Full Text of HR0869 101st General Assembly
HR0869 101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | HOUSE RESOLUTION
| 2 | | WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of | 3 | | Representatives wish to congratulate Dr. Serena L. Preston, | 4 | | educator and superintendent of the Illinois School for the | 5 | | Visually Impaired, on the occasion of her retirement on June | 6 | | 30, 2020; and
| 7 | | WHEREAS, Dr. Preston is an admired educator and | 8 | | administrator; for more than 20 years, she has tirelessly | 9 | | advocated for students who are blind or visually impaired; and
| 10 | | WHEREAS, Dr. Preston is a native of Independence, Missouri | 11 | | and a graduate of William Chrisman High School; she left the | 12 | | Kansas City area to attend MacMurray College, a private school | 13 | | in Jacksonville, where she received her bachelor's degree | 14 | | before embarking on a remarkable career in education; and
| 15 | | WHEREAS, Dr. Preston graduated from Illinois State | 16 | | University in Bloomington with a master's degree in Special | 17 | | Education and a doctorate degree in Educational Leadership from | 18 | | the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; and | 19 | | WHEREAS, Dr. Preston has devoted more than 20 years of | 20 | | service to the students of the Illinois School for the Visually | 21 | | Impaired; she has served in many roles, working with students |
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| 1 | | as a classroom educator, as school principal, and currently, as | 2 | | school superintendent; and | 3 | | WHEREAS, Dr. Preston served as an interim superintendent of | 4 | | the Illinois School for the Deaf for two years while | 5 | | concurrently serving as the superintendent of the Illinois | 6 | | School for the Visually Impaired; and | 7 | | WHEREAS, Dr. Preston is a longtime member of the | 8 | | Association of Educators and Rehabilitation Specialists for | 9 | | the Blind (AER); she also serves with the Council of Schools | 10 | | for the Blind (COSB), the Illinois Principals Association, the | 11 | | Advisory Council of the Illinois State University College of | 12 | | Special Education, and many other state and local committees in | 13 | | an effort to advocate for students who are blind or visually | 14 | | impaired and guide best practices across the field; and | 15 | | WHEREAS, Dr. Preston is active at the national level, | 16 | | serving as an American Printing House for the Blind Ex-Officio | 17 | | Trustee, collaborating closely with other professionals in the | 18 | | field to be certain products and services support maximum | 19 | | learning and accessibility, as this important work impacts the | 20 | | lives of many persons with a visual impairment; and
| 21 | | WHEREAS, Dr. Preston has been an active member of the local | 22 | | community, serving as vice-chair of the Jacksonville Area |
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| 1 | | Transition Planning Council, as 4-H Project Leader, and 4-H | 2 | | County Fair Show Superintendent; she has served on Illinois | 3 | | State Fair 4-H committees and as a show volunteer; she was | 4 | | coordinator of the annual Youth Camp Fund and a member/director | 5 | | of community theater and music productions; and
| 6 | | WHEREAS, Dr. Preston has been a tireless advocate for | 7 | | children and educators for over 32 years, creating positive and | 8 | | lasting changes for the Illinois School for the Visually | 9 | | Impaired; therefore, be it
| 10 | | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE | 11 | | HUNDRED FIRST GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that | 12 | | we congratulate Dr. Serena L. Preston on her retirement as | 13 | | educator and superintendent of the Illinois School for the | 14 | | Visually Impaired, and we commend her work and wish her the | 15 | | best in all her future endeavors; and be it further
| 16 | | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | 17 | | presented to Dr. Preston as an expression of our admiration and | 18 | | gratitude for her commitment to the youth and educators of | 19 | | Illinois.
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