By Senators Dansel, Litzow, Ericksen, Sheldon, Carlyle, Hasegawa, Hobbs, Chase, Takko, Billig, Conway, Fraser, Dammeier, Honeyford, Jayapal, and Pedersen

WHEREAS, A teacher in a small rural school district is often presented with unique challenges, expectations, and opportunities of the type not typically experienced in urban districts; and

WHEREAS, Catherine Diane Wilson has spent her entire 37-year career as a teacher in rural districts, with the first 7 years at J.L. Crowe Secondary School in Trail, British Columbia, followed by 30 consecutive years in the neighboring Northport School District in Stevens County; and

WHEREAS, Through the course of her career, Ms. Wilson has posted some varied and remarkable achievements, including starting the first boys' volleyball team at Northport High, and organizing and leading a month long trip to Europe in 1997 for 11 students--after first having to raise $14,000 through a community wide effort to cover travel expenses; and

WHEREAS, Ms. Wilson was the force behind the North Port Pioneer, the first and only student-generated newspaper at Northport High, which she managed and nurtured for 15 years; and

WHEREAS, Ms. Wilson invigorated the drama/theater and performing arts program during a time when other arts programs in the district were getting cut, and for many years was one of the instigators of the famous teacher Christmas skits; and

WHEREAS, Ms. Wilson once caused a very surprised truck driver to swerve and hit a guardrail after he saw her riding down the street on her bicycle wearing a Teletubby costume for school spirit week; and

WHEREAS, With the assistance of a retired local newspaper editor, Ms. Wilson produced a video that showed antiquated school supplies and infrastructure at Northport, featuring textbooks with lice in the seams, moldy walls and carpeting, asbestos-coated ceilings, and a female school bus driver chaining up in the mud; and

WHEREAS, Ms. Wilson then shared the video with the late Senator Bob Morton to show to the Legislature as a way of seeking funding for rural schools that would be less reliant on matching levies; and

WHEREAS, Ms. Wilson has spent her career teaching in a number of disciplines, including French, English, and filling in wherever needed while promoting health, fitness, and the expanded use of technology; and

WHEREAS, Ms. Wilson is retiring this June after a long and enjoyable career that made a huge difference in the lives of many Northport students;

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, That the Washington State Senate honor the career of Catherine Diane Wilson as a living example of the kind of devotion, commitment, and dedication that all teachers in rural districts in Washington face through the course of their careers; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That copies of this resolution be transmitted to the Superintendent of the Northport School District in the honor of Ms. Wilson's distinguished teaching career.