State Universities Present Award to Congressman Tierney
April 04, 2012
WASHINGTON, DC – Last week, the State Universities of Massachusetts presented the second annual Congressional Leadership Award to Massachusetts Congressman John Tierney for his work in support of the system's universities.
The State Universities are a consortium of public universities across Massachusetts that share the goal of offering a high quality education that prepares the large percentage of local students to join the state's workforce upon graduation. Keeping costs affordable is an additional priority of the universities in the system.
"We are pleased to recognize Congressman Tierney's hard work and support on behalf of the state universities," said Patricia Maguire Meservey, President Salem State University. "As a member of the House Committee on Education and the Workforce, he is a natural ally for us, and we are eager for continued work towards similar objectives."
Congressman Tierney is the only Massachusetts member on the House Committee on Education and the Workforce and a graduate of Salem State University in Massachusetts.
"As a graduate of Salem State, I know firsthand that our state universities provide students across the Commonwealth with competitive, first-rate educational opportunities," Congressman Tierney said. "These institutions, and the teachers and administrators who lead them, prepare our young people to succeed in a changing and growing economy. I applaud the Massachusetts State University System, and remain committed to supporting their efforts to offer quality, affordable education to all of our students."
Congressman Tierney has been a strong advocate for State Universities and higher education throughout his time in Congress. During recent years he helped lead efforts to pass several large scale bills to make college more affordable - the College Cost Reduction and Access Act, the Higher Education Opportunity Act, the Ensuring Continued Access to Student Loans Act to name a few – that eventually became law.
These measures took real steps to provide our families with relief including, increasing Pell Grant scholarship awards, creating more loan forgiveness opportunities, ensuring that many recent graduates do not have to pay more than 15% of their discretionary income in loan repayments, reducing interest rates on Stafford Subsidized Loans almost in half, and protecting families' access to federal students loans from turmoil in the nation's credit markets.
The nine-campus Massachusetts State University System comprises 4-year, baccalaureate and master's degree-granting teaching universities. They include six comprehensive institutions that combine a liberal arts education with professional development training, which include Bridgewater State University, Fitchburg State University, Framingham State University, Salem State University, Westfield State University, Worcester State University, and three specialized institutions, including the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts, Massachusetts College of Art and Design, and the Massachusetts Maritime Academy. The state university system educates more than 51,000 students each year, and has more than 225,000 alumni.
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