Hoyer Remarks at Bowie State University's Founder's Day Awards GalaHoyer Remarks at Bowie State University's Founder's Day Awards Gala

BOWIE, MD –Last night, Congressman Steny H. Hoyer (MD-5) delivered keynote remarks at Bowie State University's Founder's Day Awards Gala. The Gala celebrated the founding of Bowie State University in 1865 by honoring the achievements of faculty, alumni, business and community leaders, and organizations who have made a significant impact on Bowie State University. Below are his remarks as prepared for delivery:    

"Good evening, and congratulations to tonight's honorees and to the entire Bowie State University community for another year of excellence in education. I am honored to be here with you to celebrate this year's Founder's Gala.

"It has been one of the great privileges of my career in Congress and in the state legislature to have had the opportunity to serve as a voice for Bowie State and help support its work, including, most recently, by helping to secure a five-year grant, worth $3 million per-year, to expand academic resources and help launch new endowments. 

"I think it's very telling that Bowie State's official motto is ‘prepare for life.'

"Not ‘prepare for a career' or ‘prepare for academic achievement.'  

"‘Prepare for life' – a whole life.

"A life enriched by a love of learning.

"A life enhanced by an understanding of our responsibility to ourselves and to one another.

"A life given higher purpose through community involvement and public service.

"At Bowie State, you do not only produce accomplished graduates – you produce good citizens.

"Bowie State alumni continue to achieve great things for their communities, our country, and the world, precisely because Bowie State prepared them for a life of contribution and for reaching beyond themselves.

"As one of the oldest and most distinguished historically black universities in America, Bowie State has a special responsibility – a dual mission.

"You are preparing students to achieve as individuals in our society and our economy. But you are also helping to build a stronger African-American community by training its next generation of leaders, thinkers, and innovators. And it will be innovation that drives our economy and, indeed, our country forward in the coming years.

"Bowie State has recognized this and made innovation a priority. Your investments in expanding education in the areas of science, technology, engineering, and math – or STEM – are helping to prepare graduates for some of the most critical jobs in our information economy.

"Here in Maryland, where we have seen a statewide effort to attract and support high-tech and advanced energy manufacturing, we must ensure that our schools are producing graduates who are not only skilled in these fields but who can think in new ways and work collaboratively to develop new ideas. These skills are only going to become even more important in the future.

"That's why I've been working on the federal level on a comprehensive plan to increase high-skill, high-wage jobs in manufacturing, which I call Make It In America.

"Make It In America is about investing in education and innovation so that our people can compete for the best jobs the new economy has to offer.  And it's what Bowie State excels at – both through its programs of study and its network of alumni and benefactors.

"Among tonight's award recipients are community leaders who are part of that network and who are doing their part to make it in America and ensure that others can too.

"Tom Graham, who is being recognized tonight with the Flame of Faith Award, chairs the Maryland Chamber of Commerce and the Center for Energy Workforce Development. In those capacities – and in his role as Vice President for People Strategy and Human Resources at Pepco, Tom has been hard at work helping area businesses and residents access both the electric power they need and the career opportunities at one of our major employers in Maryland.

"Mike Little, tonight's Heritage Award Recipient, is helping Marylanders make it in America too. As President of B&W Solutions, Mike leads a company committed to workforce development that helps connect Prince George's County job-seekers with opportunities.

"Central to the Make It In America plan is training and securing a twenty-first century workforce, which is exactly the work Bowie State is engaged in, especially when it comes to promoting innovation.

"The next great tech product might have its beginnings right here in our state, thanks to the world-class learning and commitment to innovation fostered right here at Bowie State.

"You are laying the foundations for more of our people to make it in America and make it in Maryland.

"But success in the new economy and in the manufacturing sector depends on more than skill in STEM fields alone. Bowie State has been a pioneer in merging STEM learning with the fields of art and design as well.

"This past September, Lockheed Martin invested in the Maryland Center at Bowie State precisely because you have become a nationally recognized leader in this new approach, which is called STEAM – or STEM plus A for the arts.

"Two weeks ago, I was proud to join President Obama in Bladensburg as he recognized your efforts by announcing a $7 million Youth Career Connect Grant to Prince George's County, because of the partnership between Prince George's Public Schools, Lockheed, the Maryland Center, and Bowie State to expand the pipeline of students pursuing college degrees and careers in the stem disciplines through your education innovation initiative.

"Your STEAM initiatives will help ensure Maryland students have the skills they need for the jobs of tomorrow while keeping our workforce globally competitive.

"The arts scholarships supported by tonight's gala will contribute to those efforts.

"This interdisciplinary focus is a perfect example of the innovative approach Bowie State has taken when it comes to educating its students and promoting learning throughout Prince George's County and Maryland.

"Because learning how to think in new ways is not only the hallmark of a solid education – it is the key to being prepared for the range of challenges life presents us with. 

"Prepare for life.

"The founders would today be incredibly proud of the way Bowie State has engaged in its mission, fulfilling its motto for tens of thousands who have graduated from its undergraduate, masters, doctoral, graduate certificate, and advanced studies programs.  

"As Maryland's oldest historically black university, Bowie State plays an important role within the University System of Maryland, providing access to higher education for generations of African-Americans, and our state is enhanced by the work being performed here every day.

"And the African-American community in our state and our country is enriched through the many contributions by Bowie State students, faculty, and alumni.

"All of us are here tonight because we share a common love for Bowie State University and a common purpose in seeing that it can continue to fulfill its mission.

"I look forward to continuing to work with all of you to ensure that it can do so for many years to come – and that it can keep producing some of the best and brightest graduates in Maryland who are ready for any challenge that comes their way. Graduates who are truly prepared for careers, for innovation, for involved citizenship – for life.

"Thank you."