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2006 SPECIAL SESSION I


HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 5137
Commending Sue Forbes Watson.

 

Agreed to by the House of Delegates, August 28, 2006
Agreed to by the Senate, September 27, 2006

 

WHEREAS, Sue Forbes Watson, Chairman of the Hanover County School Board, is recognized for her outstanding public service to the citizens of the Hanover community; and

WHEREAS, the fourth longest serving member in board history, Sue Watson was honored with a framed certificate and gold watch for 30 years of continuous service; and

WHEREAS, Sue Watson grew up and attended public schools in Wilson, North Carolina, graduated from Duke University in 1966 with a major in religion and English, and earned a master's degree in English from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1969; and

WHEREAS, Sue Watson taught high school English in Georgia, Maryland, and North Carolina, and then came to Virginia to teach for four years at Henrico County's Hermitage High School; and

WHEREAS, Sue Watson moved to the Town of Ashland in 1970 and retired from teaching in 1974; and

WHEREAS, in 1976 Sue Watson was appointed as a board member and became the first woman to serve on the Hanover County School Board; school enrollment was 6,000 students compared to today's nearly 20,000 students in Virginia's l4th largest school division; and

 WHEREAS, in nonconsecutive terms over the course of her 30-year career, Sue Watson has served nine terms as vice-chairman and is serving a seventh term as chairman; and

WHEREAS, Sue Watson has overseen many dramatic changes during her tenure, including new construction and improvements in public schools and school facilities, advancement of technology in the classroom and in administrative procedures, development of school and business partnerships, and creation of the Hanover Education Foundation; and

WHEREAS, Sue Watson has been invaluable in the development and funding of staff development opportunities, early childhood programs for four-year-olds, parent and community involvement activities, and other important educational initiatives to enhance the education of all the students of Hanover County; and

WHEREAS, always concerned with the welfare of her fellow citizens, Sue Watson has served on numerous civic organizations, including the State Advisory Committee for the Talented and Gifted, the Virginia School Boards Association, the Math-Science Center Board, the Cultural Arts Advisory Committee, the Governor’s School Board, and the Metro Educational Research Consortium; and

WHEREAS, Sue Watson has generously given her time and enormous talents to community activities as the founder and codirector of the Ashland Musical Variety Show, member and former president of the Woman’s Club of Ashland, and member of the boards for Leadership Metro Richmond, the Hanover Business Council, and the American Heart Association; and

WHEREAS, Sue Watson is married to Dr. Ritchie D. Watson, Jr., who is an English professor at Randolph-Macon College; she has two daughters and two lovely grandchildren and is a devoted member of Duncan Memorial United Methodist Church; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED by the House of Delegates, the Senate concurring, That the General Assembly commend Sue Forbes Watson for her many achievements and her exemplary public service as a member of the Hanover County School Board; and, be it

RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates prepare a copy of this resolution for presentation to Sue Forbes Watson as an expression of the General Assembly’s appreciation for commitment to the citizens of Hanover County and the Commonwealth.