WHEREAS, Women of all backgrounds and walks of life, and degree of ability or disability have made considerable contributions to the growth and development of our communities, states, country, and nations around the world; and
     WHEREAS, Women have played a critical role in the social, cultural, and spiritual development of communities around the globe; and
     WHEREAS, Women of all backgrounds have constituted significant portions of the labor force, whether working outside or inside the home, whether paid or as volunteers, and have played a critical role in the nurturing of our children; and
     WHEREAS, Women have served as leaders of progressive social movements to secure individual rights and freedoms and continue to lead efforts to eliminate discrimination and violence against all people and to promote equality, security, and peace; and
     WHEREAS, Women continue to experience day-to-day discrimination and continue to be victims of violence around the globe; and
     WHEREAS, Women have been largely unrecognized and undervalued for their historical and contemporary scientific, governmental, athletic, literary, and artistic accomplishments; and
     WHEREAS, Washington state has been a champion of women's rights and a national leader in promoting progress for women, having been one of the first states to grant suffrage to women; and
     WHEREAS, Washington state had the highest proportion of women legislators of any state legislature between 1995 and 2004, and the highest in the history of the United States at 40.8 percent in 2000; and
     WHEREAS, The Washington State Legislature continues to have one of the highest proportion of women legislators in the United States at 33.3 percent currently; and
     WHEREAS, Washington state is the first state in the nation to have two female United States senators, Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell, and a female governor, Christine Gregoire, at the same time; and
     WHEREAS, Governor Gregoire declared February 7-13, 2005, to be "Girls and Women in Sports Week" in order to promote equality and access for girls and women in sports; and
     WHEREAS, The history of girls and women in sports is rich and long, yet there has been little national recognition of the significance of girls' and women's athletic achievements; and
     WHEREAS, Girls and women historically have had fewer opportunities to participate in school and professional athletics; and
     WHEREAS, Eighty-two percent of executive businesswomen played organized sports after elementary school; and
     WHEREAS, Girls who play sports have a more positive body image, higher self-esteem, and experience higher states of psychological well-being than girls who do not play sports; and
     WHEREAS, On July 23, 1972, Congress enacted Title IX, which states in part that no person in the United States shall be discriminated against on the basis of sex under any educational program or activity receiving federal funds; and
     WHEREAS, In 1972, girls constituted only seven percent of all high school athletes nation-wide. Last year, in 2004, girls composed 41.5 percent of the total high school athletes in the United States; and
     WHEREAS, Since the enactment of Title IX, the average number of women's teams offered per school is at an all-time high of 8.34; and
     WHEREAS, High school athletic teams in the state of Washington have achieved many accomplishments that serve as an inspiration to young women by promoting the values of teamwork and cooperation. Examples of successful high school teams include: Roosevelt High School, winners of the 2004 WIAA State Basketball Championship; Mead High School, winners of the 2004 WIAA State Volleyball Championship; Bellarmine Prep, winners of the 2004 WIAA State Cross Country, Tennis, and Soccer Championships; Redmond High School, winners of the 2004 WIAA State Gymnastics Championship; Rogers High School, winners of the 2004 WIAA State Swim and Dive Championship; Inglemoor High School, winners of the 2004 WIAA State Softball Championship; and Curtis High School, winners of the 2004 WIAA State Track and Field Championship; and
     WHEREAS, Institutions of higher education continue to produce elite athletes competing with pride, commitment, and passion; and
     WHEREAS, Washington colleges and universities have fostered outstanding achievements in women's athletics, including: The University of Washington's softball team, which advanced to their second straight College World Series; the UW volleyball team for making their first ever appearance at the NCAA Division I Final Four; the naming of UW volleyball head coach Jim McLaughlin as the Tachikara/AVCA Division I National Coach of the Year and the naming of Claire Carter as the first four-time All-American in UW history for her accomplishments on the UW tennis team; Eastern Washington University's soccer team for claiming their first Big Sky Conference Regular Season Title and the EWU volleyball team for being named Big Sky Conference Regular Season Champions for the third straight year; Central Washington University's volleyball team, who placed first in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference; Western Washington University's volleyball team, who had a 54-match league winning streak, the fourth longest in NCAA II history; Pacific Lutheran University's volleyball team, the winner of the Northwest Conference Title; Seattle Pacific University's soccer team, the winner of the Great Northwest Athletic Conference, and the SPU basketball team for finishing third in the nation; The Evergreen State College's basketball team who had its best-ever overall record in history and highest finish in the Cascade Conference, the Evergreen women's crew team who competed in the Dad Vail Regatta last spring, the nation's largest collegiate crew event, and Alisha White who was named to the NAIA All-America team for her accomplishments on the Evergreen soccer team; Washington State University's rowing team that finished third at the Pac-10 Championships, and Erin Patterson for being named to the CRCA All-America Second Team, the WSU soccer team for having 17 players earn Pac-10 All Academic Honors, and Kim Welch for being named to the NGCA All-America First Team for her accomplishments on the WSU golf team; and St. Martin's College, whose women's teams were the 2003-2004 Great Northwest Athletics Conference Women's All-Sports Academic Champions; and
     WHEREAS, Washington is honored to host the Seattle Storm, the 2004 National Women's Basketball Association Champions, and the first major professional sports team in Seattle to bring home a championship in 25 years; and
     WHEREAS, Sue Bird and Lauren Jackson were awarded first team all-WNBA honors, and Betty Lennox was named the WNBA Finals MVP, for their outstanding play; and
     WHEREAS, Coach Anne Donovan, already enshrined in the Basketball Hall of Fame, became the first female coach to win a WNBA title, and the first female professional coach to win the Seattle Post-Intelligencer Sports Star of the Year Award; and
     WHEREAS, Lauren Jackson, Betty Lennox, Sue Bird, Sheri Sam, Kamila Vodichkova, Alicia Thompson, Janell Burse, Tully Bevilaqua, Simone Edwards, Adia Barnes, Michelle Greco, Head Coach Anne Donovan, and the entire coaching staff have proven to be outstanding role models, both on and off the court, for young women in the state of Washington; and
     WHEREAS, Women across the country are underrepresented in leadership positions of coaches, officials, and sports administrators, and there is a demonstrated need for women to serve in these positions to ensure a fair representation of the abilities of women; and
     WHEREAS, The current and past accomplishments of women athletes, scholars, and leaders should be recognized and celebrated; and
     WHEREAS, The United States of America, as a world leader, recognized the critical role of women in America by establishing March as National Women's History Month; and
     WHEREAS, The United Nations has proclaimed March 8th to be International Women's Day since 1975;
     NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, That the Washington State Senate honor and celebrate the women of our state, country, and the world on March 8th, International Women's Day, and during March, National Women's History Month.