[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 7 (Thursday, January 17, 2008)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E40]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  HONORING THE LIFE OF TERRANCE J. ``TERRY'' WILSON, FORMER EXECUTIVE 
         DIRECTOR, HILLSBOROUGH CLASSROOM TEACHERS ASSOCIATION

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. KATHY CASTOR

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                       Thursday, January 17, 2008

  Ms. CASTOR. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the life and 
contributions of Terrance J. ``Terry'' Wilson, and to acknowledge his 
tireless work for the teachers, children, and all of us in Hillsborough 
County.
  Terry was born in Everett, Massachusetts October 22, 1942. After 
graduating from Lincoln-Sudbury Regional High School in 1960, he moved 
to Tampa to attend the University of Tampa. A member of the Class of 
1965, he graduated with degrees in business administration and 
economics and then went on to obtain a master's degree from the 
University of South Florida in 1968.
  During Terry's four year tenure as a social studies teacher at Leto 
High School in Tampa, he became actively involved in the Hillsborough 
Classroom Teachers Association. During that time, he witnessed a 
teachers' strike, poor benefits, and failing students, and he found his 
calling as an advocate for creating a better environment for both 
teachers and students in the community's classrooms. As his wife, 
Elizabeth Wilson, explains it, ``He just saw that teachers were 
extremely dedicated and selfless. They weren't going to spend a lot of 
time speaking up for themselves.''
  For decades, Terry dedicated his career to tirelessly defending 
Hillsborough County school teachers. Fellow members elected him to two 
terms as president of the Association, and he later served as executive 
director from 1989 to 2000. He fought for higher teacher salaries, sick 
leave pay, early retirement, and better health insurance, and he spear-
headed efforts to create the Center for Technology for teachers.
  The Tampa community honors the life of Terry Wilson for his 
outstanding contributions to teachers. His service to the Hillsborough 
Classroom Teachers Association has made a lasting mark on education in 
the Tampa area.

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