The publication is reproduced in full below:
HONORING SYDNEY NOEL BURKS
______
HON. BENNIE G. THOMPSON
of mississippi
in the house of representatives
Thursday, December 2, 2021
Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor a tenacious and ambitious young lady, Sydney Noel Burks.
Sydney is a Sophomore at Hinds Community College-Utica Campus majoring in Chemistry/Pre-Pharmacy. She was a May 2020 graduate of Park Place Christian Academy (PPCA), where she graduated as a Highest Honor graduate with a 4.0 GPA. During her time at PPCA, she was inducted into the National Honor Society and served as Secretary of the Beta Club.
Sydney also believes in giving back to the community and helping those who are less fortunate. Her service and leadership have not only given her experiences she will cherish for a lifetime but has also enabled her to become an advocate for others and to promote issues that are of importance. Some of the community service events she was involved in during high school and continue to be involved includes the following:
We Will Go--Organized community closet and assisted the neighbors with bagging groceries and clothing and picked up trash and debris around the city;
Stewpot--Assisted with packing and serving lunches;
Feed the Need--Worked as a team member to pack and bag food to later be shipped to those who are food insecure;
Feed the Hungry--Talked to, prayed with, and assisted with serving lunch to those who were hungry in Poindexter Park;
Operation Christmas Child (Shoebox Processing Center in Texas)--
Worked with a team to pack shoeboxes and ensure that the items in the shoeboxes met the safety requirements to be shipped to the children who needed them; and
The Little Lighthouse--Worked with special needs children by assisting teachers with primary lessons, feeding the children lunch, and supervising recess. Also assisted with creating `Thank You' cards for their 5K race.
During Sydney's tenure at Hinds Community College-Utica Campus, she has maintained a cumulative 4.0 grade point average, and has been named a President's Scholar. She is currently a member of the Yearbook and Robotics Clubs. Sydney is a STEM student and is a member of the Louis Stokes Mississippi Alliance for Minority Participation. In addition, Sydney is a Mississippi INBRE (Idea Network of Biomedical Research Excellence) Scholar. Mississippi IDeA Network of Biomedical Research Excellence (INBRE) is a network of colleges and universities, designed to build a biomedical research infrastructure in Mississippi. The mission is to reach out to Mississippians in order to improve health throughout the state and to engage talented researchers and students in biomedical research projects that will increase the state's research competitiveness as well as impact the health of citizens of Mississippi.
As an INBRE scholar, she had the opportunity to be an intern with My Brother's Keeper. She presented the outcomes of her work entitled,
``Potential Mistrust of the COVID-19 Vaccine Among African-Americans in Mississippi,'' during the Mississippi Health Disparities Annual Conference 2021 in Biloxi, MS. Also, she is the Mississippi-Louisiana Vice-President of Phi Theta Kappa International College Honor Society. Phi Theta Kappa (PTK) recognizes the academic achievement of college students and provides opportunities for its members to grow as scholars and leaders.
Recently, Sydney was named as one of the Historically Black College and University Scholars.
Madam Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in recognizing Ms. Sydney Noel Burks for the outstanding work and accomplishments she has made thus far.
____________________
SOURCE: Congressional Record Vol. 167, No. 208
The Congressional Record is a unique source of public documentation. It started in 1873, documenting nearly all the major and minor policies being discussed and debated.
House Representatives' salaries are historically higher than the median US income.
Alerts Sign-up