HR0560 95TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR0560 LRB095 12587 KXB 37842 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of Representatives wish to honor Dr. Shirley Antwi-Barfi, Principal of the Jens Jensen Math, Science, and Tech Scholastic Academy and the Dorie Miller Child Parent Center on the occasion of her retirement after 36 years of service; and

WHEREAS, Shirley was born in Mobile, Alabama to William and Letha West; she was brought as a 10-month-old baby, along with her sister, Doris West (Myhand), to the Westside of Chicago and was raised in Zion Hill Missionary Baptist Church under the pastorate of Rev. H.R. Stephenson; she now lives in Maywood and attends the First Baptist Church of Melrose Park under the pastorate of Rev. John L. Belser, Sr., where she has been a Sunday School teacher for many years, now teaching teens; and

WHEREAS, She was united in marriage to Frank Quabena Antwi-Barfi in May of 1972 at Zion Hill Church; she and her husband have two daughters, Amma Letha and Adwoa Victoria Antwi-Barfi; and

WHEREAS, Shirley Antwi-Barfi began teaching for the Chicago Public Schools at the Ignace Paderewski Elementary School in 1971; in 1974 she joined the teaching staff of the Jensen/Miller schools, remaining there as an educator until 1993, when she became the contract principal at the William Penn School, which she attended as a child; she was recognized by many and accepted several consecutive principal contracts at the school; and

WHEREAS, She submitted her resignation and retirement papers to the Board of Education in October of 2006, leaving her school with an all-time high of 65% of the student body meeting or exceeding the standards assessed on the Illinois Standards Achievement Test (ISAT); and

WHEREAS, In 1990, seeing the need for Afrocentric materials for the predominantly African-American student body at Jensen/Miller Academy, she initiated "The Indian Lakes Africa-centered Curriculum Development Project", begun in conjunction with Northeastern University of Illinois' Center for Inner City Studies staff under the auspices of the late historian, Dr. Jacob Carruthers, and the teaching staff of Jensen and Miller schools; she was the Project Director at Indian Lakes Resort, in Itasca; in addition to spearheading the team's massive organizational efforts, including the publication and distribution of the curriculum materials that had been developed from the Project, a provision for lane placement credit was also established by her between Northeastern officials and CPS officials for the benefit of her colleagues and staff participants; and

WHEREAS, Shirley Antwi-Barfi established priority goals at the school, to focus the curriculum initiatives on mathematics, science, and technology integration within the program and to accomplish the following feats: that the Jensen/Miller Academy would be a scholarly technological institution that sets its mark on every child who passes through its doors - we care and we prepare; that the instructional leadership facilitates the staff so that schooling is completely child-centered - a place where students are nurtured with positive self-feelings of "I can do it!"; that all employees care and take pride in the services provided, making a united effort on behalf of the students; that the schools' educational program would have as its focus a "thinking-centered" curriculum, with teachers modeling metacognition, the how-to-think-about-thinking approach to learning; that there would be many opportunities for staff, students, and parents to explore and problem solve; that there would be a strong emphasis on reading and writing strategies, rather than the teaching of isolated skills, which would be well developed by the end of the primary grades; that extensive staff development would meet the needs of the staff so that they could provide a learning environment for the entire community that guarantees preparedness for the job skills needed for the 21st century; that the teacher's role would be facilitative, providing instruction that engages and guides the minds of the students so that they are eager to learn; that the school would become the center for the child's value system; that the school would be careful to instill character education in the young minds of the students as well as academic education; that lessons would relate to the child's natural curiosity; that all staff would understand that students constantly seek meaning for all facets of their experiences, their emotions and spiritual-well being included; that they need us to help them see how they relate to others, as they follow the positive examples set before them; and

WHEREAS, Dr. Shirley Antwi-Barfi also provided landscaping of lawns and upkeep, including a clean and beautified school facility, inlaid bricking installed around trees, window guards installed all around the first floor of the school, student art murals in the corridors, lunchroom, an African student-centered ceramic mosaic art installed on the playground side of the building, and concrete slabs installed with grounding all along the schools' property line; Jensen Academy became the first Chicago public elementary school to extend schooling to Saturdays, as well as host Chess League tournaments, 13 divisions of sports for the student body, including soccer and golf, along with 4 consecutive years of City Championships for 7/8th grade girls basketball teams; and

WHEREAS, Under her leadership the mission of the school has embraced students' varied learning styles and multiple intelligences, including those with special needs, so that teachers encourage students to achieve their dreams; and

WHEREAS, Shirley Antwi-Barfi graduated from William Penn Elementary and Carter H. Harrison High School; she attended Wilson Jr. College, attaining an Associate of Arts Degree, and attended Roosevelt University Chicago and Chicago Music College, attaining a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Philosophy, with a minor in Cultural Studies and Music Education; she then attended Northeastern University of Illinois, Jacob Carruthers Center for Inner City Studies, attaining a Master of Arts Degree in Inner City Studies in 1976; she attended Loyola University Chicago, attaining a Doctor of Philosophy Degree in Cultural and Educational Policy Studies in December 2005; and

WHEREAS, Dr. Shirley Antwi-Barfi was inducted into the Oxford Round Table in July 2006 at the University of Oxford, as a Presenter with a paper entitled "The Africa Problem and American Education Policy", excerpted from her Dissertation; and

WHEREAS, Dr. Shirley Antwi-Barfi plans to pursue other venues upon her retirement; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-FIFTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we congratulate Shirley Antwi-Barfi on her retirement from the Jens Jensen Math, Science, Tech Scholastic Academy and the Dorie Miller Child Parent Center and wish her continued success in the future; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to Principal Shirley Antwi-Barfi as a sign of our affection, our gratitude, and our respect.