Washington Informer

Mayor Vincent C. Gray recently celebrated the final phase of the renaissance of the historic Anacostia High School, which now features state-of-the-art learning technology and community spaces.

Gray was also joined last week by Ward 8 Councilmember Marion Barry, City Administrator Allen Y. Lew, D.C. Public Schools (DCPS) Chancellor Kaya Henderson, and Department of General Services (DGS) Director Brian J. Hanlon in a ribbon-cutting ceremony at the Ward 8 school.

"The final phase of this modernization project brings together the pride and history of Anacostia High School with 21st century technology to provide students, educators, and this community with a vibrant learning facility," Gray said. "This investment in our students' learning environment reflects the renewed sense of value we're placing on education in the District of Columbia."

Phase II of the $62 million project completes the modernization of the 247,000 square-foot facility, which consists of an original building that was constructed in 1935 and three subsequent additions built in the 1940s, the 1950s and the 1970s. The project also features the modernization of classrooms and the addition of energy-efficient mechanical, plumbing and electrical systems.

"Our design goal for Anacostia High School was to meticulously restore the exterior of the building to maintain its historic appearance, while simultaneously transforming the interior into a modern facility with state-of-the-art technology for students and teachers," said Lew.

A special feature of the new Anacostia High School is the cafeteria renovation that adds both floor space and ceiling height along with new skylights, a decorative stairwell open to the floor above and a mobile by artist Roberto Delgado (made possible through a grant from D.C. Commission on the Arts & Humanities D.C. Creates Public Art Program).

"It's a great day for Anacostia and DCPS. The final phase of all the tremendous work at Anacostia is an example of what we can do when we work together to help improve the quality of education for our students," said Chancellor Henderson. "This is the type of project that helps us move toward our vision of DCPS as a world-class school system where all students can grow, thrive and succeed."

The technology upgrades include state-of-the-art communications and information-technology systems to enhance the learning environment throughout the school as well as increased natural light, improved acoustics, interactive white boards and computer labs. The high school is completely ADA-accessible, and will be able to accommodate up to 1,200 students.

Seat Pleasant, MD --Tennis star Venus Williams will be addressing the City Center groundbreaking ceremony with pre-recorded remarks on Sept. 29 at Goodwin Park in Seat Pleasant.

Williams joins a cast of VIPs involved with the event that include such as Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley, Lt. Gov. Anthony Brown and Prince Georges County Executive Rushern Baker.

"This is the first major development project in Seat Pleasant in nearly 30 years, and I am honored Ms. Venus Williams and her company, V*STARR Interiors, were willing to come on board with this historic undertaking, said Mayor Eugene Grant. "The city of Seat Pleasant is combining an urban environment with nature and taking measures to reduce our carbon footprint. . . We hope this will serve as an example to the county, state and nation that by working together municipalities like ours can accomplish great things to leave a better future for our children."

Williams' interior design firm, V*STARR Interiors, has agreed to take on the interior design of the new city hall and community center as part of the City Center project. This $60 million endeavor will be the city's largest undertaking in its history and the largest public/private partnership of a municipality with a population of 10,000 or less.

The groundbreaking is an historic celebration for the community as the City of Seat Pleasant: "A City of Excellence," embarks on "Going Green."

The project will cover 15 acres of what is now known as Goodwin Park in Seat Pleasant and include a LEED-Platinum city hall building, which along with the other buildings, will be positioned with energy efficient solar panels and other renewable energy solutions to reduce the size of the carbon footprint of each of the facilities covering five buildings.

Four to Receive Prestigious Awards Recognizing Contributions to America

 WASHINGTON – First lady Michelle Obama will deliver the keynote address at the annual Phoenix Awards Dinner on Saturday, Sept. 22 at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center. 

Mrs. Obama is scheduled to address more than 3,000 expected attendees at the evening's event, which marks the first time ever that a first lady has addressed the prestigious gathering.

"We are so pleased that Mrs. Obama will serve as the keynote speaker for the awards dinner," said Elsie L. Scott, president and chief executive officer for CBCF. "As a former CBC Spouse, Mrs. Obama is quite familiar with our mission at the Foundation, and we are certain that her remarks will be both thought provoking, and most importantly, inspire our audience to do their part to prepare the next generation of leaders."

The Phoenix Award symbolizes the immortality of the human spirit and an eternal desire to reach its full potential. Four distinguished individuals will receive the prestigious award:

• U.S. Attorney General Eric H. Holder, Jr. will receive The CBCF Chair's Award. The award is presented to an individual whose work and accomplishments stand as a role model for the African-American community and the African Diaspora.

• Writer, director George Lucas will receive The CBC Chair's Award. The award is presented to an individual who exhibits the highest standards of dedication, ability and creativity;

• Representative Corrine Brown of Florida and the first African American Mayor of Charlotte, NC, the Honorable Harvey Gantt will each receive The Harold Washington Award. The award is presented to an individual who has contributed immeasurably to African-American political awareness, empowerment and the advancement of minorities in the electoral process;

Recent past recipients of the award include EPA Administrator Lisa P. Jackson; athlete, entrepreneur and humanitarian George Edward Foreman Sr.; civil rights activists the Rev. Dr. Joseph E. Lowery and Georgia Congressman John Lewis.

