Full Text of HR0964 99th General Assembly
HR0964 99TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | HOUSE RESOLUTION
| 2 | | WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of | 3 | | Representatives wish to congratulate Dr. Gayle Saunders on the | 4 | | occasion of her retirement as President of Richland Community | 5 | | College in Decatur; and
| 6 | | WHEREAS, Dr. Saunders became the 6th President of Richland | 7 | | Community College in August of 2001; she has more than 37 years | 8 | | of experience as an administrator in higher
education, with the | 9 | | past 31 years spent specifically in community college | 10 | | administration; she served in a variety of administrative | 11 | | positions prior to being named President of Richland; and | 12 | | WHEREAS, In 2002, Dr. Saunders selected the Academic | 13 | | Quality Improvement Program for the reaccreditation of | 14 | | Richland Community College; under her leadership, Richland has | 15 | | seen the addition of the Scherer Industrial Technology Center | 16 | | (2002), the Schrodt
Health Education Center (2003), the Duane | 17 | | O. Andreas Agribusiness Education Center
(2006), the Adele P. | 18 | | Glenn Early Childhood Education Center (2007), the Center for
| 19 | | Sustainability and Innovation (2008), the Mathematics | 20 | | Enrichment Center (2010),
the National Sequestration Education | 21 | | Center (2011), and the Workforce Development Institute
(2013) | 22 | | and the relocation of the Heartland Technical Academy (formerly | 23 | | the Decatur
Area Technical Academy) to the Richland campus |
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| 1 | | (2014); the College has seen curriculum additions in the areas | 2 | | of Culinary
Arts; Auto Collision Repair; Diesel Medium/Heavy | 3 | | Truck Technology; Supply Chain
Management; Healthcare | 4 | | Documentation; Sign Language; Commercial Drivers
Tanker | 5 | | Vehicle Training; Engineering, with an emphasis in Carbon | 6 | | Capture
Utilization and Storage; and Robotic Welding; and | 7 | | WHEREAS, Under Dr. Saunders' presidency, Decatur was | 8 | | chosen in 2004 as one of the
permanent sites for the Farm | 9 | | Progress Show; this past September marked the 10th anniversary | 10 | | of the Farm
Progress Show being held on the campus of Richland | 11 | | Community College; the Richland Community College Foundation | 12 | | has flourished under her leadership
and is ranked among the top | 13 | | community college foundations in the nation; in June
of 2010, | 14 | | the Foundation announced it had reached its Major Gifts | 15 | | Campaign goal of
$17 million, 2 years ahead of schedule; the | 16 | | impact of the Foundation is reflected at the local level by the | 17 | | hundreds of student scholarships it provides,
representing | 18 | | over three-quarters of a million dollars in scholarship support | 19 | | annually; and | 20 | | WHEREAS, Dr. Saunders' passion for quality education has | 21 | | been proven through her efforts in
the national arena with the | 22 | | Continuous Quality Improvement Network (Executive
Secretary | 23 | | and Treasurer), the American Association of Community Colleges | 24 | | Commission
on Economic Development and Workforce Training and |
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| 1 | | the Presidents'
Academy Executive Committee, the Commission on | 2 | | Global Education through the
American Association of Community | 3 | | Colleges, and the American Association of
Community College | 4 | | Trustees Presidents' Advisory Committee; and
| 5 | | WHEREAS, Dr. Saunders has served in various capacities | 6 | | throughout her career, including the Illinois Community | 7 | | College
Presidents' Council (past President), the Illinois | 8 | | Leadership and Core Values Institute (Steering
Committee), the | 9 | | Commission on Global Education through the American | 10 | | Association of Community
Colleges, Rotary International, the | 11 | | American Red Cross - mid-Illinois Chapter, the United Way of
| 12 | | Decatur and mid-Illinois, and Easter Seals Central Illinois; | 13 | | she currently serves as a member of
Partners in Education | 14 | | (Steering Committee), the Greater Decatur Chamber of Commerce | 15 | | (past
President), the Soy Capital Bank and Trust Board of | 16 | | Directors; Webster-Cantrell Hall, and
the Economic Development | 17 | | Corporation of Decatur and Macon County; and
| 18 | | WHEREAS, Dr. Saunders is a recipient of several awards for | 19 | | her leadership and community involvement,
including the Athena | 20 | | Award (2004), the YWCA Woman of the Year Award (2006), the | 21 | | Salute Honoree
for Partners in Education (2007), and the Herald | 22 | | and Review's 20 Over 50 - making a difference
in our community | 23 | | (2014); and
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| 1 | | WHEREAS, Dr. Saunders is a native of Harvard; she holds a | 2 | | Bachelor of Science in Education from Illinois State | 3 | | University, a Master of
Science in Counseling and Student | 4 | | Personnel from Eastern Illinois University, and a
Doctorate in | 5 | | Leadership and Educational Policy Studies from Northern | 6 | | Illinois University; and
| 7 | | WHEREAS, Dr. Saunders will officially retire in the spring | 8 | | of 2016; therefore, be it
| 9 | | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE | 10 | | NINETY-NINTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we | 11 | | congratulate Dr. Gayle Saunders on her retirement as President | 12 | | of Richland Community College and we wish her the best in all | 13 | | her future endeavors; and be it further
| 14 | | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | 15 | | presented to Dr. Saunders as an expression of our esteem and | 16 | | respect.
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