Full Text of HR0768 97th General Assembly
HR0768 97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | HOUSE RESOLUTION
| 2 | | WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of | 3 | | Representatives are proud to recognize individuals and | 4 | | organizations that have contributed to the welfare of the State | 5 | | of Illinois and its citizens and have distinguished themselves | 6 | | through significant personal achievement; and
| 7 | | WHEREAS, Dr. Linda Renee Baker has held the title of many | 8 | | "firsts" in Illinois government by holding key managerial | 9 | | positions under 3 Illinois governors; and | 10 | | WHEREAS, During her career in public service, Dr. Baker | 11 | | held positions of increasing responsibility in a variety of | 12 | | State agencies; Dr. Baker served as the first African-American | 13 | | legislative liaison for an Illinois governor; Dr. Baker served | 14 | | as the assistant director of the Department of Public Aid in | 15 | | the mid-1990s; in 1999, Dr. Baker served as director of the | 16 | | Illinois Department of Employment Security, opening 4 new | 17 | | Illinois Employment and Training Centers (IETC) during that | 18 | | year; and
| 19 | | WHEREAS, Dr. Baker has been instrumental in working | 20 | | collaboratively with the business community, organized labor, | 21 | | education, local governments, and community based | 22 | | organizations to revamp the State's workforce development |
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| 1 | | system; Dr. Baker worked tirelessly to promote the Governor's | 2 | | vision of an inclusive public-private partnership for | 3 | | workforce development to bring together those in the State who | 4 | | need employees with those who prepare individuals for | 5 | | employment; and
| 6 | | WHEREAS, On January 28, 2000, Governor George H. Ryan named | 7 | | Dr. Baker as the new Secretary of the Illinois Department of | 8 | | Human Services, where she was only the second person to head | 9 | | and the first woman to lead the new super agency after its | 10 | | creation in 1997; and | 11 | | WHEREAS, As secretary of the Department of Human Services, | 12 | | the State's largest agency, Dr. Baker led and managed a | 13 | | comprehensive human services agency with about 20,000 | 14 | | employees and an annual budget of about $5 billion; the agency | 15 | | provided services in the areas of community health and | 16 | | prevention, mental health, substance abuse, developmental | 17 | | disabilities and vocational rehabilitation; the agency also | 18 | | directed and implemented the State's nationally-recognized | 19 | | welfare reform efforts; and
| 20 | | WHEREAS, Dr. Baker brought achievement in higher education | 21 | | to her public service, holding a bachelor's and a master's | 22 | | degree in gerontology and health-care administration and | 23 | | public administration from the University of Illinois at |
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| 1 | | Springfield (UIS); In 2004, Dr. Baker earned a PhD in public | 2 | | administration from UIS; and | 3 | | WHEREAS, Dr. Baker and her husband, G. Ronald Roby, are the | 4 | | parents of 2 children; and
| 5 | | WHEREAS, Dr. Baker continued her commitment to public | 6 | | service by joining the Paul Simon Public Policy Institute on | 7 | | March 18, 2003, with a focus on expanding access to | 8 | | high-quality health care in partnership with the SIU School of | 9 | | Medicine and helping minorities and people with disabilities | 10 | | realize their full potential; Dr. Baker also teaches a course | 11 | | on leadership for SIU Carbondale; therefore, be it
| 12 | | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE | 13 | | NINETY-SEVENTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that | 14 | | we honor Dr. Linda Renee Baker for her pioneering achievements | 15 | | in Illinois public service for African-American women; we | 16 | | express gratitude for her hard work and accomplishments as they | 17 | | continue to have a positive impact on the lives of millions of | 18 | | Illinoisans; and be it further
| 19 | | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | 20 | | presented to Dr. Linda Renee Baker as a symbol of our respect | 21 | | and esteem.
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