Full Text of HR1151 096th General Assembly
HR1151 96TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
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| HOUSE RESOLUTION
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| WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of | 3 |
| Representatives are saddened to learn of the death of Tara | 4 |
| Feldman, who passed away on April 9, 2010; and
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| WHEREAS, Tara Feldman was born on July 4, 1975 and was the | 6 |
| loving mother of three children, Travis, Leo, Maya, and Kona | 7 |
| the dog; the loving sister to Dustin, Mike and Kori; and the | 8 |
| beloved daughter of Alan and Joyci Feldman; and
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| WHEREAS, Tara graduated from Butler Junior High in Oakbrook | 10 |
| in 1989 and from Downers Grove North High School in 1993; and
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| WHEREAS, Tara's extensive academic background included a | 12 |
| Bachelor of Science in Biology and Master of Arts in Teaching | 13 |
| from Tufts University in addition to holding adjunct faculty | 14 |
| status at Aurora University and Miami University of Ohio; and
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| WHEREAS, Tara launched her career in education and science | 16 |
| as an intern at the Museum of Science in Boston and | 17 |
| subsequently worked as a science and math teacher at a | 18 |
| therapeutic high school, Beacon High School in Brookline, | 19 |
| Massachusetts, and as a science editor at Pearson Prentice Hall | 20 |
| and Scott Foresman; and
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| WHEREAS, Tara was an artist who loved to paint, draw, and | 2 |
| create and was a self-proclaimed "science nerd" who enjoyed | 3 |
| watching the Discovery Channel and learning about animals; and
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| WHEREAS, Tara was a remarkable young woman whose moral | 5 |
| compass was pointed in the right direction: toward helping and | 6 |
| inspiring people; and
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| WHEREAS, Through her work at the Chicago Zoological | 8 |
| Society, Tara had a real and tangible impact in the lives of | 9 |
| students with disabilities, Chicago Public School teachers, | 10 |
| and young and aspiring biologists, scientists and | 11 |
| conservationists; and
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| WHEREAS, Tara understood that the conservation movement | 13 |
| must speak to and hear from all ages, ethnicities, educational | 14 |
| and socioeconomic levels, and abilities; Tara developed | 15 |
| award-wining conservation leadership programs at Brookfield | 16 |
| Zoo around that notion; and
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| WHEREAS, Tara's initial work at Brookfield Zoo focused on | 18 |
| the education and empowerment of students with disabilities; | 19 |
| and
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| WHEREAS, Because of her interest and experience in the | 21 |
| special education field, Tara first worked at Brookfield Zoo as |
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| an instructor with "Every Student is a Scientist," an inclusive | 2 |
| educational program for students with disabilities that | 3 |
| utilizes interactive tablet PCs and hands-on learning | 4 |
| activities focused on conservation; and
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| WHEREAS, Building off of her success with "Every Student is | 6 |
| a Scientist," Tara worked with students with disabilities from | 7 |
| Riverside-Brookfield High School, where she coached them on | 8 |
| their soft skills and time management and then placed them in | 9 |
| volunteer and employment positions at the zoo while showering | 10 |
| them with love, praise and continued support; and
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| WHEREAS, Tara then paired up with another member of the | 12 |
| Brookfield Zoo family, Agnes Kovacs and launched the Chicago | 13 |
| Zoological Society's comprehensive science training program | 14 |
| for Chicago Public School partners; and
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| WHEREAS, Tara not only launched the Levels of Engagement | 16 |
| teacher training program, but nurtured and developed it into a | 17 |
| national model that was conferred with a national education | 18 |
| award from the Association of Zoos and Aquariums; and | 19 |
| WHEREAS, The Chicago Public School teachers and principals | 20 |
| with whom Tara worked can attest to Tara's brilliance, | 21 |
| creativity, and passion; and |
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| WHEREAS, Tara went on to create the summer Science Fair | 2 |
| Boot Camps, in addition to Science Fairs for Chicago Public | 3 |
| Schools, to give Chicago Public School teachers and students | 4 |
| the opportunity to improve their understanding and development | 5 |
| in the inquiry process; and | 6 |
| WHEREAS, Tara helped re-shape and re-launch the Classroom | 7 |
| Connections classes at Brookfield Zoo, having helped create | 8 |
| over a dozen classes that were participatory, | 9 |
| student-centered, and inquiry-based, with more than 20,000 | 10 |
| students participating in these classes annually; and | 11 |
| WHEREAS, Tara worked tirelessly to make informal science | 12 |
| leaning fun and accessible for all students, families and | 13 |
| teachers in Chicago, working to expand the role of informal | 14 |
| environments in educating students and adults about science; | 15 |
| and | 16 |
| WHEREAS, Because of Tara, there are third grade students in | 17 |
| Chicago who understand complex terms like "habitat | 18 |
| restoration" and "deforestation" and who see themselves as | 19 |
| conservation leaders; and
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| WHEREAS, Because of Tara, there are Chicago Public School | 21 |
| teachers who have improved their ability to teach and reach |
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| students and improve science learning through inquiry-based | 2 |
| teaching tools; therefore, be it
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| RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE | 4 |
| NINETY-SIXTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we | 5 |
| mourn, along with her family and friends, the passing of Tara | 6 |
| Feldman; and be it further
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| RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | 8 |
| presented to the family of Tara Feldman as an expression of our | 9 |
| sincere sympathy.
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