1997 Senate Joint Resolution 19
ENROLLED JOINT RESOLUTION
Relating to: the life and public service of Amza Vail.
Whereas, Amza Vail was born on September 29, 1927, in Benton, and died on March 25, 1997, in Madison; and
Whereas, he graduated from Benton High School and Platteville Teacher's College, earned a master's degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and completed a substantial amount of work toward his doctorate at that university; and
Whereas, he taught in the Platteville public schools and, due to his obvious administrative ability, rose through the ranks at Platteville to become a junior high school principal, the principal of Platteville High School and the superintendent of the Platteville public schools; and
Whereas, he joined the department of public instruction in 1977 as a school finance consultant and, before his retirement in 1995, he served that agency also as the administrator of the division for financial aids, as the legislative liaison, as the director of the bureau for school management and as the director of the bureau for state school aids; and
Whereas, a litany of the positions he held merely scratches the surface of the benefits that Amza provided to the residents of this state; and
Whereas, hundreds of persons who were students of the Platteville public schools while Amza was a teacher or administrator there are better persons because of his influence on them; and
Whereas, he inspired his 2 children to make public education their careers, so that they will keep his spirit alive; and
Whereas, during his tenure at the department of public instruction, his grasp of educational issues, his commitment to the children and youth of this state and his personal relations skills made him a valuable member of that department and an effective link between that department and local school officials; and
Whereas, those same qualities made him a trusted source of information for legislators and other persons in state government; and
Whereas, Amza on countless occasions lifted the spirits of others with his firm handshake, his broad grin and his hearty manner; all of which indicated his abiding affection for others and the zest with which he lived; now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the senate, the assembly concurring, That the members of the Wisconsin legislature commend the many decades of effective public service that Amza Vail rendered to them and to the other persons of this state, express their sorrow at his death and extend their condolences to his family, to his multitude of friends and to the many persons whose lives he enriched; and, be it further
Resolved, That the senate chief clerk shall provide a copy of this joint resolution to Amza Vail's wife, Margaret, and to his children, Rebecca and Will.
