HR0723 99TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR0723 LRB099 13960 MST 37964 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of Representatives wish to congratulate Sharon Thomas Parrott on the occasion her retirement as Senior Vice-President of External Relations and Global Responsibility of the DeVry Education Group; and

WHEREAS, Sharon Parrott is responsible for the design, implementation, and monitoring of the organization's comprehensive regulatory compliance programs; in addition, she directs government relations, community engagement, international relations, and global communications; as President of The DeVry Foundation, she directs the organization's charitable giving program; and

WHEREAS, Prior to joining DeVry, Sharon Parrott worked at the United States Department of Education in student financial aid at the Chicago region; later, she directed national training programs in Washington D.C.; she has also held faculty and administrative positions at Illinois colleges and universities, including Loyola University of Chicago, Dominican University, Northeastern University, and George Williams College; she began her career as a Chicago Public Schools teacher at John Marshall Harlan High School, her alma mater; and

WHEREAS, Sharon Parrott serves the State of Illinois as a member of the P-20 Council, co-chairing the committee on College and Career Readiness; she is a member of the Board of Trustees of One Goal, a college access and success network, serves as an informed source on college pricing for The College Board, and is an inaugural member of the 100 Wise Women, a program designed to provide networking and mentoring opportunities for women leaders in Chicago; and

WHEREAS, Sharon Parrott served on the Advisory Committee of Women Employed "Upgrade Your Future" Taskforce, on the steering committee of the National Postsecondary Education Cooperative, and as a member of the National Research Council's Panel on Quality Improvement in Student Financial Aid Programs; additionally she was a member of the board of directors of National Association of Student Finance Aid Administrators and Vice-Chair of the College Board's Committee on Standards in Ability to Pay; in 2000, Crain's Chicago Business named her to the 100 Women Making a Difference in Chicago listing; she is a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc.; and

WHEREAS, Sharon Parrott received bachelor's and master's degrees in history from the University of Illinois and pursued doctoral coursework in higher education policy and leadership; she has a daughter, who is an entrepreneur, and lives with her husband in Chicago; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-NINTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we congratulate Sharon Thomas Parrott on her retirement as Senior Vice-President of External Relations and Global Responsibility of the DeVry Education Group and wish her many more successful years; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to Sharon Parrott as an expression of our esteem and respect.