HR1445 LRB094 21665 MST 60051 r

1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2     WHEREAS, The members of the House of Representatives of the
3 State of Illinois wish to honor Lewis Collens on the occasion
4 of his retirement from the position of president of the
5 Illinois Institute of Technology in the Summer of 2007; and
 
6     WHEREAS, He is one of the longest serving university
7 presidents in the United States, having held his current
8 position for sixteen years; his tenure has seen dramatic
9 improvements in student quality and enrollment, creation of a
10 number of significant research centers and institutes, and an
11 endowment that has gone from $50 million to $300 million; and
 
12     WHEREAS, He successfully led the largest fundraising
13 campaign in university history that included the two largest
14 individual gifts ever made to an Illinois university at the
15 time; he encouraged the development of several new academic
16 programs, including biomedical engineering, financial markets,
17 design, and math and science teacher education, which today is
18 one of the largest Ph.D. programs in the field; he transformed
19 the school into one of the most selective schools in the
20 country and welcomed the largest freshman class in recent
21 history; and
 
22     WHEREAS, In addition to his duties for the school, he is
23 involved in numerous civic, business, and professional
24 activities;he currently serves as a director of Dean Foods
25 Company, AMSTED Industries, Alion Science and Technology
26 Corporation, and The Colson Group; he has also served in
27 various leadership roles on the Advisory Committee of the
28 Partnership for New Communities, Leadership Greater Chicago,
29 The Economic Club of Chicago, Association Independent
30 Technological Universities, National Association of
31 Independent Colleges and Universities, The Latin School of
32 Chicago, and the Mayors Council of Technology Advisors; and
 

 

 

HR1445 - 2 - LRB094 21665 MST 60051 r

1     WHEREAS, Prior to taking his current position, he practiced
2 law in Chicago and Washington, D.C. and was co-founder and
3 chairman of BAR/BRI Educational Publishing Company; he has also
4 served as a Law and Humanities Fellow at Harvard Law School and
5 taught corporate securities law at IIT's Chicago-Kent College
6 of Law, being named dean of the school in 1974; he holds
7 degrees in accounting, philosophy, and law; and
 
8     WHEREAS, He is a life-long resident of the Chicago area,
9 where he lives with his wife, Marge; they have one son, Steven;
10 Mr. Collens will continue in his current position while a
11 national search is conducted for his successor; therefore, be
12 it
 
13     RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
14 NINETY-FOURTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
15 we congratulate Lewis Collens on the occasion of his retirement
16 in the Summer of 2007; and be it further
 
17     RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
18 presented to Mr. Collens as an expression of our respect and
19 esteem.