Petition Challenge and Allegation of Wrongdoing Rejected

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Board of Elections has ruled that the Michael A. Brown re-election campaign has qualified for the Nov. 6 ballot. The Board formally rejected the challenge to the campaign's petitions, dismissed any allegation of wrongdoing, and summarily rejected requests to issue subpoenas.

"The Board's decision [on Sept. 10] confirms what my campaign has been saying all along: the petition challenge had no merit and was made by my opponent in bad faith," said Brown. "According to the Board, my opponent challenged hundreds of signatures which after extensive review, were determined to be valid. Knowing that his challenge was bogus and would fail, my opponent intentionally wasted the time and resources of District taxpayers to advance his political ambitions. This gamesmanship and shameless attempt to disenfranchise voters represents the most unethical kind of dirty politics."

In preliminary hearings on Aug. 29 and Sept. 7, the Board's registrar and staff recommended that the petition challenges be dismissed because over 3,000 signatures were deemed valid. At Monday's hearing, the Board upheld the staff's recommendations, granting Michael Brown ballot access and concluding the challenge proceedings.

"The first time I addressed this convention in 2004, I was a younger man; a senate candidate from Illinois who spoke about hope— not blind optimism or wishful thinking, but hope in the face of difficulty; hope in the face of uncertainty; that dogged faith in the future which has pushed this nation forward, even when the odds are great; even when the road is long.

"But when all is said and done— when you pick up that ballot to vote— you will face the clearest choice of any time in a generation. Over the next few years, big decisions will be made in Washington, on jobs and the economy; taxes and deficits; energy and education; war and peace— decisions that will have a huge impact on our lives and our children's lives for decades to come.

"Ours is a fight to restore the values that built the largest middle class and the strongest economy the world has ever known; the values my grandfather defended as a soldier in Patton's Army; the values that drove my grandmother to work on a bomber assembly line while he was gone.

"My grandparents were given the chance to go to college, buy their first home, and fulfill the basic bargain at the heart of America's story: the promise that hard work will pay off; that responsibility will be rewarded; that everyone gets a fair shot, and everyone does their fair share, and everyone plays by the same rules— from Main Street to Wall Street to Washington, D.C.

"Now, our friends at the Republican convention were more than happy to talk about everything they think is wrong with America, but they didn't have much to say about how they'd make it right. They want your vote, but they don't want you to know their plan. And that's because all they have to offer is the same prescription they've had for the last thirty years:

"Have a surplus? Try a tax cut."

"Deficit too high? Try another."

"Feel a cold coming on? Take two tax cuts, roll back some regulations, and call us in the morning!"

"Now, I've cut taxes for those who need it— middle-class families and small businesses. But I don't believe that another round of tax breaks for millionaires will bring good jobs to our shores, or pay down our deficit. I don't believe that firing teachers or kicking students off financial aid will grow the economy, or help us compete with the scientists and engineers coming out of China. After all that we've been through, I don't believe that rolling back regulations on Wall Street will help the small businesswoman expand, or the laid-off construction worker keep his home. We've been there, we've tried that, and we're not going back. We're moving forward.

"But know this, America: Our problems can be solved. Our challenges can be met. The path we offer may be harder, but it leads to a better place. And I'm asking you to choose that future. I'm asking you to rally around a set of goals for your country— goals in manufacturing, energy, education, national security, and the deficit; a real, achievable plan that will lead to new jobs, more opportunity, and rebuild this economy on a stronger foundation. That's what we can do in the next four years, and that's why I'm running for a second term as president of the United States.

"After a decade of decline, this country created over half a million manufacturing jobs in the last two and a half years. And now you have a choice: we can give more tax breaks to corporations that ship jobs overseas, or we can start rewarding companies that open new plants and train new workers and create new jobs here, in the United States of America. We can help big factories and small businesses double their exports, and if we choose this path, we can create a million new manufacturing jobs in the next four years. You can make that happen. You can choose that future.

"Now you have a choice— between a strategy that reverses this progress, or one that builds on it. We've opened millions of new acres for oil and gas exploration in the last three years, and we'll open more. But unlike my opponent, I will not let oil companies write this country's energy plan, or endanger our coastlines, or collect another $4 billion in corporate welfare from our taxpayers.

"We're offering a better path— a future where we keep investing in wind and solar and clean coal; where farmers and scientists harness new biofuels to power our cars and trucks; where construction workers build homes and factories that waste less energy; where we develop a hundred year supply of natural gas that's right beneath our feet. If you choose this path, we can cut our oil imports in half by 2020 and support more than 600,000 new jobs in natural gas alone.

"You can choose a future where more Americans have the chance to gain the skills they need to compete, no matter how old they are or how much money they have. Education was the gateway to opportunity for me. It was the gateway for Michelle. And now more than ever, it is the gateway to a middle-class life.

"For the first time in a generation, nearly every state has answered our call to raise their standards for teaching and learning. Some of the worst schools in the country have made real gains in math and reading. Millions of students are paying less for college today because we finally took on a system that wasted billions of taxpayer dollars on banks and lenders.

