House Concurrent Resolution 76

A CONCURRENT RESOLUTION COMMENDING MR. NOAH BARBIERI FOR HIS EXCEPTIONAL DEDICATION TO ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE AND FOR BEING NAMED BOTH A TRUMAN SCHOLAR AND A RHODES SCHOLAR.

WHEREAS, Noah Barbieri was named both a Truman Scholar and a Rhodes Scholar, an incredible accomplishment for Mr. Barbieri and a true testament to his tremendous dedication to academic excellence; and

WHEREAS, originally from Belden, Mississippi, Mr. Barbieri attended Tupelo Christian Preparatory School, and after graduation he moved to Jackson to attend Millsaps College, where he is currently a senior majoring in economics and philosophy with a minor in mathematics, and he has an outstanding 4.0 GPA and is ranked number 1 in his class of 165 students; and

WHEREAS, the Harry S. Truman Scholarship Foundation was created by the United States Congress in 1975 with the mission of selecting and supporting the next generation of public service leaders, and candidates for this prestigious scholarship endure a rigorous, multi-stage selection process, and in 2017 there were 768 candidates for the award who were nominated by 315 colleges and universities, and 199 finalists were interviewed at one of the 16 regional selection panels; and

WHEREAS, with his tremendous dedication to public service and his exceptional drive for academic excellence, Mr. Barbieri is only the second student in Millsaps College history to receive the Truman Scholarship, and in addition to receiving the scholarship, the foundation honored Mr. Barbieri for his work as a classroom assistant at Brown Elementary School and for his research on inequality; and

WHEREAS, in addition to being named a Truman Scholar, Mr. Barbieri is the second Millsaps student in the past three years and the seventh student in the history of the college to be named a Rhodes Scholar, which is considered one of the most prestigious academic scholarships in the world; and

WHEREAS, the Rhodes Trust, an international charity established in honor of British mining magnate and politician, Cecil J. Rhodes, grants scholarships to approximately 95 students worldwide, with 32 students from the United States and its territories, and it provides full funding for graduate level studies at the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom; and

WHEREAS, Mr. Barbieri has made the most of his time at Millsaps College, serving as the Presidential Ambassador in the Admissions Office and as a tutor in the Math Department, and he has held several leadership positions, serving as the Student Body Senator, Student Body Treasurer and Student Body Parliamentarian, and he is currently serving as the Student Body President, and was selected as Student Body Leader of the Year; and

WHEREAS, during his exceptional undergraduate career, Mr. Barbieri completed honors projects in both economics and philosophy, and he has held various positions in several academic honorary societies, such as president of the Omicron Delta Epsilon economics honorary; former president of the Phi Eta Sigma freshman honorary; and past treasurer of the Sigma Lambda service honorary, and he is a member of the Omicron Delta Kappa leadership honorary; the Eta Sigma Phi classics honorary; and the Pi Mu Epsilon mathematics honorary; and

WHEREAS, in addition to his tremendous involvement on campus, Mr. Barbieri has a passion for helping those who need it most, and one of his most meaningful experiences was his time at Brown Elementary School as a classroom assistant during his freshman year of college, where he tutored students in reading and in math, and it was there that he began to realize numerous problems that the state is facing each day, and how, because of those problems, many people suffer in different ways across the state, and it was then that he decided to use his unique skills to make a difference in Mississippi; and

WHEREAS, Mr. Barbieri is scheduled to graduate from Millsaps College in May 2018 and he plans to use his extraordinary scholarships to pursue a master's degree in economics at the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom, after which he intends to pursue a doctorate degree in economics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge, Massachusetts; and

WHEREAS, with his passion for helping Mississippi become the best it can be for all of its citizens, Mr. Barbieri intends to use his knowledge and skills to run for political office, and he further intends to help formulate practical, holistic solutions to issues that the state faces each day; and

WHEREAS, Mr. Barbieri possesses the unique qualities that both President Truman and Cecil J. Rhodes envisioned for the recipients of their respective scholarships, and he will join the ranks of prominent individuals who are both a Rhodes Scholar and a Truman Scholar, such as Susan E. Rice, the 24th National Security Advisor, United States Ambassador to the United Nations and former Assistant Secretary of State, and George Stephanopoulos, a former political advisor to President Bill Clinton and an ABC News anchor; and

WHEREAS, the President of Millsaps College, Dr. Robert W. Pearigen, stated that Mr. Barbieri embodies the best of a liberal arts education, and by extension, the virtues for which Rhodes Scholars are known, and he has employed each of his three undergraduate majors, which span the three divisions of Millsaps College, to better understand and address practical challenges facing his native state of Mississippi; and

WHEREAS, Kenneth Townsend, the executive director of the Millsaps Institute for Civic and Professional Engagement, stated that Mr. Barbieri's persistence in the pursuit of excellence is truly extraordinary, and part of the reason he has excelled in every facet of his life is that he simply works harder than just about any undergraduate that Mr. Townsend has ever encountered; and

WHEREAS, it is the policy of this Legislature to recognize outstanding Mississippians, especially those such as Noah Barbieri, whose exceptional dedication to academic excellence and whose devotion to the betterment of the Magnolia State and its citizens bring honor to his school, his community and to the State of Mississippi:

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI, THE SENATE CONCURRING THEREIN, That we do hereby commend Mr. Noah Barbieri for his exceptional dedication to academic excellence and for being named both a Truman Scholar and a Rhodes Scholar, and extend to him sincere wishes for his continued success in his future endeavors.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That copies of this resolution be furnished to Noah Barbieri and to the members of the Capitol Press Corps.