Full Text of HR1352 96th General Assembly
HR1352 96TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | HOUSE RESOLUTION
| 2 | | WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of | 3 | | Representatives are deeply saddened to learn of the death of | 4 | | Mary Lou Cowlishaw, who passed away on June 23, 2010 at the age | 5 | | of 78; and
| 6 | | WHEREAS, Mary Lou Cowlishaw was born on February 20, 1932, | 7 | | in Rockford, to Donald George and Mildred Corinne (Hayes) | 8 | | Miller; she graduated as valedictorian from West Rockford High | 9 | | School; she attended the University of Illinois and earned her | 10 | | degree in journalism; she also received two honorary degrees, | 11 | | including a Doctorate of Humane Letters from North Central | 12 | | College; and
| 13 | | WHEREAS, Mary Lou and Wayne Cowlishaw were married on July | 14 | | 24, 1954; the couple was happily married for over 50 years; | 15 | | together, they had 3 children, Beth (David) McDaniel, John | 16 | | (Jane) Cowlishaw, and Paula (Andrew) Rader, and 8 | 17 | | grandchildren, Jacob McDaniel, Zachary, Maxwell, Alexandria, | 18 | | and Rachel Green-Cowlishaw, and Emily, Elizabeth and John Paul | 19 | | (JP) Rader; she was preceded in death by her parents and her | 20 | | son, John; and
| 21 | | WHEREAS, Soon after their marriage, Mary Lou Cowlishaw and | 22 | | her husband moved to Naperville, where she began her career as |
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| 1 | | a journalist in 1958; she worked for the Naperville Sun for | 2 | | many years, earning a 1st-place award from the Illinois Press | 3 | | Association for a series on the unacceptable conditions in a | 4 | | nearby nursing home; in 1972, she was elected as a member of | 5 | | Naperville Unit District 203's school board, where she | 6 | | developed a passion for improving education; and
| 7 | | WHEREAS, Mary Lou Cowlishaw served as a school board member | 8 | | for more than a decade before being elected to represent the | 9 | | 41st District in the Illinois House of Representatives in 1983; | 10 | | her district included nearly all of Naperville Township, part | 11 | | of Lisle Township, and most of the city of Naperville; and
| 12 | | WHEREAS, As a legislator, Mary Lou Cowlishaw's passion for | 13 | | advancing the State's educational system did not diminish; as a | 14 | | representative of the 41st District for 2 decades, she made | 15 | | issues related to education her top priority; she sponsored | 16 | | countless legislative initiatives, including Chicago school | 17 | | reform and a charter schools program that became a model for | 18 | | school reform throughout the State the nation at large; and
| 19 | | WHEREAS, Mary Lou Cowlishaw was the sponsor of the | 20 | | Education for Homeless Children Act, which minimizes | 21 | | educational disruption for homeless youth, promotes stability | 22 | | and continuity in education, and provides essential social | 23 | | support during periods of housing instability; she also was |
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| 1 | | instrumental in the creation of the Illinois Mathematics and | 2 | | Science Academy in Aurora, which admits about 250 gifted | 3 | | students a year and is frequently listed on Newsweek's annual | 4 | | list of "Best High Schools in America"; and
| 5 | | WHEREAS, Former Representative Cowlishaw was a champion of | 6 | | women's rights and was an active member of the National | 7 | | Federation of Republican Women and the League of Women Voters | 8 | | of Naperville; she was also a founding member and former | 9 | | president of the Naperville Republican Women's Club; and
| 10 | | WHEREAS, Mary Lou Cowlishaw served as the Republican | 11 | | spokeswoman on the House Elementary and Secondary Education | 12 | | Committee and was an active member of the Higher Education | 13 | | Appropriations Committee, the Mental Health and Patient Abuse | 14 | | Committee, the Public Utilities Committee, and the Select | 15 | | Committee on Aging; on the national level, she served as | 16 | | chairperson of the NCSL Education Committee and the Education | 17 | | Committee of the National Conference of State Legislatures, a | 18 | | commissioner from Illinois on the Education Commission of | 19 | | States, and a member of the National Education Goals Panel; and | 20 | | WHEREAS, Mary Lou Cowlishaw's many contributions did not go | 21 | | unnoticed; in recognition of her efforts, she received | 22 | | countless awards from State and local governmental agencies and | 23 | | civic groups, including the State Board of Education, the |
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| 1 | | Illinois Community College Trustees Association, and the | 2 | | Illinois Association of Regional Superintendents of Schools; | 3 | | she won the Illinois Association of School Boards "Golden | 4 | | Apple" award numerous times; in 2001, she was the only lawmaker | 5 | | in Illinois to be recognized for Outstanding Contributions to | 6 | | Educational Improvement by the National Education Goals Panel; | 7 | | in 1994, she was named Legislator of the Year; her achievements | 8 | | and contributions as a legislator cannot be overstated; and
| 9 | | WHEREAS, Perhaps the most befitting recognition of Mary Lou | 10 | | Cowlishaw's commitment to educational excellence, access, and | 11 | | equity on behalf of students in Illinois and throughout the | 12 | | nation was when the Indian Prairie School District 204 honored | 13 | | her by choosing to name Naperville's new school building "Mary | 14 | | Lou Cowlishaw Elementary" in 1997; and
| 15 | | WHEREAS, As a legislator, Mary Lou Cowlishaw maintained | 16 | | that education is the number one determinant of an individual's | 17 | | quality of life; for this reason, education was her top | 18 | | priority, even following her retirement from the Illinois | 19 | | General Assembly; only 4 weeks after her departure from State | 20 | | government, she accepted a position as an adjunct professor of | 21 | | education at North Central College, where she was dedicated to | 22 | | furthering the education of Illinois' youth; and
| 23 | | WHEREAS, As a result of her tireless efforts, Mary Lou |
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| 1 | | Cowlishaw has left Illinois a better, more hopeful place than | 2 | | when she entered the world 78 years ago; therefore, be it
| 3 | | 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, friends, and the countless people | 6 | | whose lives have been blessed by her presence, the passing of a | 7 | | friend, a former colleague, and an inspiration to all, Mary Lou | 8 | | Cowlishaw; and be it further
| 9 | | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | 10 | | presented to the family of Mary Lou Cowlishaw as a symbol of | 11 | | our sympathy for their loss and as an expression of our | 12 | | profound gratitude and respect.
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