"In a world of new threats and new challenges, you can choose leadership that has been tested and proven. Four years ago, I promised to end the war in Iraq. We did. I promised to refocus on the terrorists who actually attacked us on 9/11. We have. We've blunted the Taliban's momentum in Afghanistan, and in 2014, our longest war will be over. A new tower rises above the New York skyline, al-Qaida is on the path to defeat, and Osama bin Laden is dead.

"Tonight, we pay tribute to the Americans who still serve in harm's way. We are forever in debt to a generation whose sacrifice has made this country safer and more respected. We will never forget you. And so long as I'm commander in chief, we will sustain the strongest military the world has ever known. When you take off the uniform, we will serve you as well as you've served us— because no one who fights for this country should have to fight for a job, or a roof over their head, or the care that they need when they come home.

"Around the world, we've strengthened old alliances and forged new coalitions to stop the spread of nuclear weapons. We've reasserted our power across the Pacific and stood up to China on behalf of our workers. From Burma to Libya to South Sudan, we have advanced the rights and dignity of all human beings— men and women; Christians and Muslims and Jews.

"After all, you don't call Russia our number one enemy— and not al-Qaida— unless you're still stuck in a Cold War time warp. You might not be ready for diplomacy with Beijing if you can't visit the Olympics without insulting our closest ally. My opponent said it was "tragic" to end the war in Iraq, and he won't tell us how he'll end the war in Afghanistan. I have, and I will. And while my opponent would spend more money on military hardware that our joint chiefs don't even want, I'll use the money we're no longer spending on war to pay down our debt and put more people back to work— rebuilding roads and bridges; schools and runways. After two wars that have cost us thousands of lives and over a trillion dollars, it's time to do some nation-building right here at home.

"I want to reform the tax code so that it's simple, fair, and asks the wealthiest households to pay higher taxes on incomes over $250,000— the same rate we had when Bill Clinton was president; the same rate we had when our economy created nearly 23 million new jobs, the biggest surplus in history, and a lot of millionaires to boot.

"Now, I'm still eager to reach an agreement based on the principles of my bipartisan debt commission. No party has a monopoly on wisdom. No democracy works without compromise. But when Gov. Romney and his allies in Congress tell us we can somehow lower our deficit by spending trillions more on new tax breaks for the wealthy— well, you do the math. I refuse to go along with that. And as long as I'm president, I never will.

"I refuse to ask middle class families to give up their deductions for owning a home or raising their kids just to pay for another millionaire's tax cut. I refuse to ask students to pay more for college; or kick children out of Head Start programs, or eliminate health insurance for millions of Americans who are poor, elderly, or disabled— all so those with the most can pay less.

"And I will never turn Medicare into a voucher. No American should ever have to spend their golden years at the mercy of insurance companies. They should retire with the care and dignity they have earned. Yes, we will reform and strengthen Medicare for the long haul, but we'll do it by reducing the cost of health care— not by asking seniors to pay thousands of dollars more. And we will keep the promise of Social Security by taking the responsible steps to strengthen it— not by turning it over to Wall Street.

"We believe that a little girl who's offered an escape from poverty by a great teacher or a grant for college could become the founder of the next Google, or the scientist who cures cancer, or the President of the United States— and it's in our power to give her that chance.

We know that churches and charities can often make more of a difference than a poverty program alone. We don't want handouts for people who refuse to help themselves, and we don't want bailouts for banks that break the rules. We don't think government can solve all our problems. But we don't think that government is the source of all our problems— any more than are welfare recipients, or corporations, or unions, or immigrants, or gays, or any other group we're told to blame for our troubles.

"I recognize that times have changed since I first spoke to this convention. The times have changed— and so have I.

I'm no longer just a candidate. I'm the president. I know what it means to send young Americans into battle, for I have held in my arms the mothers and fathers of those who didn't return. I've shared the pain of families who've lost their homes, and the frustration of workers who've lost their jobs. If the critics are right that I've made all my decisions based on polls, then I must not be very good at reading them. And while I'm proud of what we've achieved together, I'm far more mindful of my own failings, knowing exactly what Lincoln meant when he said, "I have been driven to my knees many times by the overwhelming conviction that I had no place else to go."

"If you reject the notion that this nation's promise is reserved for the few, your voice must be heard in this election.

If you reject the notion that our government is forever beholden to the highest bidder, you need to stand up in this election.

If you believe that new plants and factories can dot our landscape; that new energy can power our future; that new schools can provide ladders of opportunity to this nation of dreamers; if you believe in a country where everyone gets a fair shot, and everyone does their fair share, and everyone plays by the same rules, then I need you to vote this November.

"America, I never said this journey would be easy, and I won't promise that now. Yes, our path is harder— but it leads to a better place. Yes our road is longer— but we travel it together. We don't turn back. We leave no one behind. We pull each other up. We draw strength from our victories, and we learn from our mistakes, but we keep our eyes fixed on that distant horizon, knowing that providence is with us, and that we are surely blessed to be citizens of the greatest nation on earth.