Congressman Bart Stupak will address nearly 300 graduates at Midyear Commencement ceremonies Saturday, Dec. 11. A total of 242 students will be receiving bachelor’s degrees. In addition, 26 master’s degrees and 18 doctorates will be awarded.
Stupak will receive an Honorary Doctorate in Environmental and Energy Policy. He is retiring in January after 18 years of service to Michigan’s 1st Congressional District. He is a member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee and, as the ranking Democrat, chair of the Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee. Before his election in 1992, Stupak was a Michigan state representative and worked as an Escanaba police officer and Michigan State Police trooper. He also practiced law. A graduate of Gladstone High School, he earned an associate degree from Northwestern Michigan College, a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice from Northern Michigan University and a law degree from Thomas M. Cooley Law School in Lansing.
Health care has been a priority for Stupak since he was elected to Congress, when he pledged not to accept the insurance that members of Congress receive until all Americans could have access to that same quality health care. He has been a leader in the international effort to ban the sale and diversion of the Great Lakes and opposed the drilling for oil and gas beneath the Great Lakes. Stupak founded and cochaired the Congressional Law Enforcement Caucus, a bipartisan organization that provides the law enforcement community with an avenue to participate in the legislative process. He has been a leader in homeland security, particularly in connection with programs to train and equip local law enforcement officers and other first responders. In addition, Stupak cochairs the Congressional Northern Border Caucus.
Published in Tech Today.