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1		SENATE RESOLUTION
2		WHEREAS, Southern Illinois University (SIU) Carbondale was
3		founded in 1869 as the State's second teachers college and has
4		grown into a nationally-ranked comprehensive doctoral research
5		university with six colleges, a school of education, a school
6		of law, and a school of medicine; the flagship campus of the
7		Southern Illinois University System offers more than 200
8		majors, minors, and specializations; and
9		WHEREAS, SIU Carbondale serves students from all 50 states
10		and 100 nations, attracting students to the State with its
11		commitment to affordability and access; for several years, the
12		university has not raised undergraduate tuition; in 2020, it
13		launched the Saluki Commitment and the Saluki Transfer
14		Commitment to close financial gaps for Illinois families,
15		using AIM HIGH funds, and it has eliminated out-of-state
16		tuition; and
17		WHEREAS, In the fall of 2023 and for the first time since
18		2014, there was an overall enrollment increase at SIU
19		Carbondale, being the highest percentage increase in more than
20		30 years and the first time in at least 50 years that it has
21		had four consecutive freshman class increases; and
22		WHEREAS, SIU Carbondale launched Saluki Step Ahead through

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1		an agreement with the Illinois Community College Board,
2		allowing place-bound community college graduates to complete
3		their bachelor's degree in select academic programs online and
4		at a lower cost; so far, the school has four dozen agreements
5		with community college campuses in Illinois, Missouri, and
6		Texas; and
7		WHEREAS, SIU Carbondale is classified by the Carnegie
8		Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching as a Research
9		University: High Research Activity, the second-highest tier;
10		it is among the top four percent of U.S. higher education
11		institutions for research; and
12		WHEREAS, SIU Carbondale offers several rare and
13		distinctive academic programs, including Illinois' only
14		baccalaureate programs in automotive technology, dental
15		hygiene, and mortuary science and funeral service; it has a
16		unique partnership with major airlines to fly prospective
17		students to campus for Aviation Career Day events; and
18		WHEREAS, SIU Carbondale is one of a few dozen public
19		institutions in the United States to host both a law school and
20		a medical school and is one of three public institutions in
21		Illinois to be a member of the Association of Research
22		Libraries along with the Urbana-Champaign and Chicago campuses
23		of the University of Illinois; and

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1		WHEREAS, For more than 50 years the SIU School of Medicine
2		has boasted of a nationally recognized MEDPREP program as a
3		post-baccalaureate academic enhancement program serving more
4		than 1,000 students since its inception and now has the
5		Lincoln Scholars Program to prepare and equip Illinois' next
6		generation of rural primary care physicians; and
7		WHEREAS, SIU Carbondale was the host to more than 30,000
8		people for the 2017 total solar eclipse and will be the only
9		campus in the nation to have the privilege of also being a site
10		for the 2024 total solar eclipse; and
11		WHEREAS, In 2019, SIU Carbondale joined other state
12		institutions as a hub in the Illinois Innovation Network, an
13		initiative to harness the research expertise of Illinois
14		universities to drive the State's economic growth; and
15		WHEREAS, SIU Carbondale continues to serve the community,
16		including the provision of services through the Office of
17		Innovation and Economic Development and the SIU Research Park,
18		cultural enrichment through myriad arts and culture programs,
19		including through the SIU School of Music and the SIU School of
20		Theater and Dance, Division I NCAA sports through Saluki
21		Athletics, WSIU Public Broadcasting, which reaches five
22		million households and covers two-thirds of Illinois counties

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1		and parts of five other states, the Paul Simon Public Policy
2		Institute, and the Head Start Program; in 2015, the university
3		earned the prestigious community engagement classification
4		from the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching;
5		and
6		WHEREAS, SIU Carbondale's Touch of Nature Outdoor
7		Education Center is the site that originated and fostered the
8		idea for what became the internationally acclaimed Special
9		Olympics; and
10		WHEREAS, SIU Carbondale reaffirmed a long-standing
11		commitment to sustainability by becoming one of more than 800
12		colleges and universities across the nation dedicated to
13		addressing climate change through research and action in
14		signing the Second Nature Climate Commitment in February 2020;
15		and
16		WHEREAS, In 2021, a new tradition began, Saluki Takeover
17		Tours; in the inaugural year of the events, university
18		officials visited Chicago and St. Louis, focusing on alumni
19		and donor engagement, recruitment and retention, and brand
20		awareness; each city visit included several events over
21		multiple days; the tours have continued to expand to
22		additional cities in Illinois and throughout the country;
23		therefore, be it

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1		RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDRED THIRD GENERAL
2		ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we congratulate
3		Southern Illinois University System President Dan Mahony, SIU
4		Carbondale Chancellor Austin Lane, and administration, staff,
5		and faculty on making SIU Carbondale a world-class
6		institution; and be it further
7		RESOLVED, That we welcome the inaugural 2023 Saluki
8		Takeover Tour to Springfield on October 25 - 26, 2023; and be
9		it further