SR0511 93RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY

SR0511 LRB093 21891 KEF 49936 r

SENATE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate were saddened to learn of the passing of Karl Joachim "Jock" Weintraub of Hyde Park on March 25, 2004; and

WHEREAS, Karl Joachim Weintraub was born in Darmstadt, Germany, to a Jewish father and a Christian mother and spent his childhood at a Quaker boarding school in Holland, where he was hidden during World War II by a Christian family and afterwards was sent by the Quakers to live in America, where he eventually found his way to Chicago and enrolled at the University of Chicago; and

WHEREAS, Mr. Weintraub received a bachelor of arts degree in 1949, a master of arts in 1952, and a Ph.D. in History in 1957; he began teaching as an intern in 1954 at the University of Chicago, where he spent 60 years as a student, professor, and an inspiring mentor to generations of students; and

WHEREAS, Mr. Weintraub's course on Western History and Culture had a "rock concert-like" appeal, with spring long being marked by students sleeping out on the university's quadrangle the night before registration in order to secure a place in his class, which many alumni recall as a centerpiece of their education; and

WHEREAS, He continued to teach his course even after retiring and refused to accept a salary in quiet protest of the changing styles in higher education, explaining that his experiences with Nazism deepened his determination to keep his course alive; and

WHEREAS, In addition to teaching at the University of Chicago, he shared his knowledge by serving as a Life Trustee for Knox College; and

WHEREAS, Mr. Weintraub also served as a trustee of the Art Institute of Chicago and on the Board of Governors of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago; and

WHEREAS, Mr. Weintraub was the Thomas E. Donnelly Distinguished Service Professor Emeritus in History at the University of Chicago, where his teaching skills earned him two Quantrell Awards for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching in 1960 and 1986, the Danforth Foundation's E. Harris Harbison Award for Distinguished Teaching in 1967, and the Amoco Foundation Award for Distinguished Contributions to Undergraduate Teaching in 1995; and

WHEREAS, In 2001, he received the Norman Maclean Alumni Award, which recognizes emeritus and senior faculty members who have made outstanding contributions to teaching and to the student experience of life on campus; and

WHEREAS, Karl Joachim Weintraub was an esteemed scholar and the author of numerous publications, including two books, Visions of Culture: Voltaire-Guizot-Burckhardt-Lamprecht-Huizinga-Ortega y Gassett (1966) and The Value of the Individual: Self and Circumstance in Autobiography (1978); and

WHEREAS, The passing of Karl Joachim Weintraub's passing will be deeply felt by many, especially his wife, Katy O'Brien Weintraub; his sister, Tatjana Wood; and his many colleagues, former students, friends, and family; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-THIRD GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn the death of Karl Joachim Weintraub along with all who knew and loved him and extend our sincere condolences to his family and friends; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to the family of Karl Joachim Weintraub as an expression of our sorrow for their loss.