Office of Communications

Contact: Amy Batheja

Communications Specialist

Office: (817) 531-7521

abatheja@txwes.edu

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONGRESSWOMAN KAY GRANGER TO BE KEYNOTE SPEAKER
AT 2008 GOOSTREE SYMPOSIUM

Congresswoman Kay Granger, R-Fort Worth, will be the keynote speaker for the annual Faye C. Goostree Symposium on Tuesday, March 18, at Texas Wesleyan University. Granger, currently the only Republican woman from Texas to serve in the U.S. House of Representatives, earned a Bachelor of Science from Texas Wesleyan in 1965 and was honored with a doctorate in 1992.

The symposium, “Rocking the Cradle and Rocking the System: Women in Politics,” will begin with Granger’s keynote address at 12:15 p.m. in Martin Hall, located in the Ann Waggoner Fine Arts Building, 1309 Wesleyan Street. The keynote speech is free and open to the public.

A luncheon will follow at 1:15 p.m. in the Louella Baker Martin Pavilion, 1112 Wesleyan Street. Reservations are required for the luncheon: $15 for general admission, $12 for Texas Wesleyan faculty and staff, and $8 for students. RSVP by Friday, March 7, to Micki Davis at mmdavis@txwes.edu or (817) 531-4404.

Granger, who is currently the highest ranking Republican woman in the House, stepped into a national leadership role in the war on terrorism based on her work with Iraqi women. In the course of three congressional delegation visits over two years to the Middle East, she worked with and mentored Iraqi women who now either hold elected positions or are leaders in their communities. She also co-chairs the Iraqi Women’s Caucus.

Granger sits on the Appropriations Committee and serves on the Defense, Homeland Security and Military Construction/Veterans Affairs Appropriations Subcommittees. Granger co-chairs the Anti-Terrorism Caucus and serves as the Conference’s Vice Chair and as a deputy whip. She is considered one of the House of Representatives’ leading defense experts. Granger received Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld’s first Global War on Terrorism Coin for her unwavering support of anti-terrorist efforts, the 2006 National Association of  Community Health Centers Community Health Defender Award and the National Association of Manufacturers Award. She has been inducted into the Texas Women’s Hall of Fame and the Fort Worth Business Hall of Fame.

The Goostree Symposium at Texas Wesleyan University, founded in 1981 by Fort Worth civic and church leader Faye C. Goostree, increases awareness of women’s issues and recognizes the professional and academic achievements of women.