House
Majority Leader Merrill to be honored with New England Higher
Education Excellence Award
Contact: John O. Harney, 617-357-9620
ext. 101 or jharney@nebhe.org
Oct.
25,
2010
Boston
-- The New England Board of Higher Education (NEBHE) announced
today that Connecticut House
Majority Leader Denise Merrill will
be honored with a 2011 New England Higher Education Excellence
Award.
Each
year, NEBHE presents Regional Excellence Awards to individuals and
organizations that have shown exceptional leadership on behalf of
higher education and the advancement of educational opportunity,
and State Merit Awards to honor the innovative work of
organizations, institutions or individuals in each New England
state.
The
2011 awards will be celebrated at a dinner on Friday, March 11,
2011 at the Boston Marriott Long Wharf Hotel.
Merrill
will receive the Connecticut State Merit Award.
As House
majority leader in 2010, Merrill formed the Majority Leaders' Jobs
Growth Roundtable, out of which grew all-encompassing legislation
for the creation of new jobs. Also included in the legislation is a
student-loan forgiveness program to be administered by the
Connecticut Department of Higher Education for students studying
green technology, life sciences and health information
technology.
Merrill
was also instrumental this year in the passage of a $362 million
legislative proposal to renovate and expand the University of
Connecticut's John Dempsey Hospital.
"I
am very proud to be recognized by such an outstanding organization
that advocates for higher education," Merrill said. "Connecticut
needs to promote greater educational opportunities and services for
its residents and that's exactly what NEBHE already does by
stressing the relationship between higher education in New England
and regional economic development."
"Representative
Merrill has been a stalwart advocate for the role of higher
education in economic development," said
NEBHE President and CEO Michael K. Thomas.
Additional
information about NEBHE's New England Higher Education Excellence
Awards is available online at www.nebhe.org.
###
NEBHE
is a congressionally authorized, six-state agency whose mission is
to promote greater educational opportunities and services for
residents of New England. NEBHE programs are principally focused on
the relationship between New England higher education and regional
economic development.
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