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91_HR0692
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1 HOUSE RESOLUTION
2 WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of
3 Representatives are pleased to honor Dr. Cecile Edwards upon
4 her retirement; and
5 WHEREAS, Dr. Cecile Edwards received her Bachelor of
6 Science degree and Master of Science degree from Tuskegee
7 University; she received her Doctor of Philosophy degree in
8 Nutrition from Iowa State University; she joined the faculty
9 of the Department of Home Economics at Howard University,
10 where she later served as Chairman; and
11 WHEREAS, Dr. Edwards spent twenty years on researching
12 the amino acid Methionine, dietary supplements for women
13 during pregnancy, odd dietary habits, the amino acid
14 composition of southern and frequently consumed foods, and
15 biochemical measures of the utilization of wheat by adult
16 human beings; and
17 WHEREAS, From 1974 to 1986 Dr. Edwards served as Dean of
18 the School of Human Ecology at Howard University; at Howard
19 University she made the decision to dedicate her life to
20 research to improve the ability of low income families and
21 other disadvantaged minorities to attain a higher quality of
22 life; she established the Ph.D. Program in Nutrition, the
23 only one of its kind in the United States at a predominately
24 Black university; and
25 WHEREAS, Dr. Edwards is the co-author of "Human Ecology:
26 Interactions of Man with His Environments", along with four
27 of her co-workers; her contributions to the field of human
28 ecology were honored with her election as a Fellow of the
29 Institute for Human Ecology in September of 1994; and
30 WHEREAS, In 1992 Dr. Edwards challenged Jansen's theory
31 that African-American scores are less on standardized testing
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1 due to genetics; with a team of scientists from the fields of
2 nutrition, biochemistry, psychology, maternal and child
3 health, sociology, obstetrics, and pediatrics, they received
4 a grant for the program project, "Nutrition, Other Factors,
5 and the Outcome of Pregnancy" in 1985; "African-American
6 Women and Their Pregnancies", an article on the project, was
7 published in the Journal of Nutrition, where Dr. Edwards
8 served as Guest Editor; and
9 WHEREAS, Dr. Edwards documented the biochemical effects
10 of pica, the craving for and the regular eating of non-food
11 substances such as clay, laundry starch, and ice; she
12 demonstrated in college men the ability of a properly planned
13 vegetarian diet, with wheat as the main source of protein, to
14 maintain adults in nitrogen balance for extended periods of
15 time at the daily intake of 44 grams of protein; and
16 WHEREAS, Dr. Edwards is the author and co-author of over
17 143 publications on nutrition and on quality of life and
18 other subjects; and
19 WHEREAS, Dr. Edwards is a Licensed Nutritionist, a
20 Certified Nutrition Specialist, a Diplomat of the American
21 Board of Nutrition, and a Certified Family Life Educator; she
22 served for two terms on the Secretary of Agriculture's Expert
23 Committee on Nitrates, Nitrites, and Nitrosamines; and she
24 was a Panel Chairman of the White House Conference on Food,
25 Nutrition, and Health; and
26 WHEREAS, Dr. Edwards has been honored for her hard work,
27 including being the recipient of the Alumni Centennial Award
28 of Iowa State University, the recipient of the Alumni
29 Achievement Award of Iowa State University, the recipient of
30 the Alumni Merit Award of Tuskegee University, the recipient
31 of the Award for Distinguished Scientific Research from North
32 Carolina A & T State University, and the recipient of
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1 Citations from the House of Representatives of the General
2 Assembly of the State of Illinois; April 5, 1984 was
3 proclaimed Dr. Cecile Hoover Edwards Day in the State of
4 Illinois by then Governor Jim Thompson; and
5 WHEREAS, She was the recipient of a Certificate of
6 Appreciation for outstanding service and contributions to
7 democracy from the Illinois House of Representatives; she was
8 the recipient of the Special Award of the College of Allied
9 Health Sciences for 1994, for "notable and outstanding
10 research efforts and scholarly contributions"; and
11 WHEREAS, Dr. Edwards is listed in several national and
12 international professional biographical publications,
13 including Two Thousand Women of Achievement", World Who's Who
14 of Women, World Who's Who in Science, Community Leaders of
15 the World, Men of Achievement, Who's Who of American Women,
16 American Men and Women of Science, Who's Who in America,
17 Who's Who in the Black World, Men and Women of Distinction,
18 Who's Who Among Black Americans, Who's Who in Science and
19 Engineering, and Who's Who Among African-Americans; and
20 WHEREAS, Dr. Edwards is to be commended for her hard work
21 and dedication to research, her hard work and dedication to
22 nutrition, and her hard work and dedication to Howard
23 University; therefore, be it
24 RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
25 NINETY-FIRST GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
26 we congratulate Dr. Cecile Edwards on her retirement and wish
27 her a long and happy future; and be it further
28 RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
29 presented to Dr. Cecile Edwards.