National Labor College Graduates the Class of 2012

(Metropolitan Washington Council, AFL-CIO)Seventy-eight graduates representing 25 unions and Working America, the AFL-CIO’s community affiliate, received Bachelor’s Degrees last Saturday from the School of Labor Studies at the National Labor College (NLC). “Let this accomplishment be a road mark on the highway of your life,” civil rights activist Reverend James Lawson told the graduates. “Let it be a continuation, but also a fresh burst in the direction of becoming not just a fragmented person, but a whole person,” challenged Rev. Lawson. Several students were highlighted for their outstanding contributions to the NLC community: Helen Foreman-Hines of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) was awarded the prestigious President’s Award; Mark King, president of the student government association and member of the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) was elected by his fellow graduates as class speaker and received a distinguished paper award for his senior thesis; Jon Leinbaugh of the Sheet Metal Workers’ International Association (SMWIA) and Joseph Walsh of the Plumbers and Pipefitters (UA) were awarded the 2012 Bert and Annabel Seidman Prize for Advancing Social Policy; Trenton Reich of Working America and Paul Simon of the Electrical Workers (IBEW) received distinguished paper awards for their senior theses. - photo by Page One Photography