit while serving a quarter of a century in the South Carolina legislature. His passing on July 24, 2022, has silenced a beloved faith and community leader along the Sea Islands of South Carolina.

McKinley was one of eight children born to the late McKinley Washington, Sr. and Mattie Peterson Washington in the Stackhouse community of Sumter County, South Carolina. He graduated from Goodwill Parochial School, the same institution that educated Mary McLeod Bethune. He subsequently attended Johnson C. Smith, a historically Black college, in Charlotte, North Carolina. There, he joined the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee, helped organize civil rights marches, and was arrested for his activism. McKinley also made time for his studies and earned a B.A. in 1961 and a master's degree in divinity from Johnson C. Smith Theological Seminary in 1964.

Although both of us were born and raised in Sumter County our paths did not cross until we arrived in Charleston County around the same time in the early 1960s. He had accepted a call to pastor at Edisto Presbyterian Church and I had accepted a teaching position in the Charleston County public school system. We both became actively engaged in local politics and it was not long before we and our wives became great friends.

He was young, energetic, and determined to make a difference in his community and throughout the Sea Islands of Charleston County. In Charleston he rekindled his activism, establishing the Edisto Branch of the NAACP, helping to stand up the Franklin Fetter federally qualified community health center, and later, the Sea Island Comprehensive Health Care Corp.

When I left the classroom and became a Counselor with the Charleston County Employment Security Commission in 1965 and later Director of the Charleston County Neighborhood Youth Corps and New Careers project, McKinley helped in my effort to get part time jobs for high school students and work experiences for high school dropouts. Our signature effort came through the creation of a Talent Search project that sent hundreds of low-income high school graduates to colleges and universities across the country. Most of those students went to Wilberforce University in Ohio. Among them were Larry Whaley pastor of St. Paul Baptist Church and the Rev. Nelson Rivers, pastor of Calvary Baptist Church and Vice President of National Action Network who is a dynamic faith leader in his own right.

It was during this time that McKinley became an active board member of the South Carolina Commission for Farm Workers, an agency created to aid migrants and seasonal farm workers. After some fits and starts, that Commission hired me to be their Executive Director in 1968.

McKinley and I bonded, and he became my go-to guy. We worked together to develop an adult education project, a Self-Help housing program, and he helped me form a rural version of the Talent Search concept to provide opportunities to the children of migrants and seasonal farm workers.

After working in the trenches to improve the quality of life for his community, McKinley decided he could better serve his community by running for public office. Although he lost his first campaign for the State House of Representatives, he ran again during a special election and won; He went on to represent District 116 in the House from 1975 to 1989, and then served in the State Senate representing District 45 from 1990 to 2000. He continued his public service after 25 years in the State legislature by serving an additional eight years on the S.C. Employment Security Commission.

His career in public service was marked by his dedication to issues of equity and justice. McKinley was always focused on providing for, ``the least of these,'' and communities that have been historically neglected. To honor his service, the modern bridge that connects Edisto Island to the mainland is named in his honor. It is a fitting tribute to the man who spent his life building bridges and solving problems.

Throughout his public service and community work, McKinley served 50 years as pastor of Edisto Presbyterian Church until his retirement in 2012. His faith informed his service and was at the core of who he was as leader. McKinley met Beulah Jeffries, the love of his life while at Johnson C. Smith, and the two became the proud parents of Michael and Katrina, and grandparents of two grandchildren.

Madam Speaker, I ask you and my colleagues to join me in celebrating the life and legacy of McKinley Washington, Jr. May we all learn from the example of this outstanding South Carolinian, born during the Jim Crow era in the ghettoized Stackhouse Place community of Sumter County, South Carolina who went on to live a transformational life. It has been one of my life's blessed experiences to call him a dear friend.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding me the time.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to call on this august body to vote in favor of H.R. 1286, the Southern Campaign of the Revolution National Heritage Corridor Act.

The American victory at Kings Mountain in South Carolina was once described by a British commander as ``the first link in a chain of evils that . . . ended in the total loss of America.''

When we hear the story of the American Revolution, we don't often learn of the war's Southern Campaign or applaud the dramatic impact that campaign had on the Revolution. Significant American victories in the Carolinas between 1775 and 1783, such as at Kings Mountain and the Guilford Courthouse, paved the way for America's final victory in the War for Independence.

Today, there are historical landmarks and battlefields that mark this rich history throughout the Carolinas. This legislation seeks to connect these sites to tell this under-recognized story and acknowledge the enduring significance of the Southern Campaign on our Nation's history by establishing this heritage corridor.

