Presented by AivmMAbi Walter burnett, m. I on February 24. 2021
WHEREAS, It is with tremendous sadness that the members of this Chamber iearned of God, in His =
Infinite Wisdom having'brought'tb .close the life of DivManford Byrd,.Jr., calling him home to his -
eternal reward.;oh January 17, 202l;'and •''[
WHEREASffiXiQ'Chicago' City Council hasvbeen informediof Dr. Manford: Byrd's passing by the Honorable Walter Burnett,.Jr., Alderman of the 27th Ward; and '
WHEREAS, Dr. Manford Byrd, Jr. was bom on?May 29,1928 in Brewton, Alabama to Manford Byrcl Sr. and Evelyn Turk Byrd; He attended high school at Southern Normal High School in Brewton and, :as'.a result of the school's affiliation with the Dutch Reformed Church, was recruited to attend Central College in Pella, Iowa where he majored in Mathematics'and played on the college's baseball and , basketball teams. After graduating from Central College in 1949; he would go on to earn a Masters . Degree in Education from Atlanta University in. 1954; and
WHEREAS] Dr. Byrd began his career in education teaching in Quincy, Illinois from 1949-1954 before accepting a teaching position in Chicago, Illinois»From 1954-1967, he worked for the Chicago Public School system as a teacher, assistant principalp'elementary;andshigh school principal and assistant to the
" General Supenhtendenfiof.the Chicago PublicSchools: In i968, he was appointed Deputy . ' ' :
Superintendent and Chief Operating Officer of Chicago Public Schools. This appointment at the relatively young age of 39, made Dr. Byrd one of the highest ranking African American public sector
, leaders in the nation; and . ■•' ; > . ' ■ '.
'.WHEREAS,-.bespite--his-relatively^uick.ascensionrto the position o§Deputy^Super'mtendent,;itAva.s 17:
years before Dr. Byrd achieved the position of General Superintendent of Chicago Public Schools.
During the 1970s after serving for several years as the Deputy Superintendent, Dr. Byrd was passed over
for. the General Superintendent position when a vacancyoccurred despite strong support from Chicago |s
Black community,;whoibelieved;raceswas a primary;reason for him hot beingiselected-to:'the-top.pQSt:->-.-'.''.
The stated rationale at the.time was that he did not.have a Phd; and . .
WIIEREAS, Th\s prompted him to get his Doctorate Degree in Education from Northwestern '■:> University in 1978. He would maintain a strong allegiance to Northwestern University foRthe rest of his -life as a Northwestern Football season ticket holder; and .
WHEREAS, Dt. Byrd was appointed to the position of General Superintendent^ 1985, two' years after . his friend and colleague, the late Harold Washington, was elected mayor of Chicago. He remained* superintendent until 1989 and retired in 1990; and
Resolution in Remembrance of Dr. Manford Byrd, Jr. ;' 1 Page.2
WHEREAS, Dr. Byrtfserved on many boards and organizations including the Chicago State University Foundation, Joint-Negro Appeal, the Mid-America Chapter of the American Red. Cross, the Chicago - , NAACP the United Cliurch'Board for World Ministries/the University of Illinois Chicago Urban Health Programs, the Board of Trustees of Central College and the Adler Planetarium in.Chicago. He was the jecipient.of oyer 100.awards and commendations .for excellence in teaching and academic administration/including honorary doctoral degrees from Central College, Hope College and the National College of Education. He was also recognized by The HistoryMakers; and
WHEREAS, Dr. Byrd's life journey was rooted in his deep abiding faith. He was a.chartcr member of
the Trinity United Church of Chrisi (founded 1961) ancl' in 1981*, the" church established the annual Dr!;
Manford Byrd Jr. Black Value System - Educational Scholarship in his honor. Dr. Byrd is survived by,
his wife of 64.years, Cheribelle Byrd, his.three sons and daughters in-law': Carl (Beverly); Bradley \ '
(Stephanie) and Donald (Julie), 8 grandchildren,T great grandson and a host of other family and friends.
Dr. Byrd was 92 years, old; now, therefore,. •. v .
BE IT RESOLVED, That we, the Mayor, and the members of the Chicago.City Council assembled here this Twenty-fourth Day of February 2021,,do hereby ex^ress.our sincerest condolences to the family of" Dr. Manford Byrd, Jr.; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to the family of Dr. Manford Byrd, Jr., as.a token of pur acknowledgement of a life well lived. . '
Walter Burnett, Jr. Alderman, 27th Ward