HR1153 LRB093 23064 KEF 53029 r

1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2     WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of
3 Representatives were saddened to learn of the death of Dr.
4 Barbara Ann Laffoon Sizemore of Chicago on July 24, 2004; and
 
5     WHEREAS, Barbara Ann was born in December 1927 to the union
6 of Sylvester Walter Laffoon and Delila Mae Alexander Stewart;
7 she was raised in Terre Haute, Indiana where she graduated high
8 school at age 16; she earned a B.A. and an M.A. both from
9 Northwestern University; she received a Ph.D. in Educational
10 Administration from the University of Chicago; and
 
11     WHEREAS, She was a teacher and administrator with the
12 Chicago public schools for 25 years from 1947 to 1972; she was
13 the first black woman to head a big city school system when she
14 was tapped as superintendent of schools for Washington, D.C.,
15 from 1973 to 1975; she was professor and interim chairman of
16 the Department of Black Community, Research and Education at
17 the University of Pittsburgh from 1977 to 1992; in 1992, she
18 returned to Chicago, where she began her tenure as dean of the
19 School of Education at DePaul University; at DePaul, she
20 founded the School Achievement Structure, an organization that
21 used the "Structured Ten Routines," a model that accelerates
22 achievement and educational excellence in underachieving
23 schools and districts; she retired in 1999 and lectured to
24 thousands of educators and organizations about the model and
25 other educational issues; and
 
26     WHEREAS, Dr. Sizemore was involved with numerous
27 organizations where she worked diligently to bring equal access
28 to educational opportunities for underserved and black
29 children; she worked to desegregate the Pittsburg Public
30 Schools, and was an instrumental member of Pittsburghers
31 Against Apartheid, an organization that struggled to end
32 apartheid in South Africa; and
 

 

 

HR1153 - 2 - LRB093 23064 KEF 53029 r

1     WHEREAS, She was the recipient of numerous awards and
2 recognitions and was a well-recognized scholar and author who
3 penned over 20 chapters in books and 20 articles in journals;
4 she authored, "The Ruptured Diamond: The Politics of the
5 Decentralization of the District of Columbia Public Schools,"
6 and was completing a second book, which will be published
7 posthumously; and
 
8     WHEREAS, She was an educator, public speaker, and scholar
9 whose philosophy was that all children can learn and who
10 throughout her career worked to close the achievement gap
11 between black and white students; she encouraged educators to
12 spend more time teaching vocabulary and grammar to black
13 students and supported teaching traditional methods of phonics
14 for children who cannot read, rather than using the newer
15 methods that allowed children to write without regard to
16 correct spelling; she will be remembered as a strong,
17 independent, loving and giving woman; and
 
18     WHEREAS, The passing of Dr. Barbara Ann Laffoon Sizemore
19 will be deeply felt by many, especially her children, Furman
20 Sizemore, Jake Milliones, Kymara Chase, Furman Sizemore,
21 Beatena Nance (LaRon), Dubois Milliones, Momar Milliones, and
22 Marimba Milliones; her grandchildren; her godchildren; and her
23 countless other family and friends; therefore, be it
 
24     RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
25 NINETY-THIRD GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we
26 mourn the death of Dr. Barbara Ann Laffoon Sizemore along with
27 all who knew and loved her and extend our sincere condolences
28 to her family and friends; and be it further
 
29     RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
30 presented to the family of Dr. Barbara Ann Laffoon Sizemore as
31 a token of our deepest sympathy.