FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 

Contact:   Elissa Ruffino (NIAF) 202/939-3106 or elissa@niaf.org

(Washington, DC – September 29, 2003) Congresswoman Connie Morella has been nominated by President George Bush and confirmed to serve as the United States Ambassador to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development in Paris, France.

“Connie Morella has been an outstanding member of the NIAF board during her many years that she also served in the United States Congress. She has advanced the cause of education for young Americans throughout our nation. The new ambassador, Connie Morella, was a splendid choice and her leadership will be important in the challenging times our nation is facing. We wish her well,” Hon. Frank J. Guarini, former congressman of New Jersey and NIAF chairman, said.

Congresswoman Morella has served in elective office for nearly 25 years. Her public service began with her appointment to the first-ever Montgomery County, Maryland Commission for Women in 1972. She was elected to the Maryland General Assembly in 1978 and was the first female member of the Assembly ever elected to the U.S. Congress, where she served from 1987 until January of this year.

During her 16-year tenure as a Member of the House of Representatives, Morella developed a national reputation as a bipartisan leader in promoting economic growth through science and technology, as well as on a wide range of initiatives critical to women, including health care, child care and economic equity. For her efforts, she was inducted into the Maryland Women’s Hall of Fame.Glamour Magazine honored her as “Woman of the Year” for “fighting women’s fights and winning.”The New York Times recognized Congresswoman Morella as “one of a dozen who have risen to prominence” in women’s health. And Washingtonian Magazine named her a “Washingtonian of the Year,” noting that she “proves a woman’s place is in the House.”

Prior to serving in Congress, Morella taught from 1970 to 1985 as a professor of English at Montgomery College in Rockville, Maryland. She holds an A.B. from Boston University, an M.A. from American University, and ten honorary doctoral degrees.

Along with her husband, Tony, a law professor, Morella has raised nine children, including her late sister’s six children.