As a former teacher and lifelong student of history, it is a personal mission of mine to increase public awareness of and appreciation for our Nation's tremendous natural, historical, scenic, and cultural resources. It is my hope that the creation of this Southern Campaign of the American Revolution national heritage corridor will attract visitors to learn more about both Carolinas' contributions to this country and further fulfill South Carolina's lesser-known motto: Prepared in Mind and Resources.

I thank former Congressman John Spratt, who spearheaded this effort and secured a feasibility study for this heritage corridor back in 2006. I also salute and commemorate Jayne Scarborough, the late executive director of the Olde English District Tourism Commission, who was a tireless advocate for this project. I am proud to continue their great work and to be joined by the entire South Carolina delegation as we finally bring this legislation to the House floor for a vote.

I commend the South Carolina Battlefield Preservation Trust for their help in informing this process and the University of South Carolina for its commitment to managing this heritage corridor.

Mr. Speaker, I respectfully ask my colleagues to vote in favor of this bill.

Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding.

On Monday, the House will meet at 12 p.m. for morning hour and 2 p.m. for legislative business, with votes postponed until 6:30 p.m.

On Tuesday and Wednesday, the House will meet at 10 a.m. for morning hour and 12 p.m. for legislative business.

On Thursday, the House will meet at 9 a.m. for legislative business.

Next week, the House will begin our work to advance appropriations bills to fund the government for fiscal year 2023 and consider H.R. 8294, a minibus package of Transportation and Housing and Urban Development; Agriculture and Rural Development; Energy and Water Development; Financial Services and General Government; Interior and Environment; and Military Construction and Veterans Affairs.

The House will also consider Representative Kathy Manning's H.R. 8373, the Right to Contraception Act, which will protect in Federal statute the rights enshrined in Griswold v. Connecticut and Eisenstadt v. Baird.

American women deserve to be able to make decisions about their own bodies and their own lives, including whether to become pregnant and have children.

The House will consider bills under suspension of the rules. A complete list of suspension bills will be announced by the close of business today.

Additional legislative matters are possible.

I thank the gentleman for yielding. I assure you that we will get to discuss and debate and hopefully pass all of these bills at the appropriate time.

However, I am sure the gentleman is aware that Russia's war against Ukraine is driving up prices all over the world--Putin's price hike.

Three weeks ago, the price of crude oil was trading at $115.25 per barrel. It closed yesterday at $96.47 a barrel, a decrease of $18.78 per barrel, or a decrease of 16 percent in almost a month.

The average price for gasoline, a gallon of gas, last month was $5.01. It is now $4.57. It decreased 44 cents, or a decrease of 8 percent, in a month. Funny how that works.

Cuts at the pump are half that of the price of crude, and we are shocked to know that major oil companies are raking in record profits.

The House passed the Lower Food and Fuel Costs Act, which will help ease inflation, which the gentleman voted against and quipped against. This bill helps Americans save money at the gas pump by promoting local, renewable energy production, and it also expands access to E15.

The House also passed the Consumer Fuel Price Gouging Prevention Act to prevent all corporations from prioritizing profits instead of increasing supply. It empowers the FTC to crack down on oil companies that excessively overcharge their consumers for gas just to boost their bottom line.

The President has released historic amounts from our Strategic Petroleum Reserve, a million gallons a day, and expanded access to cheaper E15 gas across the Midwest, among other steps to bring down energy prices.

The Biden administration has approved more drilling permits on public lands in 2021 than the previous administration did each year during the first 3 years in office, 2017, 2018, and 2019.

The Biden administration is also working with our allies and partners around the world to implement a price cap on Russian oil so that we can continue to inflict pain on Putin while minimizing the pain at the pump.

I thank the gentleman for yielding.

I think the gentleman is well aware that the President has certain authorities that he can use, and he is using them. The oil companies have certain responsibilities, and the question is whether or not they are living up to their responsibilities.

I know the gentleman is as aware as I am of all the permits out there that are not being utilized. Of course, we are at the mercy of those corporate decisions. Hopefully, they will be made in due course and in such a way that would bring relief to the American people.

I suspect the consideration of all those bills that you are discussing will be taken up by the leader at the time that he considers to be appropriate. I, along with the gentleman, will continue to consult, and hopefully, we can address all these issues in the very-- let's just say shortly.

Thank you for yielding.

As the gentleman knows, proxy voting has been utilized by both sides of the aisle. I admit it can be a very cumbersome process here on the floor, but we all utilize it. It is done because it serves a very valuable purpose for this institution.

We have made great strides in mitigating the harm of the coronavirus pandemic through vaccines and treatments, but as we both know, the disease continues to spread in both of our home States.

We are hearing numbers that are very concerning. In just this week of this session alone, I know of several Members who have tested positive for COVID and are, therefore, isolating.

