Full Text of HR0983 97th General Assembly
HR0983 97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | HOUSE RESOLUTION
| 2 | | WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of | 3 | | Representatives are saddened to learn of the death of former | 4 | | Illinois State University President Lloyd Watkins, who passed | 5 | | away on March 1, 2012; he served as the University's 13th | 6 | | president from 1977 to 1988; and
| 7 | | WHEREAS, Lloyd Watkins was not only a leader at Illinois | 8 | | State University; he looked beyond the campus and was a leader | 9 | | who made a difference in his community; during his presidency, | 10 | | the University became the State headquarters of the Illinois | 11 | | Special Olympics, attracting thousands of visitors to campus | 12 | | each summer; and | 13 | | WHEREAS, He served on numerous community and university | 14 | | boards, including Normal's 2015 Committee, and helped small | 15 | | businesses as a member of the Service Corps of Retired | 16 | | Executives; and | 17 | | WHEREAS, He focused on expanding international education | 18 | | programs by creating exchanges with student centers in Austria, | 19 | | France, England, Japan, China, Scotland, Germany, Italy, and | 20 | | Spain; and
| 21 | | WHEREAS, He tirelessly advocated for Illinois State |
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| 1 | | University, worked to overcome a budget crisis in the early | 2 | | 1980s by launching a long-range planning effort, and put great | 3 | | emphasis on obtaining grants and donations from the private | 4 | | sector, a move his successors have continued to build upon; and
| 5 | | WHEREAS, During his tenure, he presided over numerous | 6 | | capital improvement projects on campus including the | 7 | | multimillion-dollar Redbird Arena; he launched 5 new academic | 8 | | programs, including international business, public relations, | 9 | | writing, applied computer sciences, and school psychology, and | 10 | | also expanded the Honors program; and | 11 | | WHEREAS, After serving 11 years as President of Illinois | 12 | | State University, he retired in 1988; he continued to benefit | 13 | | the University community by sharing his passion for learning by | 14 | | teaching in the Communications Department until 1991; and
| 15 | | WHEREAS, He was preceded in death by his parents, Herman | 16 | | and Lydia; and his first wife, Mary Ellen (Caudle) Watkins; and
| 17 | | WHEREAS, Lloyd Watkins is survived by his wife, Kay; his | 18 | | sons, John L. Watkins (Margaret), Joseph W. Watkins (Michelle), | 19 | | and Robert L. Watkins (Charmelle); his grandchildren, Ryan, | 20 | | Reid, and Mariana Watkins and Lucas, Ehren, and Emma Watkins; | 21 | | his step-children, Eric D. Bloomquist, Darin L. Bloomquist, and | 22 | | Ellen K. Elliot; and his step-granddaughter, Faith A. Elliot; |
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| 1 | | therefore, be it
| 2 | | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE | 3 | | NINETY-SEVENTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that | 4 | | we mourn, along with his family, friends, and former students, | 5 | | the passing of Lloyd Watkins; and be it further
| 6 | | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | 7 | | presented to the family of Lloyd Watkins as a symbol of our | 8 | | sincere sympathy.
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