1

Remembering Elijah Cummings

By providing students in our Nation with a strong education, we help save our children from the clutches of poverty, crime, drugs, and hopelessness, and we help safeguard our Nation’s prosperity for generations yet unborn.

– Elijah Cummings

My heart is heavy today. When I woke up this morning, I read the headline about Elijah Cummings and my heart sank. His passing is a tremendous loss for our country, and particularly for the state of Maryland and the city of Baltimore. I have always admired his steadfast, passionate commitment to justice, his dedication to Baltimore, and his diplomacy. Now, with his passing, the more I learn about Mr. Cummings, the deeper my respect grows. From integrating a swimming pool at age 11 to pushing the media to humanize Freddie Gray to speaking truth to power, he has been a powerful force for good. And gone much too soon.

Mr. Cummings stood for the values that Higher Achievement stands for – the relentless focus on excellent education, equitably opportunities for children, and social justice. His mantle now passes to us, and eventually to our scholars. We will do right by his legacy.

– Lynsey Wood Jeffries