Territorial Student Access to Higher Education Act
Floor Speech
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Mr. MOYLAN. Mr. Speaker, I thank my good friend, Chairman Walberg, for yielding to me. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of Guam's students and strongly urge my colleagues to vote for my bill, H.R. 6472.
This bill delivers a targeted approach to make college more affordable, strengthen workforce pipelines, and support critical national security efforts in the U.S. territories.
H.R. 6472 provides tuition rate guarantees to U.S. nationals who live in Guam, CNMI, American Samoa, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. High costs associated with education in the States, not ability, limit educational opportunities for students in the territories.
None of our islands have doctorate, law, or medical degree programs. Lack of access to these programs leads to workforce shortages in critical sectors. Lowering barriers to access will lead to greater capacity building in the territories.
Some examples of past folks are: Honorable Peter C. Siguenza, who attended California State University and returned home after law school to become Guam's first Chief Justice.
Then there was the late Dr. Chris Perez, who went to UC San Francisco, who came home to be a good doctor for the island.
There was also our first president of the University of Guam, Dr. Antonio Yamashita, who attended the University of North Carolina.
We currently have leaders on our island, such as Dr. Enriquez, who is the president of our University of Guam. She attended the University of Maryland.
We also have Dr. Aguon, who attended the University of Hawaii and is now running our Guam Memorial Hospital, and our Governor ``Lou'' Leon Guerrero attended UCLA.
Every doctor and lawyer in Guam studied elsewhere, returned home, and has made an incredible impact on our community.
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Mr. MOYLAN. Mr. Speaker, this bill is about empowering our residents to seek degrees that we need but are not available at home and to return home to strengthen our communities.
I strongly urge my colleagues to support this bill, our students, and our community.
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