HR0083 96TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR0083 LRB096 10748 KXB 20936 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of Representatives are saddened to learn of the death of Dr. Larry Hawkins, who passed away on January 30, 2009; and

WHEREAS, Larry Hawkins was born in Chicago in 1930; he attended Douglass Elementary and graduated from Phillips High School, where he was a star basketball player in 1948; he then received his associate's degree from Wilson Junior College in 1950; and

WHEREAS, After serving in the United States Army from 1953 to 1955, Larry Hawkins earned his bachelor's degree from George Williams College in 1956 and earned master's degrees from George Williams College and Roosevelt University; in 1986, he earned his doctorate degree from the University of Illinois; and

WHEREAS, Larry Hawkins had a long and distinguished career in education; he began his career in 1956 at Carver High School, where he was hired as a physical education teacher and was appointed head basketball coach; going far beyond basketball, he taught his students life skills and the importance of getting good grades, going to college, and succeeding in life; in 1963, he led the boys basketball team at Carver to the State championship, with the team's historic victory marking the first time that a Chicago public school had won the State championship in the New Assembly Hall; he also coached volleyball at Hyde Park High School for many years prior to his retirement from the Chicago Public Schools in 1999; and

WHEREAS, In 1968, Larry Hawkins became the Director of the University of Chicago's Office of Special Programs, a program that encourages and assists educationally disadvantaged children to succeed in elementary and high school, graduate, and complete college; and

WHEREAS, In 1972, Larry Hawkins founded the Institute for Athletics and Education, a group that provides advocacy and support to the community in an effort to maintain the balance between sports and education in a way that enhances the positive social and academic development of student athletes; and

WHEREAS, In 1984, Larry Hawkins became the Executive Director of Big Buddies Youth Services, Inc., an organization founded in 1949 to assist the community with the prevention of juvenile delinquency; under Dr. Hawkins' leadership, the organization expanded to provide educational, social, cultural, charitable, and community services for disadvantaged youth and their families as a comprehensive approach to delinquency prevention; and

WHEREAS, Larry Hawkins was the founder of the Parent Athletic Support Team and the National Parents Committee on Youth Sports; he was a member of numerous organizations, including the American Alliance for Health, Physical Education and Recreation, Concerned Coaches of Chicago, the Educational Advisory Committee of the Urban League, the U.S. Olympic Committee on Youth Identification, the Joint Committee on Elementary and Secondary School Sports - State of Illinois, and the First Congressional District District Council; and

WHEREAS, Larry Hawkins was the author of numerous publications, including Sports Programs Should Reach Out To Girls, Too (1990), Media and Sports in the Urban High School (1987), Hard Times for School Sports (1986), and A Training Program for Teacher/Coaches (1986); therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-SIXTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn, along with his family and friends, the passing of Dr. Larry Hawkins; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to the family of Dr. Larry Hawkins as an expression of our sympathy.