SR0351 102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY

SR0351 LRB102 18784 ECR 27483 r

SENATE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened to learn of the death of James Lee Burnett Jr., Ph.D. of Sartell, Minnesota and formally of Champaign, who passed away on April 22, 2021; and

WHEREAS, Dr. James Burnett was born to Dr. Evelyn Burnett Underwood (Bishop King James) and James Lee Burnett Sr. in Champaign on September 1, 1959; he was a student at University High Lab School where he excelled in both athletics and academia; after high school, he attended Wilberforce University where he earned a Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration in 1981; he earned a Bachelor of Science from Southwest Minnesota State University in Sociology/Anthropology in 1996; he went on to earn two masters' degrees in 2002 and 2005 from Minnesota State University, Mankato; he continued his education at South Dakota State University where he was awarded a Ph.D. in Rural Sociology in 2011; and

WHEREAS, After graduating college, Dr. James Burnett worked as a corrections officer in Michigan for 10 years; he was then a professor at Minnesota State University, Mankato and continued on this path to Idaho State University and Urbana University; throughout his life, he taught and mentored many students for academic and personal development, created peer educator programs, and integrated active learning and service learning into his classes; he designed trauma-informed, academic at-risk youth mentoring intervention programs, such as the Bannock County Idaho and Idaho State University Partnership, where students served as mentors to youth involved in the criminal justice system; and

WHEREAS, Dr. James Burnett was a sociocultural ecologist whose research and service agenda examined and promoted the maintenance of a balance between human adaptation and the physical environment; his main areas of research were critical criminology, race ethnicity and social justice, and urban and rural sociology; and

WHEREAS, Dr. James Burnett's life experiences led him to find his true calling and purpose as a probation officer for the Mental Health Court; he specialized in intervening for clients in the court system and diverting them to treatment; his areas of specialization were client-centered and involved coordinating and providing intensive supervision and a broad range of rehabilitative and case management services within the Mental Health Court continuum; and

WHEREAS, In addition, Dr. Burnett previously worked as a domestic violence facilitator, with the Catholic Charities Hope Community Support Program in Saint Cloud, Minnesota, and as a teaching substitute for St. Cloud School District 742; and

WHEREAS, Dr. James Burnett authored over 50 research articles, books, and presentations; one of his biggest accomplishments was writing and publishing his book Hood II Hood: Helping Prisoners Transition to Freedom; and

WHEREAS, Dr. James Burnett was an associate minister at New Free Will Baptist Church where over the years he served the youth locally, regionally, and nationally with Pastor and General Bishop King Underwood; he was a proud member of the 4th Judicial District Racial Equity Committee; in 2016, he was appointed by Stearns County Community Corrections to serve as an Advisory Board Member in Saint Cloud, Minnesota; as a certified sociological practitioner, he was a member of the Association of Applied and Clinical Sociologists (2011); and

WHEREAS, Dr. James Burnett's unrelenting dedication to the community resulted in numerous awards and recognitions, including the NAACP Appreciation Award in 2011; he was proud to be honored at the 5th Annual African Mental Health Summit in recognition of exemplary scholarship in translational science while conducting, presenting, and publishing culturally responsive research (2014-2019) as a postdoctoral research trainee at the University of Minnesota, Crookston; he received many invitations for speaking engagements, such as being chosen as the keynote speaker at Metropolitan State University in St. Paul, Minnesota during their Race and Social Justice Conference; and

WHEREAS, Dr. James Burnett's passion and love for his family was, above-all, most important to him; and

WHEREAS, Dr. James Burnett was preceded in death by his twins, James Michael Burnett and Jasmine Marie Burnett; and

WHEREAS, Dr. James Burnett was survived by his wife, Jody Burnett (Varing); his children, Robbie Rochelle Burnett, James Lee Chad Burnett III (Gwynder), Tobias Alexander Wheeler, DaNeya Martina Burnett, DaNaya Michelle Burnett, Anika Dakota Pendleton-Burnett, Ayanna Rochelle Taylor, Anthony Dale Burnett, Trevor Jodeci Burnett, and Kendra Christine Burnett, as well as Matthew Ryan Wheeler, Duane Michael Carter, and Rachel Renee Nickerson; his grandchildren, Azai, King Tashis, James IV, Tashi, Kyue', Makylah, and DeAndre; his great-grandchildren, Novah and D'Anthoni; and his siblings, Robbin Smith, Minister Ted Burnett (Tuere), Reverend Timothy Burnett (Cynthia), Angela R. Patterson (B. Kirk), and Pastor Herbert D. Burnett (Stephanie), as well as Jeff Underwood (Belinda), Greg Underwood (Priscilla), Janet Ross (Ferron), Prophetess Judy Grant, and King J. Underwood Jr.; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDRED SECOND GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn the passing of James Lee Burnett Jr., Ph.D. and extend our sincere condolences to his family, friends, and all who knew and loved him; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to the family of Dr. James Burnett as an expression of our deepest sympathy.