These Members can still participate in the process and represent their constituents by using the proxy vote. Of course, having the proxy vote and having 2-minute votes doesn't seem a pretty efficient process to me. We are having a hard time getting it done during 5 minutes.

We just had several 5-minute votes, and I saw on my friend's side of the aisle about 15 people still lined up after the time has expired.

Both of us are being disadvantaged and inconvenienced by this process, but I think it is something that we have to do. I don't know how we could be efficient in this operation with 2-minute voting.

I will pass that along to the leader and hope that he will keep in mind that coronavirus is still here with us, as the gentleman knows.

We serve together on the coronavirus select subcommittee, and we are confronted with issues that still concern the American people. I think that we have to keep all of that in mind as we try to carry out the people's business.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to Dr. C. Warren Derrick, Jr. Born in Mullins, SC and raised in Marion. Dr. Derrick was the eldest son of Helen and Warren Derrick, Sr. After graduating from Marion High School as president of the student body in 1954, he entered Wofford College where he was a member of Blue Key and President of Kappa Sigma fraternity. He graduated in 1958.

Deciding on a career in medicine, he matriculated at the Medical College of South Carolina, graduating in 1962. While in medical school, he married Ann Marie Berry of Spartanburg.

After completing a rotating internship at Greenville Memorial Hospital, he was inducted into the U.S. Army as a Captain in the Medical Corps and stationed in Nuremberg, Germany. He served for 2 years as Battalion Surgeon for the 34th Artillery, 2nd AC. He was discharged in 1965 and accepted a position with Western Michigan University in Kalamazoo, Michigan as a physician in their student health center for one year. In 1966, he started a 2-year pediatric residency at the University of Alabama Medical Center in Birmingham, Alabama which was followed by a 3-year fellowship in pediatric infectious disease at the Children's Hospital of Alabama.

Upon the completion of his fellowship, he was appointed Assistant Professor of Pediatrics. He rose to Associate Professor in 1975 and served as Director of Outpatient Services at the Children's Hospital. It was during their 10 years in Birmingham that their 3 children were born.

Dr. Derrick returned to South Carolina and accepted a position with Sumter Pediatrics in Sumter in January 1977. After 10 months in private practice, he was offered, and he accepted, a faculty position with the fledgling new medical school in Columbia as Professor of Pediatrics and Chair of the Department of Pediatrics, University of South Carolina School of Medicine--a position he was to hold for the next 29 years.

During his tenure with Children's Hospital and the medical school, he was instrumental in the growth and development of the pediatric department and establishment of the state's first free-standing children's hospital. Under his leadership, the department developed a national reputation for its educational excellence and patient care. He retired in 2007.

His many honors include distinguished alumni/service awards from the Children's Hospital of Alabama, USC School of Medicine, and Wofford College; The Presidential Merit Award, MUSC; William Weston Distinguished Service Award, Department of Pediatrics, USC School of Medicine; and the Order of the Palmetto, State of South Carolina.

He was predeceased by Ann, his wife of 58 years. Surviving are his 3 children: Andrea Derrick Truitt (Chip), Hope Derrick (Marc Turner), and Scott Derrick (Melissa); six grandchildren: Abby, Shelby, and Rachel Truitt; Ethan and Emery Turner; and Tripp Derrick, all of Columbia. He is also survived by his brother Bill Derrick (Jo) of Myrtle Beach and was predeceased by his sister, Susan Derrick of Palatka, Florida.

Madam Speaker, I ask that you and our colleagues join me in celebrating the life and legacy of Dr. C. Warren Derrick, Jr.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of the Domestic Terrorism Prevention Act.

It is heartbreaking to stand here today, just days after 10 innocent lives were taken in a Buffalo, New York, grocery store by a gunman espousing white supremacist views and hatred toward African Americans.

This devastating massacre took me back to June 17, 2015, when another white supremacist gunned down nine parishioners at Charleston's historic Emanuel AME Church.

In the intervening years, we have witnessed far too many other acts of domestic terrorism: from a counterprotest in Charlottesville, Virginia; to a synagogue in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; to a Walmart in El Paso, Texas; to a Sikh temple in Oak Creek, Wisconsin; and to an Asian-owned nail salon in Atlanta, Georgia. All told, over 200 mass shootings this year.

To be sure, all of these shootings have not been racially motivated or motivated by hate, but all of them share one thing in common: They have been committed in a country too tolerant of irresponsible regulations of weapons of war and a proliferation of firearms of mass destruction.

This legislation is long overdue. It would enable the Justice Department, the Department of Homeland Security, and the FBI to prevent, investigate, and prosecute cases of domestic terrorism more effectively.

I, and many others in this body, know what it is to experience acts of racial hatred and witness events of domestic terrorism. We cannot continue to turn a blind eye to white supremacist vigilantes.

