2015 -- H 5115

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2015

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H O U S E   R E S O L U T I O N

CELEBRATING THE 100TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE FOUNDING OF JOHNSON &

WALES UNIVERSITY

     

     Introduced By: Representatives Serpa, Kennedy, Reilly, Fellela, and O`Grady

     Date Introduced: January 15, 2015

     Referred To: House read and passed

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     WHEREAS, On September 14, 1914, Gertrude Irene Johnson and Mary Tiffany Wales

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opened the Johnson & Wales Business School to impart to young people the knowledge and skills

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needed to enter the world of business and, in the words of Miss Wales, to provide a program of

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business and office education "not for its own sake, but as preparation for what lies beyond"; and

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     WHEREAS, As men left to fight in World War I and women stepped in to meet the needs

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of the business workforce, some sought additional training and education at the business school

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founded by Miss Johnson and Miss Wales; and

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     WHEREAS, The school had originally opened with one student and one typewriter in

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Miss Johnson's home at 250 Hope Street on the East Side of Providence, but as the school began

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to grow, it moved to larger accommodations at 222 Olney Street and, in 1926, moved downtown

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to 36 Exchange Place; and

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     WHEREAS, Following the Hurricane of 1938 and the end of the Great Depression, the

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school continued to grow, necessitating a move in 1940 to larger facilities in the Gardner

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Building at 40 Fountain Street in Providence; and

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     WHEREAS, In 1947, Edward and Vilma Triangolo partnered with Morris and Audrey

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Gaebe to acquire the school which had grown to 125 students, adding courses in business

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management, marketing, salesmanship and accounting; and

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     WHEREAS, In 1960, the school received accreditation as a junior college of business by

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the Accrediting Commission of Business Schools in Washington, D.C., a certification of

 

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excellence for non-public, career-oriented institutions; and

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     WHEREAS, The school's growing enrollment and reputation necessitated a permanent

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location, and Morris Gaebe and Edward Triangolo purchased Johnson & Wales' first building,

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Plantations Hall in Providence in 1962, moving 300 students from rented facilities at Fountain

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Street into a new home; and

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     WHEREAS, Johnson & Wales Junior College of Business, a nonprofit, degree-granting,

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institution, was incorporated in 1963 to take over the operations of Johnson & Wales School of

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Business, Inc.; and

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     WHEREAS, In 1970, with enrollment at 900 students, the institution changed its name to

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Johnson & Wales College and was authorized by the State of Rhode Island to confer

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baccalaureate and honorary degrees; and

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     WHEREAS, In 1973, the college began transforming a former World War II Liberty Ship

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shipyard located along Narragansett Bay into a school to teach culinary arts, an area that would

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eventually grow to become the school's Harborside Campus; and

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     WHEREAS, In 1980, the Governor and General Assembly of the State of Rhode Island

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granted a legislative charter authorizing the college to award advanced degrees; and

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     WHEREAS, In 1984, a regional campus was established in Charleston, South Carolina,

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which offered a variety of two and four-year programs in food service, hospitality and travel-

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tourism; and

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     WHEREAS, Johnson & Wales opened its graduate school on the Harborside Campus in

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1985, eventually growing to offer master's degrees in business, teacher education and criminal

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justice, and a doctorate in educational leadership; and

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     WHEREAS, The university opened a Norfolk, Virginia, campus in 1986, offering one

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and two-year food service programs; and

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     WHEREAS, In 1988, Johnson & Wales answered a growing need across all industries

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with the establishment of a School of Technology; and

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     WHEREAS, With the approval of the State of Rhode Island, in 1988, Johnson & Wales

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College was renamed Johnson & Wales University to reflect its status as a full university; and

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     WHEREAS, The university formally established the College of Business, The Hospitality

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College, the College of Culinary Arts, the School of Technology, and the School of Arts &

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Sciences in Providence in 1991 ; and

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     WHEREAS, In 1992, the university opened another campus in North Miami, Florida,

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offering culinary arts, business and hospitality undergraduate degree programs; and

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     WHEREAS, Johnson & Wales University established the first bachelor's degree program

 

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in culinary arts in the country in 1993; and

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     WHEREAS, Johnson & Wales, earned regional accreditation through the Commission on

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Institutions of Higher Education (CIHE) of the New England Association of Schools & Colleges

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lnc. (NEAS&C) in 1994; and

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     WHEREAS, ln September of 2000, the University opened a Denver, Colorado campus,

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offering undergraduate degrees in culinary arts, hospitality, and business; and

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     WHEREAS, Johnson & Wales University consolidated its Norfolk, Virginia, and

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Charleston, South Carolina, campuses and opened a campus in Charlotte, North Carolina in the

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fall of 2004, offering undergraduate degree programs in business, culinary arts, and hospitality;

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and

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     WHEREAS, Johnson & Wales University invested more than $200 million in the

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construction of new facilities and renovations to existing facilities on its two Providence

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campuses between 2000 and 2009; and

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     WHEREAS, In February of 2012, during a time of increasing economic instability in the

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City of Providence, Johnson & Wales University was the first institution of higher education in

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Providence to step forward and increase its payments in lieu of taxes to the city, with university

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leaders stating "we cannot be a successful institution in a failing city"; and

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     WHEREAS, Johnson & Wales University employs 561 faculty and 1,036 staff members

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for a total of 1,597 employees in Rhode Island making it among the top private employers in the

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state in 2014; and

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     WHEREAS, Johnson & Wales University students at the Providence Campus perform

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more than 150,000 hours of community service annually; and

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     WHEREAS, Johnson & Wales University has been named to the President's Higher

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Education Community Service Honor Roll each year since it was established in 2006; and

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     WHEREAS, Johnson & Wales University was named one of "81 Great Schools with

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Outstanding Community Involvement" by The Princeton Review's Colleges with a Conscience;

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and

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     WHEREAS, Since its founding Johnson & Wales University's student body has grown

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from one student in its first year in Providence to a more than 16,000 undergraduate students and

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984 graduate students across four states in 2014; and

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     WHEREAS, Throughout its history, Johnson & Wales University has accepted many

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first-generation students, opening the opportunity for a higher education to thousands of

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applicants; and

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     WHEREAS, Johnson & Wales University continues to produce highly qualified and

 

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exceptional graduates, respected as leaders in their fields and industries locally, nationally and

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internationally; now, therefore be it

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     RESOLVED, That this House of Representatives of the State of Rhode Island and

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Providence Plantations hereby encourages and supports the efforts of Johnson & Wales

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University to commemorate and celebrate the 100th Anniversary of its founding; and be it further

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     RESOLVED, That this House hereby conveys its collective wishes for continued

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innovation in education, enduring contributions to the state and service to the community; and be

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it further

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     RESOLVED, That this House hereby welcomes this centennial celebration as an

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opportunity to celebrate Johnson & Wales University's accomplishments, consider the Johnson &

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Wales University of today, and imagine Johnson & Wales University's future in the 21st century

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and beyond; and be it further

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     RESOLVED, That the Secretary of State be and hereby is authorized and directed to

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transmit duly certified copies of this resolution to the Governor, and the Chancellor and President

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of Johnson & Wales University.

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