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1
SENATE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened to
3learn of the death of Burton E. "Burt" Swanson Ph.D. of
4Champaign, who passed away on April 23, 2020; and
 
5    WHEREAS, Burt Swanson was born in Bureau County to Harlan
6and Evelyn (Wessel) Swanson on November 28, 1939; he grew up on
7the family farm near Princeton and graduated from Bureau
8Township High School in 1957 in a class of eight; he attended
9Illinois State University and then the University of Illinois,
10where he received his Bachelor of Science in Agricultural
11Education in 1961; and
 
12    WHEREAS, Burt Swanson joined the Peace Corps and took his
13very first air flight, traveling to Washington, D.C. for
14training at Howard University; after training, he took his
15first international flight to his assignment in Cyprus; he was
16called home to Washington at the death of President John
17Kennedy and continued to serve in the Peace Corps as a
18recruiting officer; and
 
19    WHEREAS, Burt Swanson earned his Master of Science in
20International Agricultural Development from the University of
21California-Davis in 1968 and his Ph.D. in development studies
22from the University of Wisconsin at Madison in 1974; during

 

 

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1this time, he worked with Nobel Peace Prize laureate Norman
2Borlaug at CIMMYT (the International Maize and Wheat
3Improvement Center) in Mexico; after earning a postdoctorate at
4Wisconsin, he accepted a position at the University of Illinois
5in 1975, where he remained for his entire academic and
6international career; and
 
7    WHEREAS, Burt Swanson was a professor of rural development
8in the College of Agriculture, Consumer and Environmental
9Sciences (ACES) and director of INTERPAKS (International
10Program for Agricultural Knowledge Systems), directing and
11teaching a series of short courses for international
12participants from around the world; he was also a senior fellow
13for International Service for National Agricultural Research
14at The Hague; and
 
15    WHEREAS, Burt Swanson had a long and distinguished career
16in international agricultural extension and rural development
17and is recognized as an international authority in the field;
18he traveled around the world, serving in Europe, the Middle
19East, Latin America, Asia, Africa, Egypt, and Russia and
20working extensively in China and India, with 80 assignments in
21over 35 countries; he spent his career working to improve
22national extension systems in order to increase agricultural
23productivity and food security in developing nations, in an
24environmentally sustainable way; among his colleagues, he was

 

 

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1known for his intense focus and tireless work ethic; and
 
2    WHEREAS, Burt Swanson worked with the United States Agency
3for International Development (USAID), the International Fund
4for Agricultural Development (IFAD), the World Bank, and the
5United Nations Food and Agriculture Office (FAO) in Rome; he
6was a founder and the first president of the Association of
7International Agricultural Extension Education (AIAEE); he
8wrote and edited several books, one of which was translated
9into seven languages; and
 
10    WHEREAS, Burt Swanson provided leadership for the
11value-added agricultural research and extension program at the
12University of Illinois; he also taught a discovery course for
13freshmen at the university and delighted in sharing with new
14students his in-depth knowledge and insights about the world
15and its problems and what their future roles in that world
16might be; he secured a $9 million dollar grant in 2010 to
17establish the MEAS project (Modernizing Extension and Advisory
18Services); and
 
19    WHEREAS, Burt Swanson received numerous national and
20international awards, including the University of Illinois
21Distinguished Faculty Award for International Achievement, the
22Paul A. Funk Recognition Award from the College of ACES, the
23C-U International Humanitarian Award, and the Outstanding

 

 

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1Service Award from AIAEE; and
 
2    WHEREAS, Burt Swanson was devoted to his children and
3cherished his family and the time spent with them; he was an
4extraordinary, generous, and loving grandfather; he loved
5attending the Krannert Center for the Performing Arts, scuba
6diving and swimming, traveling just for fun, enjoying the
7beauty of Allerton Park, supporting his favorite causes, and
8spending time with his many friends and colleagues; and
 
9    WHEREAS, Burt Swanson was preceded in death by his parents;
10his sister-in-law, Sylvia Swanson; and his son-in-law, Alan
11Rankin; and
 
12    WHEREAS, Burt Swanson is survived by his wife, Iris
13(Arend-Frillman); his daughter, Anne Swanson; his son, David
14(Sally); his granddaughters, Sophia and Alyssa; his brother,
15Roger Swanson; his wife's family, Leslie (Alan) Rankin, Jamie
16(Brian) Shamhart, and Scott (Christine) Frillman; his
17grandsons, Miles and Seth Rankin, Nicholas, Jason, and Will
18Frillman and Cole Shamhart; his nephews, Ronald (Dawn) Swanson
19and Peter (Connie) Swanson; and his great-nieces and
20great-nephew, Betsy, Erica, Veronica, Nicole, Natalie, and
21Nate Swanson; therefore, be it
 
22    RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDRED FIRST GENERAL

 

 

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1ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn the passing of
2Burton E. "Burt" Swanson and extend our sincere condolences to
3his family, friends, and all who knew and loved him; and be it
4further
 
5    RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
6presented to the family of Burt Swanson as an expression of our
7deepest sympathy.