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1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2     WHEREAS, The members of the House of Representatives of the
3 State of Illinois learned with regret of the death of Dr. James
4 Walker, the first African-American person to serve as president
5 of the two-campus, 35,000-student Southern Illinois University
6 system (SIU), on Sunday, February 5, 2006; and
 
7     WHEREAS, An Alabama native, Dr. Walker was a graduate of
8 Pennsylvania State University's doctoral program in education
9 and was the co-author of a book, "Behavior Management: A
10 Practical Approach for Education", which is in its eighth
11 edition; he authored several journal articles related to
12 special education and educational psychology; and
 
13     WHEREAS, He earned his bachelor's degree in biology from
14 Alabama State University and a Masters in Special Education
15 from Atlanta University; he was a post-doctoral fellow at the
16 University of Alabama in Higher Education Administration and
17 was also a graduate of the Harvard University Institute for
18 Educational Management; and
 
19     WHEREAS, Dr. Walker came to SIU from the president's job at
20 Middle Tennessee State University in 2000; he was recognized as
21 one of the most accomplished and dedicated higher education
22 professionals in this country; he is remembered by his
23 successor at SIU as a caring and decent man who accomplished a
24 great deal for Southern Illinois University through his
25 positive outlook on life and his wonderful sense of humor and
26 is credited with providing stable and experienced leadership to
27 the SIU system at a critical point in its history; and
 
28     WHEREAS, Upon arriving at SIU in 2000, President Walker
29 formed a committee known as the "2020 Vision Committee"
30 composed of an external group of nationally recognized
31 educators and community leaders; chaired by the late Senator

 

 

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1 Paul Simon, the committee developed a set of recommendations
2 designed to chart the way for SIU as it moved into the 21st
3 century; in September of 2002 the "2020 Vision Committee"
4 issued its report, which included 42 specific recommendations
5 to move the University forward during the next two decades; the
6 report guided much of the President's administrative planning
7 and decision-making processes during his tenure at SIU; and
 
8     WHEREAS, President Walker's many visits to Springfield and
9 Washington, D.C., gained him respect and stature among State
10 and federal elected officials; key members of the Illinois
11 Congressional delegation, working together with Dr. Walker,
12 secured millions in federal research grants in the areas of
13 coal, agriculture, bio-fuels, health care, and education
14 during his tenure; and
 
15     WHEREAS, His discussions and relationships with key State
16 officials assisted the University in securing more than $110
17 million in State appropriations for capital funding during his
18 tenure; key projects included the $12 million renovation of
19 Altgeld Hall and Old Baptist Foundation, the $35 million
20 renovation of Morris Library, the new construction of the $30
21 million School of Medicine Combined Laboratory Facility in
22 Springfield, the $21 million Cancer Institute that will break
23 ground this year, and the $20 million Corn to Ethanol National
24 Research Plant at SIUE; during his tenure at SIU, private
25 contributions to the university's foundation rose by 30%; and
 
26     WHEREAS, President Walker was also instrumental in raising
27 student scholarship funds; his Presidential Scholarship Fund
28 annually rewarded academic excellence and resulted in some of
29 the best young minds in the State enrolling at SIU's campuses;
30 and
 
31     WHEREAS, He also initiated efforts to foster greater
32 cooperation between the Carbondale and Edwardsville campuses;

 

 

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1 his Task Force for the Identification and Development of
2 Collaborative Opportunities resulted in significant
3 improvements in maximizing resources and strengths of SIU as
4 one university; his work in this area resulted in successful
5 joint coordination of federal research funding efforts in rural
6 health care programs including medicine, nursing, dental
7 medicine, and allied health work; in the area of budget,
8 administrative, and legal services, President Walker's
9 streamlining initiatives resulted in a 28% reduction in
10 University administrative costs over the last two years of his
11 service; and
 
12     WHEREAS, President Walker was also aggressive in working
13 with the Chancellors of the Carbondale and Edwardsville
14 campuses in pursuing new programs and capital projects funded
15 with university resources, including the new SIUE Pharmacy
16 School and the recently approved expansion of the SIU
17 governmental internship program; and
 
18     WHEREAS, President Walker was a member of numerous higher
19 education professional organizations and served on the boards
20 of several of these associations, including the American
21 Association of State Colleges and Universities and the American
22 Council on Education; he also served as chair of the NCAA
23 Division I Athletics Certification Committee; he was involved
24 in Rotary International, the United Way, Boy Scouts of America,
25 and the American Heart Association; and
 
26     WHEREAS, He spent more than three decades in higher
27 education; he took the position at SIU after serving at Middle
28 Tennessee State University, where he was president for ten
29 years; prior to becoming president at MTSU, he was Provost and
30 Vice President for Academic Affairs at the University of
31 Northern Colorado; he moved through the ranks from assistant
32 professor, department chair, dean, provost, and vice president
33 for academic affairs to president; and
 

 

 

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1     WHEREAS, The passing of Dr. James Walker has been deeply
2 felt by many lives that he touched, especially his wife, Gwenn,
3 and his two daughters; therefore, be it
 
4     RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
5 NINETY-FOURTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
6 we mourn the passing of Dr. James Walker, and we extend our
7 sincere condolences to his family, friends, and all who knew
8 and loved him; and be it further
 
9     RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
10 presented to his family as an expression of our deepest
11 sympathy.