Bill Text: IL HR0129 | 2019-2020 | 101st General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Congratulates Southern Illinois University on 150 years of service to southern Illinois and beyond.
Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill
Status: (Passed) 2019-02-20 - Resolution Adopted [HR0129 Detail]
Download: Illinois-2019-HR0129-Introduced.html
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1 | HOUSE RESOLUTION
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2 | WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of | ||||||
3 | Representatives wish to congratulate Southern Illinois | ||||||
4 | University on the occasion of its sesquicentennial | ||||||
5 | anniversary; and
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6 | WHEREAS, In 1868, educators in southern Illinois held | ||||||
7 | meetings throughout the area to discuss the need for a teacher | ||||||
8 | training school in the lower half of Illinois; the General | ||||||
9 | Assembly passed the charter establishing Southern Illinois | ||||||
10 | Normal University on March 9, 1869, and the charter was signed | ||||||
11 | by Governor John Palmer on April 9, 1869; and
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12 | WHEREAS, The University opened in 1874, and the first class | ||||||
13 | had 54 students; the first graduating class consisted of 143 | ||||||
14 | students, including two African-American students; and
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15 | WHEREAS, Southern Illinois Normal University's enrollment | ||||||
16 | grew, and by the late 1930s, the administration and alumni | ||||||
17 | began petitioning the Governor and the General Assembly to | ||||||
18 | expand the university's offerings to include liberal arts | ||||||
19 | degrees in anticipation of increased enrollment following the | ||||||
20 | conclusion of World War II; and
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21 | WHEREAS, On June 30, 1943, the General Assembly granted |
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1 | Southern Illinois Normal University the ability to grant | ||||||
2 | liberal arts degrees and master's degrees in education; in | ||||||
3 | 1947, the 65th General Assembly dropped "Normal" from the | ||||||
4 | university's name, and it became known as Southern Illinois | ||||||
5 | University; and
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6 | WHEREAS, Over the next few decades, enrollment and academic | ||||||
7 | programs grew substantially, and university officials took | ||||||
8 | notice of the lack of opportunities for higher education in the | ||||||
9 | Metro East area; in 1957, the university purchased the defunct | ||||||
10 | Shurtleff College and began enrolling and educating students; | ||||||
11 | in 1960, land was purchased, and classes began at the Southern | ||||||
12 | Illinois University at Edwardsville campus in 1965; and
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13 | WHEREAS, The University continued to expand and | ||||||
14 | established the Southern Illinois University School of | ||||||
15 | Medicine in Springfield in 1970; and
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16 | WHEREAS, Today, Southern Illinois University is a strong, | ||||||
17 | diverse, student-centered, research-intensive, comprehensive | ||||||
18 | university that embraces a unique tradition of inclusive | ||||||
19 | excellence, innovation, and outstanding teaching to transform | ||||||
20 | the lives of students; and
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21 | WHEREAS, Southern Illinois University's 150th anniversary | ||||||
22 | celebration includes a Day of Giving on March 6, 2019; |
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1 | throughout the year, the University will celebrate with special | ||||||
2 | exhibits, lecture series, and campus and community events; | ||||||
3 | therefore, be it
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4 | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE | ||||||
5 | HUNDRED FIRST GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that | ||||||
6 | we congratulate Southern Illinois University on 150 years of | ||||||
7 | service to southern Illinois and beyond; we admire their | ||||||
8 | commitment to excellence in teaching and research and to | ||||||
9 | providing a transformative educational experience for all | ||||||
10 | students; we wish them 150 more years of excellence; and be it | ||||||
11 | further
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12 | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | ||||||
13 | presented to President J. Kevin Dorsey as an expression of our | ||||||
14 | esteem and respect.
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