It impacts all of us. While the gunman in Buffalo was aiming for people who looked like me, others who did not look like me fell victim to his evil act.

Shortly after my first meeting with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., back in 1960, I met with one of my professors, Mrs. Rosa Harris, to share the Saul to Paul transformation I was experiencing. Two days later, Mrs. Harris handed me a copy of Dr. King's 1958 book, ``Stride Toward Freedom.''

To share one passage from that book, I quote, ``True peace is not merely the absence of tension; it is the presence of justice.''

Mr. Speaker, this legislation will provide Federal agencies with necessary tools to ensure that peace and justice prevail. I urge a ``yes'' vote from all Members of this august body.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 6531, the Targeting Resources to Communities in Need Act, a bipartisan bill that I introduced with Hal Rogers of Kentucky and Senators Cory Booker and Rob Portman, to ensure that communities that have been determined to be suffering from persistent poverty received a more equitable share of Federal investments.

According to the Census Bureau there are nearly 500 persistent poverty counties in our great country. They are defined as counties that have had a poverty rate of 20 percent or more for the last 30 years.

These counties are as diverse as the country, including White communities in Appalachia, African-American communities in the South, Latino communities in the Southwest, and Native American communities throughout the West.

In 2009, I included a provision in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act requiring that at least 10 percent of the funds in three rural development accounts be spent in these counties. This became known as the 10-20-30 funding formula.

The formula worked effectively, efficiently, and equitably; funding infrastructure projects including water neglected for far too long.

Over the past 12 years, Democrats and Republicans have worked together to expand this approach to nearly 20 appropriations accounts. Much of this progress was made when Mr. Rogers was chair of the Appropriations Committee, and I thank him for his leadership.

This legislation would expand this 10-20-30 targeted formula throughout the Federal Government; recognizing that the best way to target funding in these areas may differ from program to program.

Our bill gives discretion to Federal agencies led by OMB to tailor the policy to the needs of each program while requiring them to report to Congress on the progress being made to create and expand opportunities in these communities.

This bill does not increase Federal spending one iota. It simply targets Federal resources to communities that are most in need.

In closing, I thank my friend Hal Rogers for his collaboration, and I ask our colleagues for their support of this effort to make America's greatness more accessible and affordable to all communities.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding me this time.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of S. 270, the Brown v. Board of Education National Historic Site Expansion Act. I thank Senator Chris Coons for his leadership securing the Senate's unanimous support for passage of this important legislation earlier this month. I am proud to lead the legislation here in the House along with our bipartisan cosponsors, Congresswoman Lisa Blunt Rochester, Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton, and Congressman Bob Good.

As a former teacher of history and a student of history, I believe in the value of learning from our past. Many Americans don't know that the landmark Brown v. Board of Education Supreme Court decision, that desegregated public schools in 1954, combined legal challenges from four States and the District of Columbia. I represent one of those States and was fortunate to know some of the petitioners from Clarendon County, South Carolina, who challenged the separate but equal laws. Many of their photographs hang in my congressional office.

In 2004, I wrote, in cooperation with the Palmetto Conservation Foundation, the book ``Uncommon Courage: The Story of Briggs v. Elliott, South Carolina's Unsung Civil Rights Battle.'' That same year, I was proud to lead the effort to present the Congressional Gold Medal of Honor to the leaders of that challenge--Harry and Eliza Briggs, Levi Pearson, and Reverend Joseph A. DeLaine.

Their case, Briggs v. Elliott, was the first of those cases that later became Brown v. Board. The subsequent cases were in Delaware, Virginia, Washington, D.C., and, of course, Topeka, Kansas.

Today there is a National Parks site that was created by Congress in 1992 in Topeka that tells the story of the ordinary people who took this extraordinary action to ensure their children had equal educational opportunities. However, the other communities involved in this historic effort have no National Park Service presence acknowledging their contributions.

This legislation will right that wrong. It expands the Brown v. Board of Education National Historic Site to include locations in each of the communities that were part of the lawsuit. When writing this legislation, I worked with the National Trust Fund for Historic Preservation who engaged with the communities that would be impacted to solicit their input.

With the enactment of this legislation, the Brown v. Board of Education National Historic Site will become more than the Monroe School building in Topeka. It will add the Summerton School and Scott's Branch School in Summerton, South Carolina, to represent the Briggs v. Elliott case; the Hockessin Colored School No. 107 and Howard High School in Wilmington, Delaware, to represent Belton v. Gebhart; the former Robert Russa Moton High School, now a museum, in Farmville, Virginia, to represent Davis v. County School Board of Prince Edward County; and the John Philip Sousa Junior High School in the District of Columbia to represent Boiling v. Sharpe.

