UMBC president had a mentor who believed in his talent

Your recent article on University of Maryland Baltimore County President Freeman Hrabowski was a wonderful tribute to an extraordinary leader ("Freeman Hrabowski's UMBC legacy grows as he celebrates 20 years as president," Sept. 1). His energy, passion and commitment came through in the stories and comments from others that were included in the article.

While there are obviously lots of additional aspects of his story, there is one omission that I think is important to correct. When Mr. Hrabowski was still at Coppin State University, the person who recognized his great potential and brought him to UMBC was then-President Michael Hooker.

It takes nothing away from Mr. Hrabowski's amazing record to remember that an important door was opened for him by someone who early on recognized his gifts. Mr. Hooker died in 1999, but he would have regarded his friend Freeman's extraordinary accomplishments with great pride and joy.

Laslo Boyd