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[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E691-E692]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
IN HONOR OF RETIRING SAN FRANCISCO STATE UNIVERSITY PRESIDENT LES WONG
______
HON. JACKIE SPEIER
of california
in the house of representatives
Monday, June 3, 2019
Ms. SPEIER. Madam Speaker, I rise today to celebrate Dr. Leslie Wong,
the retiring President of San Francisco State University. Dr. Wong
leaves San Francisco State after seven fruitful years, and it is a
stronger, bolder university due to his leadership.
Dr. Wong's calm and effective manner, his warm smile and enthusiasm
won me over the first time I met him. We compared notes about the Upper
Peninsula where he had just moved from as the President of the Northern
Michigan University. Mind you, NMU is in Marquette, a town of 35,000
mostly white people. His new home, SFSU, is in San Francisco, one of
the most diverse cities of 880,000 people. He immediately adapted and
became part of the fabric of the school and community.
San Francisco State is an urban jewel located in my Congressional
District. Its graduates fill the ranks of the state's leadership
circles, and its 130+ academic areas, 27 credential programs, multiple
certificate, master's degree and doctoral degree programs fuel the
regional economy. It is also the home of a multi-cultural student body
from around the globe. If you go to San Francisco State, you will
receive a world-class education simply by listening to debates in the
public areas of the campus or attending one of the many political,
cultural and civic affairs programs held annually.
It was into this mix of diversity and activism that Dr. Wong walked
when he assumed leadership of San Francisco State in 2012 as its 13th
President. He came from Northern Michigan University, where he also
served as President from 2004 to 2012. Earlier, he held a variety of
leadership posts at universities in North Dakota, Colorado, and
Washington State.
He was successful in raising scholarship funds, renovating the San
Francisco State gym, and building the Mashouf Wellness Center. At
present, the university is also building the new Liberal and Creative
Arts Building, the first new academic building on campus in a
generation. Dr. Wong was instrumental in bringing the Holloway Mixed-
Use Project to fruition to provide for more student housing and to
provide for street-level businesses.
[[Page E692]]
During his tenure, the six year graduation rates for black and Latino
students increased.
Also during his leadership, San Francisco State was designated a
Hispanic Serving Institution and is recognized as an Asian American,
Native American, and Pacific Islander Serving Institution. It is a
little-known fact that the school's faculty and students regularly
discover new planets. This is the kind of inquiry that Les Wong
inspires throughout the university.
No university worth the title, however, is forever without
controversy. In the rich tradition of San Francisco State, Dr. Wong
listened to faculty, students and to other stakeholders. His thoughtful
dialogues assured the San Francisco State community that the beliefs of
all would be listened to and addressed, if possible.
Dr. Wong serves on multiple academic association boards, including
the Board of Directors of the Association of American Colleges and
Universities, the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce, the Bay Area
Council and the National Collegiate Athletics Association Board of
Governors Committee to Promote Cultural Diversity and Equity. He's
received numerous national and community awards including the 2014
Asian Pacific Americans in Higher Education President's award for
Leadership and Contributions in Higher Education.
With his wife, Phyllis, Dr. Wong has three sons and eight
grandchildren. He now will step down after 46 years in academia and
become grandpa, perhaps his most challenging position yet.
Madam Speaker, San Francisco State was first established in 1899.
Since its founding as a school to educate future public school
teachers, the university has branched out into science, engineering,
business, and the liberal arts and humanities, in addition to
education. Each year, it currently graduates 8,000 students, a number
so large that, when coupled with parents, friends and other loved ones,
necessitates a graduation ceremony in the park where the San Francisco
Giants play ball.
For those of us who know and love the university, it comes as no
surprise that its departing President came to this university as the
final stop along his professional career. When the M Ocean View next
stops at Holloway and 19th Avenue, its passengers will eagerly
disembark in order to enter the hallways of a fine university made
stronger by the leadership of this man.
Thus, we celebrate the irony: One man's final professional stop on a
life's journey is the next generation's early stop in pursuit of
professional and personal dreams. In his departure, let us salute
Leslie E. Wong, PhD. He has been a faithful steward of the phenomenal
dream machine known as San Francisco State University. Ultimately, it
fulfilled his dreams and those of its students. He is a fortunate man,
and we wish him well in the years ahead.
____________________