Each of these sites will tell the story of how these communities fought to overturn the 1896 Plessy v. Ferguson decision that established the separate but equal doctrine. When Brown v. Board of Education overturned that decision and ended generations of inadequate education for Black children, constitutional scholar Louis H. Pollak hailed it as ``probably the most important American Government act of any kind since the Emancipation Proclamation.''

Mr. Speaker, I urge all Members of this august body to follow the Senate's lead and vote in favor of expanding the Brown v. Board of Education National Historic Site to ensure that all the communities that contributed to this landmark decision receive proper recognition.

Having geographically dispersed historic sites that tell this great story will enable more students to learn from the past and understand the importance of making America's greatness accessible and affordable to all.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to the NCAA Women's National Basketball Champions for 2022. The University of South Carolina Gamecocks have played with tremendous heart and skill throughout this season, earning the team its second national title.

The Gamecocks have been ranked number one the entire season and lost just two games by slim margins. During the NCAA tournament, they beat No. 8 seed Miami, No. 5 seed University of North Carolina, No. 10 seed Creighton and No. 1 seed Louisville, before taking on No. 2 seed and perennial powerhouse University of Connecticut (UConn).

UConn had been in the Final Four for 14 consecutive years. USC made the Sweet 16 every year since 2014. In 2017, USC claimed their first national championship. The next year, UConn eliminated USC when they met the last time in the tournament. The Gamecocks were in a prime position to win the tournament in 2020, but it was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Last year, USC was eliminated in the Final Four.

Head Coach Dawn Staley and the USC players were determined that 2022 was going to be their year. They delivered with a 64-49 victory on April 3 in Minneapolis, delivering UConn their first ever loss in the championship game.

I can't say enough about the leadership of Coach Staley. The Philadelphia native, and former college, WNBA, and Olympic basketball stand-out, has led USC's team since 2008. She built the program from scratch, and by the 2013-2014 season, the team won the SEC Conference and was the top ranked team nationally. Under her leadership, the Gamecocks have won six SEC regular season and SEC tournament championships, made it to eight Sweet Sixteens and four Final Fours, and now, won two national championships.

Coach Staley achieved all of this while serving as the U.S. Women's National Olympic Team head coach from 2017 to 2021, leading that team to a perfect 45-0 record and winning a gold medal. This year she received the Naismith Award as the best coach in the Nation for the second time and has earned the distinction of being the first Black coach in men's or women's Division I basketball history to win more than one national championship.

Coach Staley led a remarkable team with the starting line-up of No. 1 Zia Cooke, a junior guard from Toledo, Ohio; No. 3 Destanni Henderson, a senior guard from Fort Myers, Florida; No. 4 Aliyah Boston, a junior forward from St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands; No. 5 Victaria Saxton, a senior forward from Rome, Georgia; and, No. 12 Brea Beal, a junior

guard from Rock Island, Illinois. This remarkable starting line-up was assisted by a talented bench of No. 0 Olivia Thompson, a junior guard from Lexington, South Carolina; No. 2 Eniya Russell, a sophomore guard from Baltimore, Maryland; No. 10 Kamilla Cardoso, a sophomore center from Montes Claros, Brazil; No. 11 Destiny Littleton, a senior guard from San Diego, California; No. 15 Laeticia Amihere, a junior forward from Mississauga, Ontario, Canada; No. 20 Sania Feagin, a freshman forward from Ellenwood, Georgia; No. 23 Bree Hall, a freshman guard from Dayton, Ohio; No. 24 LeLe Grissett, a graduate student guard from Durham, North Carolina; No. 25 Raven Johnson, a freshman guard from Atlanta, Georgia; No. 32 Elysa Wesolek, a senior forward from Charleston, South Carolina; and, No. 44 Saniya Rivers, a freshman guard from Wilmington, Nor Carolina.

A special congratulations to Aliyah Boston, who achieved her 30th double-double with 11 points and 16 rebounds in the championship game, earning her the Final Four Most Outstanding Player. This honor completes her sweep of the top national awards. She is also the recipient of the 2022 John R. Wooden Award and the Player of the Year awards from Naismith, The Associated Press, the Women's Basketball Coaches Association, and the U.S. Basketball Writers Association. She was also the SEC Player of the Year and the Lisa Leslie Award winner.

Other accolades include Aliyah Boston, Zia Cooke, and Destanni Henderson all making the Final Four All-Tournament Team. Henderson scored a career-high 26 points, the most of any player in the championship game, and Cooke also provided 11 points and 5 rebounds.

