NORTH CAROLINA CONGRESSWOMAN ALMA S. ADAMS TO BE DSU COMMENCEMENT KEYNOTE SPEAKER
DOVER, Del. – Delaware State University will hold its 134th Commencement Ceremony at 10 a.m. Saturday, May 11 at Alumni Stadium on campus, where the keynote speaker will be U.S. Rep. Alma S. Adams.
Rep. Adams is currently in her third term representing the 12th Congressional District of North Carolina on November 6, 2018. In the 116th Congress, she presently serves on the Committee on Financial Services; Committee on Education & Labor and the Committee on Agriculture. She will serve in several leadership roles as Chairwoman of the Committee on Education & Labor’s Subcommittee on Workforce Protections and Vice Chairwoman to the Committee on Agriculture. The Congresswoman is also the founder of the first-ever Congressional Bipartisan HBCU Caucus.
Prior to her current tenure in Congress, Rep. Adams served her native state for 10 terms (1994-2014) in the North Carolina House of Representatives. During her tenure, she rose to become the chair of the North Carolina Legislative Black Caucus and was instrumental in passing legislation that improved the climate for quality affordable health care in the state. Representative Adams also pioneered the Displaced Homemakers Bill and successfully spearheaded the state’s first minimum wage increase in nine years.
Throughout her career, Representative Adams has promoted quality education for all students, spearheading legislation to boost funds for Historically Black Colleges and Universities, providing nutritious breakfasts in schools and supporting increased pay for teachers. For 40 years, Dr. Adams taught Art at Bennett College. While at Bennett, she led the effort to increase student civic participation coining the phrase “Bennett Belles are Voting Belles” and organizing annual marches to the polls. As a former educator, Rep. Adams has dedicated her career to improving the lives of young people and her community.
Congresswoman Adams graduated from North Carolina A&T State University in 1968 and received her master’s degree in Art Education in 1972. She earned her Ph.D. in Art Education and Multicultural Education from The Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio in 1981.
