HR0863 102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR0863 LRB102 27705 ECR 39499 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of Representatives wish to congratulate Dr. Von Mansfield on the occasion of his retirement as superintendent of Homewood-Flossmoor Community High School District 233; and

WHEREAS, Dr. Mansfield was raised in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where he grew up in the Westlawn Housing Projects; he completed high school at the University School of Milwaukee; he received his Bachelor of Science in Education and his Master of Science in Counselor Education and Counseling Psychology, both from the University of Wisconsin-Madison; he obtained his Master of Arts in Administration from Governors State University; he earned his doctorate in Curriculum and Instruction from Loyola University-Chicago; and

WHEREAS, As a young man, Dr. Mansfield was an avid football player; as a college senior, he was selected to play in the Senior Bowl; prior to beginning his career in education, he played professional football for five years; he was a fifth round draft choice by the Atlanta Falcons; the majority of his football career was spent playing as a defensive back and kick returner for the Philadelphia Eagles and the Green Bay Packers; and

WHEREAS, Dr. Mansfield currently serves as superintendent of Homewood-Flossmoor Community High School (Homewood-Flossmoor) District 233, where he oversees a diverse student body of nearly 3,000 students and 300 faculty and staff members; he has previously served as a high school science teacher, coach, guidance counselor, dean of students, assistant principal, and principal; during his tenure as superintendent, Homewood-Flossmoor has been recognized by the U.S. Department of Education as a three-time national Blue Ribbon Award-winning high school, ranked annually as one of the most challenging high schools in America by the Washington Post, and received an exemplary ranking for having one of the best AP Psychology programs in the country by the College Board in 2010 and 2011; under his leadership, the school district has maintained a balanced budget for the past 15 years, and it currently has and maintains a bond rating of AAA from Standard & Poor's; and

WHEREAS, Dr. Mansfield is actively involved in the community and is a member of several professional organizations, including Phi Delta Kappa, the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, and the American Association of School Administrators; he currently serves as the vice chair of the College Board's Oak Circle Advisory Board and as a representative for the South Cook Region of the Illinois Association of School Administrators Governmental Relations & Advocacy Committee; and

WHEREAS, Dr. Mansfield has served in leadership roles with several state and nationally recognized organizations; through the College Board, he served as a trustee and a member of the Executive Committee during the 2017 to 2018 school year, and he chaired the Trustee Committee on Membership from 2017 to 2018; he also served on the College Board Superintendents' Advisory Panel and previously co-chaired the organization's National Forum in Miami, Florida in 2012; he has also served as the president of the Headmasters Association and as president of the Southwest Suburban Conference of school districts located in suburban Chicagoland; he has additionally served as a member of the National Commission on National Assessment of Educational Progress 12th Grade Assessment and Reporting and on the Big Ten Advisory Commission; and

WHEREAS, Dr. Mansfield has received several accolades during his football and professional careers; he received an honorable mention as a junior by the All Big Ten and was selected as the recipient of the Outstanding Student Athlete at the University of Wisconsin as a senior by the Wisconsin Alumni Association; he was a recipient of the Paul Harris Fellow Award from the Rotary Foundation of Rotary International and named the winner of the Dr. Charles Gavin Image Award for Education; as Homewood-Flossmoor principal, he received an Award of Excellence from the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) in 2005 and, as Homewood-Flossmoor superintendent, he received an ISBE Award of Meritorious Service in 2020; he has been recognized in publications for his success as an educator, including a cover story in Chicago's N'DIGO magazine and a feature in the Illinois Association of School Administrators' Leadership Matters magazine in March 2021; and

WHEREAS, Dr. Mansfield published Student Satisfaction with Peer Mediation in the School Social Work Journal in 1992; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE HUNDRED SECOND GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we congratulate Dr. Von Mansfield on his retirement as superintendent of Homewood-Flossmoor Community High School Distsrict 233, commend him for his long career in education, and wish him the best in his future endeavors; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to Dr. Mansfield as a symbol of our esteem and respect.