Madam Speaker, I ask you and my colleagues to join me in celebrating this remarkable University of South Carolina Women's Basketball team. I have had the pleasure of following their season and seeing them play many times in person. Their extraordinary talent and leadership made it exciting to see their hard work rewarded with the national title. Go Gamecocks.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to a proud historically Black college, in South Carolina's 6th Congressional District, on the occasion on its 125th Founder's Day. Voorhees College has provided educational opportunities for young African Americans in South Carolina since 1897 and on April 7, 2022 will be renamed Voorhees University.

Voorhees is the first HBCU founded by an African-American woman, Elizabeth Evelyn Wright, under the name Denmark Industrial School on April 14, 1897. When Ms. Wright founded the school, at the young age of 23, her vision was to provide a quality education to young men and women.

Ms. Wright's vision for the school grew, and in 1902, it became Voorhees Industrial School, after attracting the financial support of New Jersey philanthropist Ralph Voorhees. Mr. Voorhees and his wife donated money for the purchase of 280 acres of land in Denmark, South Carolina to expand the campus. More support came in 1924, when the school came under the auspices of the American Church Institutes for Negroes, which was part of the Episcopal Church.

In 1928, the name was changed to Voorhees Normal and Industrial School, reflecting its addition of a junior college. In 1946, the junior college became the first Black college in South Carolina accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. In December 1962, the institution became known as Voorhees College. The high school was closed, and, in 1967, Voorhees began granting 4-year degrees.

The students on Voorhees College's campus, like many other historically Black institutions, became engaged in the 1960's civil rights activities. In 1969, students occupied the Wilkinson Hall offices of the mostly white administration to protest their failure to hire additional Black faculty and provide more scholarships to low- income students from the Denmark community.

The difference between this and other college protests was that, having seen the shooting of student protestors on the nearby South Carolina State College campus the previous year, the students armed themselves. Their actions drew national media attention. After two days, the South Carolina National Guard forced the students to end their protest. Many were arrested and suspended. Some received jail sentences of 18 months to two years. All of them went on to complete their degrees.

Despite the tumultuous times, Voorhees College has always followed Elizabeth Evelyn Wright's vision for the school, ``to try to help my fellow man to help themselves, and if a way was not open for them, I must open it myself.'' It was in that spirit in December 2021, that the Southern Association of College and School Commission on Colleges approved Voorhees Master's degree program, setting in motion today's historic renaming to Voorhees University.

Voorhees College, under the leadership of Dr. Ronnie Hopkins, the tenth President, continues to offer its students a quality, comprehensive, general education, coupled with professional education, in a value-centered liberal arts tradition. Its mission is, ``to produce highly qualified graduates who coalesce intellect and faith in pursuit of life-long learning, healthy living, the betterment of society, and an abiding faith in God.'' This mission is deeply imbedded in the hearts and minds of faculty, staff and students allowing students to combine intellect and faith as they broaden their minds and prepare for their futures.

Madam Speaker, I ask you and our colleagues to join me in celebrating the 125th anniversary of Voorhees College and its new status as Voorhees University. May it continue to build upon the vision of its founder and serve as an exemplary example of higher education.

Madam Speaker, as we continue our celebration of Women History Month, I rise today to pay tribute to a trailblazing woman, an extraordinary athlete, and a stalwart advocate. for equal rights.

Renee Powell is being honored with the Charlie Bartlett Award by the Golf Writers Association on April 8, 2022, on the eve of the Masters golf tournament in August, Georgia. I echo their recognition of Renee for her lifelong contributions as a professional golfer and player on the national and world stage.

Renee Powell started life with a golf club in her hand, if not literally, at least figuratively. She was born in Camden, Ohio in 1946, the same year her father William Powell returned from World War II and was confronted with discrimination on and off the golf course. He worked nights as a security guard and spent his days building a golf course on farmland in East Canton, Ohio. He opened Clearview Golf Club, which he dubbed ``America's Course'' in 1948, where people of all colors were welcomed to play. He owned and operated the golf course for the remainder of his life.

Renee began playing golf on her father's course at the age of three and competed for the first time as a 12-year-old. Renee went on to play in college at both Ohio University and Ohio State. In 1967, she made her professional debut on the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LGPA) tour in the U.S. Women's Open, becoming only the second African American woman to play on the LPGA tour. The first was South Carolina native, Althea Gibson, a tennis legend, who also played in the LPGA from 1963 to 1977.

The two women faced death threats and were prohibited at times from staying in tour hotels or eating in local restaurants. They received the support of the LPGA, whose members decided they would not play in tournaments that discriminated against Black golfers. Renee went on to compete in more than 250 professional golf tournaments, finally retiring from the Tour in 1980.

Following her retirement, Renee became a television commentator for ABC and CBS and travelled the world teaching the game ofgolf. In 1995, she returned home to Canton, Ohio, and assumed the role as head professional golfer at Clearview Golf Course, which she manages today with her brother,. Larry Powell. Under their leadership, and a little help from some congressional friends, the course was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2001.

