Virginia Foxx: “This speech is bittersweet. I stand to commend a member of my committee staff, Mandy Schaumburg, on her 20 years of…”

“This speech is bittersweet. I stand to commend a member of my committee staff, Mandy Schaumburg, on her 20 years of public service. I thank Mandy for her years of service to this committee and this country and for being someone that I could count on to get the job done. Anyone who knows me will tell you that I have high standards, and sometimes people struggle to meet them. Not Mandy. Mandy not only met those standards. She exceeded them. She will be missed by our team, by the committee, and by me. Throughout her 20 years in Federal service, Mandy worked for former Representative Mark Green of Wisconsin and for the U.S. Department of Education under the leadership of Secretary Spellings. Mandy made her mark on the Education and the Workforce Committee, as well. She served this committee under Chairs Boehner, McKeon, Miller, Kline, Scott, and me. Throughout this time, she became highly respected on both sides of the Capitol for her expert knowledge on education and human services policy and for her ability to build coalitions. Having great ideas in Congress gets you only so far. You also need someone who knows how to implement those ideas. This is what Mandy was best at. Mandy often came up with creative and strategic solutions that brought individuals across the policy spectrum together. As a result, she was able to see numerous pieces of legislation make it across the finish line.…”