Full Text of HR0613 98th General Assembly
HR0613 98TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
| | HR0613 | | LRB098 14362 MST 49018 r |
|
| 1 | | HOUSE RESOLUTION
| 2 | | WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of | 3 | | Representatives desire all residents to continue their | 4 | | education and skill development beyond high school, and are | 5 | | especially concerned with the low number of minorities and | 6 | | first-generation students pursuing and achieving additional | 7 | | degrees and certificates; and
| 8 | | WHEREAS, In 1967, minority enrollment at Northern Illinois | 9 | | University accounted for only 3 percent of the total | 10 | | enrollment, with minority faculty and staff members comprising | 11 | | an even smaller percentage; these numbers, despite NIU's | 12 | | proximity to Chicago, were not an accurate representation of | 13 | | the diversity of the region; and | 14 | | WHEREAS, Rhoten Smith, who was President of the university | 15 | | at the time, understood that higher education is a vital | 16 | | component of success, especially for those who struggle to | 17 | | break racial, economic, and social barriers; he recognized that | 18 | | public universities have a responsibility to make higher | 19 | | education available to students of all backgrounds, and that a | 20 | | failure to do so, "is to bar the door to a hopeful future in the | 21 | | very faces of those of our citizens who have least to hope for | 22 | | from life"; and |
| | | HR0613 | - 2 - | LRB098 14362 MST 49018 r |
|
| 1 | | WHEREAS, In an effort to attract a more racially and | 2 | | ethnically diverse faculty, staff, and student representation | 3 | | to Northern Illinois University, President Smith hired William | 4 | | Brooks and McKinley Davis to develop and implement aggressive | 5 | | plans for recruitment, employment, and enrollment; and | 6 | | WHEREAS, McKinley "Deacon" Davis of Freeport, Illinois, | 7 | | was an All-State basketball player and member of the Harlem | 8 | | Globetrotters who studied the condition of American high | 9 | | schools while traveling the country performing with the | 10 | | Globetrotters; and | 11 | | WHEREAS, McKinley Davis, as Northern Illinois University's | 12 | | director of Special Programs, developed a procedure for | 13 | | reviewing applications from students who did not meet the | 14 | | university's customary admission policies and selecting | 15 | | certain ones for interviews, support and guidance, which he | 16 | | called giving them a CHANCE - Counseling Help Assistance | 17 | | Necessary College Education; he served as CHANCE director until | 18 | | 1978; and | 19 | | WHEREAS, McKinely Davis passed away in 2003, and in January | 20 | | of 2004, Northern Illinois University President John Peters | 21 | | re-dedicated the CHANCE program as "The McKinley 'Deacon' Davis | 22 | | CHANCE Program"; and |
| | | HR0613 | - 3 - | LRB098 14362 MST 49018 r |
|
| 1 | | WHEREAS, The guiding mission of the CHANCE program is to | 2 | | identify, recruit, admit, and assist otherwise capable | 3 | | students whose pre-college education has not fully enabled them | 4 | | to take maximum advantage of their potential and the | 5 | | opportunities of higher education at Northern Illinois | 6 | | University; and | 7 | | WHEREAS, CHANCE students are provided academic, personal | 8 | | and career counseling; tutorial assistance for courses; | 9 | | academic skills-enhancement courses; academic monitoring | 10 | | throughout the student's undergraduate career; financial aid | 11 | | counseling, peer mentoring; and skills-building for transition | 12 | | to the university experience; and
| 13 | | WHEREAS, The program began with 50 students and has grown | 14 | | to now admit nearly 500 students per year; it has made an | 15 | | impact on more than 15,000 students over the past 45 years; and
| 16 | | WHEREAS, Through a number of programs and concerted | 17 | | efforts, including CHANCE, Northern Illinois University has | 18 | | increased its enrollment of minorities to now total 37% of its | 19 | | student body, and has increased its employment of minorities to | 20 | | 19% of its faculty and staff; and
| 21 | | WHEREAS, CHANCE has received support from State | 22 | | legislators, is well-known throughout Illinois, and holds a |
| | | HR0613 | - 4 - | LRB098 14362 MST 49018 r |
|
| 1 | | national reputation for its achievements, which have served as | 2 | | a model for other states and universities; and
| 3 | | WHEREAS, Moving forward, CHANCE is looking to expand the | 4 | | number of science, technology, engineering and math majors at | 5 | | Northern Illinois University; therefore, be it
| 6 | | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE | 7 | | NINETY-EIGHTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that | 8 | | we congratulate Northern Illinois University's CHANCE program | 9 | | on its 45th anniversary; and be it further
| 10 | | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | 11 | | presented to the CHANCE program and its current Director, | 12 | | Denise Hayman, as a symbol of our respect and encouragement for | 13 | | all higher education institutions to expand hiring and | 14 | | educational efforts for minorities and first-generation | 15 | | students.
|
|