That same year, the Powell family established the Clearview. Legacy Foundation for Education, Preservation, and Turf Grass Research. In 2011, Renee launched Clearview H.O.P.E., which serves female veterans. The program provides free recreational and therapeutic activities for former servicemembers, many of whom suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder.

Renee has received numerous honors including the Professional Golfers' Association's First Lady of Golf Award in 2003, and she was the first recipient of the Rolex ``For the Love of the Game'' Award in 2007. She has been awarded honorary membership in the Royal and Ancient Golf Club in St. Andrews, Scotland, known as ``the home of golf.'' She has received an honorary doctorate from the University of St. Andrews and a dormitory on the campus is named in her honor. In 2019, Renee was elected the first at-large member of the PGA of America board of directors.

Madam Speaker, I ask you and my colleagues to join me in celebrating Renee Powell's contributions to the game of golf and her courage to make the sport more accessible and affordable for all people. Her life serves as an example to many young minority golfers today to follow their dreams and fight to overcome any barriers they may encounter.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to a trailblazer, a role model for many, and a strong advocate for her alma mater, Clemson University. Celeste De Laine Boykin, known to her friends and associates affectionately as ``Clete,'' is being honored by the Clemson Alumni Association with the Distinguished Service Award, and I echo their recognition of her tremendous work.

Clete Boykin, is a native of Manning, in South Carolina's 6th Congressional District. She is a member of the distinguished De Laine family, who initiated the activities in Clarendon County, South Carolina that led to the landmark Brown v. Board of Education Supreme Court case that desegregated public schools. She continues to uphold that legacy with her work today.

Clete grew up in Lancaster, South Carolina, and graduated summa cum laude from Lancaster High School. She matriculated at Clemson University, which shaped the future trajectory of her life. Clete lived on the fourth floor of Benet Hall, and made lifelong friends known as the ``Benet Babes,'' who won the 1978 Women's Intramural Flag Football Championship. She still sees the group every summer, and, in 2015, the Benet Babes established a scholarship fund to give deserving students the opportunity to attend Clemson.

At Clemson, Clete distinguished herself as one of the first African American members of the Tiger Band, and still proudly wears her Tiger Band jacket in cold Washington winters. She graduated from Clemson with honors and received a Bachelor of Science degree in plant sciences.

Clete continued to break ground by joining E.I. du Pont de Nemours and Company as the first African American woman to work as a sales and marketing representative in the company's Agricultural Chemicals business. Clete rose to manage du Pont's $ 1.5 million plant nursery business in Florida. The company then tapped her to join the company's government affairs office in Washington, D.C. There she managed a variety of policy issues including agriculture, transportation, environmental, trade secrets and defense matters related to the Kevlar paraaramid synthetic fiber used in protective vests and helmets.

In 1989, Clete earned a Master of Arts in International Relations from American University in Washington. She attended the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Citizens Academy as a member of its Class of 2011, and received the Washington Government Relations Group's Reginald ``Reg'' Gilliam Lifetime Achievement Award in 2014 for her excellence as a government relations professional.

She retired from DuPont in 2015 after 29 years of service, and started her own government consulting firm, CDB ProjX. She is often seen on Capitol Hill as part of Clemson's governmental affairs organization working to build relationships with federal officials and promoting her beloved alma mater.

Her work with Clemson also extends to volunteer roles. Clete has held many voluntary-leadership positions, including serving as a former member of both the University's Board of Visitors and the Clemson University Foundation Board of Directors. Currently, she chairs the Clemson Institute for Parks Board of Advisors. She is a member of the Clemson University Tiger Band Association and a longtime board member of the Baltimore/Washington, D.C. Clemson Club.

She has helped organize various Clemson events in the Washington area, including 2017's Clemson Day at the White House honoring the University's national championship football team. She also helps students of color in the D.C. area who are interested in attending Clemson by connecting them with campus contacts or facilitating campus tours.

In addition to her work with Clemson, Clete serves on the boards of the Washington Government Relations Group Foundation and the Potomac Riverkeeper Network Leadership Council. She volunteers for McKenna's Wagon, a mobile food service that feeds people in need throughout the D.C. area, and she has bicycled hundreds of miles to raise money for AIDS charities and to support the fight against multiple sclerosis.

She is a member of the board of the South Carolina Business Council and is vice chairman of the board of directors of the Briggs, De Laine, Pearson Foundation, which focuses on providing free after-school and summer tutoring for individuals from low-income backgrounds in Clarendon County, South Carolina.

