00                   HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION NO. 12                                                                   
01 Dedicating Capitol Room 106 in the Alaska State Capitol to the late Senator Bettye J.                                   
02 Davis.                                                                                                                  
03 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA:                                                               
04 WHEREAS Senator Bettye J. Davis served as a member of the House of                                                    
05 Representatives from the Seventeenth through the Nineteenth Alaska State Legislatures and as                            
06 a member of the Senate from the Twenty-Second through the Twenty-Seventh Alaska State                                   
07 Legislatures; and                                                                                                       
08       WHEREAS, during Representative Davis' time as a member of the House of                                        
09 Representatives, she served as both majority and minority whip and as a member of the House                             
10 Health, Education, and Social Services Committee, serving as vice-chair of the committee                                
11 during the Seventeenth Alaska State Legislature; and                                                                    
12 WHEREAS, during Senator Davis' time as a member of the Senate, she served as a                                        
13 member of the Senate Health, Education, and Social Services Committee during the Twenty-                                
14 Second and Twenty-Third Alaska State Legislatures, chair of the Senate Health, Education,                               
15 and Social Services Committee during the Twenty-Fifth Alaska State Legislature, and chair of                            
16 the Senate Health and Social Services Committee and vice-chair of the Senate Education                                  

01 Committee during the Twenty-Sixth and Twenty-Seventh Alaska State Legislatures; and                                     
02 WHEREAS Senator Davis' legislative accomplishments include passage of Acts that                                       
03 addressed suicide prevention, foster care, raising the minimum wage, mental health care, good                           
04 governance, and authorizing youth courts throughout the state, and she sponsored a great deal                           
05 of legislation aimed at improving the state and the lives of people in the state; and                                   
06 WHEREAS Senator Davis began her long political career when she was elected to the                                     
07 Anchorage School Board where she served from 1982 to 1990, including two terms as board                                 
08 president; Senator Davis was appointed to the state Board of Education by Governor Tony                                 
09 Knowles in 1998 and served through 2000, including serving as chair from 1998 through                                   
10 1999; Senator Davis returned to the Anchorage School Board as a member in 2013 and served                               
11 until 2018; and                                                                                                         
12 WHEREAS Senator Davis attended Grambling State University where she received                                          
13 her Bachelors of Social Work degree in 1971; and                                                                        
14 WHEREAS Senator Davis arrived in Anchorage, Alaska, in 1972 as a military spouse                                      
15 and continued her higher education at the University of Alaska, Anchorage; and                                          
16 WHEREAS Senator Davis began her career in family services working at the Alaska                                       
17 Psychiatric Institute from 1972 to 1975 as a nurse and social worker; and                                               
18 WHEREAS, from 1975 to 1989, Senator Davis worked in various positions within                                          
19 the Department of Health and Social Services as a childcare specialist, social worker, and                              
20 foster care coordinator; and                                                                                            
21 WHEREAS Senator Davis received countless awards and honors, including the title                                       
22 of 2010 Pioneer Woman of the Year from the North to the Future, Business and Professional                               
23 Women, the 2010 Celebrate Liberty Award from the Alaska Civil Liberties Union, induction                                
24 into the Alaska Women's Hall of Fame by the Alaska Women's Network in 2010, the Martin                                  
25 Luther King Jr. Foundation of Alaska Humanitarian Award, the Mayor's Award for Public                                   
26 Service, the Anchorage Convention and Visitors Bureau Meeting Champion Award, the                                       
27 YWCA Woman of Achievement Award, the Alaska Black Caucus President's Award,                                             
28 selection for the 2000 Notable American Women, selection for the Who's Who of American                                  
29 Women, and the Central Council Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska Award; and                                     
30 WHEREAS Senator Davis was an active member of Shiloh Missionary Baptist                                               
31 Church and was affiliated with various organizations, including Delta Sigma Theta Sorority,                             

01 the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, the Business and                                        
02 Professional Women's Foundation, Alaska Women's Political Caucus, the Athena Society,                                   
03 Special Olympics, Zonta Anchorage, Campfire, Alaska Center for Children and Families, and                               
04 March of Dimes; and                                                                                                     
05       WHEREAS Senator Davis helped develop the next generation of state leaders,                                      
06 including many African American leaders, through mentorship and an eye for those with a                                 
07 dedication to public service; and                                                                                       
08       WHEREAS Senator Davis was a passionate public servant through the peaceful end                                  
09 of her life; and                                                                                                        
10 WHEREAS Senator Davis was known as the "Conscience of the Legislature,"                                               
11 passing legislation that continues to influence education, social issues, and economic                                  
12 development;                                                                                                            
13 BE IT RESOLVED by the Alaska State Legislature that the House Health and Social                                       
14 Services Committee Room and House Education Committee Room, currently Room 106 of                                       
15 the Capitol, be dedicated to Senator Bettye J. Davis for her exemplary service as a member of                           
16 the House of Representatives and the Senate; and be it                                                                  
17 FURTHER RESOLVED that a bronze plaque shall be placed on or near the door of                                          
18 the room celebrating Senator Bettye J. Davis' legislative achievements, dedication, and                                 
19 service to the state and the legislature, bearing the following inscription:                                            
20       THE BETTYE J. DAVIS COMMITTEE ROOM                                                                                
21 The Bettye J. Davis Committee Room memorializes the service                                                             
22 and compassion of Bettye J. Davis, who served as a member of                                                            
23 the House of Representatives from the Seventeenth through the                                                           
24 Nineteenth Alaska State Legislatures and as a member of the                                                             
25 Senate from the Twenty-Second through the Twenty-Seventh                                                                
26 Alaska State Legislatures. She was the first African American                                                           
27 woman elected to the Alaska State House of Representatives                                                              
28 and the first African American elected to the Alaska State                                                              
29 Senate. She served as a member of the House Health,                                                                     
30 Education, and Social Services Committee during the                                                                     
31 Seventeenth and Eighteenth Alaska State Legislatures,                                                                   

01 including a term as vice-chair, and as chair of the Senate Health                                                       
02 and Social Services Committee and vice-chair of the Senate                                                              
03 Education Committee during the Twenty-Sixth and Twenty-                                                                 
04 Seventh Alaska State Legislatures. Her commitment to children                                                           
05 and those living hard lives earned her recognition as the                                                               
06 "Conscience of the Legislature." Her tireless advocacy for all                                                          
07 Alaskans serves as an example for future generations of                                                                 
08            legislators.                                                                                                 
09       A COPY of this resolution shall be presented to the family of the late Senator Bettye                           
10 J. Davis.