Madam Speaker, I ask you and our colleagues to join me in congratulating Clete Boykin on her well-deserved recognition by the Clemson Alumni Association. I can think of no greater champion of their alma mater, and no one more effective or dedicated to her work than Clete. She makes Clemson University and her home state of South Carolina very proud.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to a dear friend, legendary faith leader, consummate community activist and astute political observer.

Bishop Frederick C. James, a stalwart of the African Methodist Episcopal Church (AMEC) and civil rights activities, will celebrate his 100th birthday on April 7, 2022. He was born in Prosperity, South Carolina, to Rosa Lee Gray and Edward James in 1922. His father, a mechanic with a 7th grade education, died when he was just 10 years old, and his mother, instilled in him the desire to see the good in everyone.

Bishop James graduated from Drayton Street High School in Newberry, South Carolina. He earned a bachelor's degree in history and English from Allen University in Columbia, South Carolina in 1943 and answered a call to the ministry at an early age. In 1947 he graduated from the Howard University School of Divinity in Washington, D.C. and furthered his studies at Dickerson Theological Seminary in Columbia and Union Theological Seminary in New York, New York.

Bishop James began his ministerial career as pastor of Friendship AME Church in 1945 and Bishop Memorial AME Church in 1946, both in Columbia, and added Wayman AME Church in Winnsboro South Carolina to his charge in 1947. In 1949, James became Dean of Dickerson Theological Seminary and pastor of Chappelle Memorial AME Church in Columbia in 1950.

In 1953, Bishop James moved to my hometown of Sumter, South Carolina, to become pastor of Mt. Pisgah AME Church, which is when I came to know him. He was very active in the activities that led to Briggs v. Elliott the initial federal court case that resulted in the 1954 Brown v. Board of Education Supreme Court decision. I was serving as President of the NAACP Youth Council at the time, and we went on to have a lifelong friendship and close bond.

In 1960, James was elected director of social action for the AME Church, and became close with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. His career was dedicated to faith and social activism, and he rose to great heights in both arenas.

Beloved among those in the AME movement, he was elected the 93rd Bishop of the AME Church in 1972. He served the 18th and 15th Episcopal Districts from 1972 to 1976, the 12th from 1976 to 1984, the 7th from 1984 to 1992, and the 2nd from 1993 to 1996. Among his many accomplishments, Bishop James led AME-sponsored colleges Shorter College, in Little Rock, Arkansas to full accreditation in 1981 and Allen University to full accreditation in 1992. He also served as Ecumenical Bishop and Chaplaincy Endorsement Officer of the AME Church in 1992. In 1996, Bishop James retired from leadership in the AME Church.

Bishop James' interest in civic engagement began while he was very young. He joined the NAACP as a teenager and actively became involved in voter registration efforts. He was very active in the student movement while on the campus of Allen University.

While living in Sumter, he helped organize and chair the Sumter Citizens Committee. He also served as president of the Effective Sumter Movement, These groups organized demonstrations, raised bail to get protestors out of jail, and met with local white organizations and government officials in the effort to change hearts and minds.

In addition to his civil rights activism, Bishop James served as chair of Allen University's Board of Trustees and of the Howard Junior High School Center in Prosperity, South Carolina. He was also a board member of the Columbia Housing Authority. In 1994, Bishop James was selected by his good friend, President Bill Clinton, to serve as a member of the delegation to attend the inauguration of South African President Nelson Mandela.

Bishop James is a former member of the White House Advisory Board on Historically Black Colleges and Universities and of the U.S. State Department's Advisory Board on Religious Freedom and served as National Vice President of the Interfaith Alliance. Bishop James is a life member of the NAACP and Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity and is a 33rd degree Mason. He was also the first African American to serve on the board of directors at the National Bank of South Carolina and as a member of the Greater Sumter Chamber of Commerce.

Among his many honors, Bishop James holds an honorary doctorate of humanities from Monrovia College in Liberia. He received South Carolina's highest honor, the Order of the Palmetto, in 2003. In 2020, Bishop James received the Leon A. Love Lifetime Achievement Award from the South Carolina African American Heritage Foundation and ``Columbia SC 63: Our Story Matters.'' He has been inducted into the South Carolina Black Hall of Fame and the Columbia Housing Authority Wall of Fame.

Bishop James married Theressa Gregg on December 30, 1944, and the couple enjoyed 76 years of marriage before she passed away on January 25, 2021.

Madam Speaker, I ask you and our colleagues to join me in celebrating the centennial anniversary of Bishop Fred James' birth. He was a mentor to me and so many others as he preached the gospel and the need for equality and justice for all. This important milestone, is a good time to let Bishop James know that we all feel blessed by his efforts to fulfill the charge of Micah to, ``act justly, love mercy, and walk humbly.''