[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 93 (Friday, May 27, 2022)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E562-E563]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        HONORING MARY JANE BURKE

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. JARED HUFFMAN

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                          Friday, May 27, 2022

  Mr. HUFFMAN. Madam Speaker, I rise today in recognition of Mary Jane 
Burke upon her retirement from Marin County Office of Education as its 
intrepid Superintendent of Marin County Public Schools for nearly two 
decades and for a lifetime of extraordinary public service.
  Raised in Stockton, California, as the eldest of eight siblings, Mary 
Jane moved to Marin at the age of 18 to attend Dominican University in 
San Rafael. She graduated with a bachelor's degree in education in 1973 
and proceeded to also earn her master's degree in special education in 
1976. Since then, she has served our community as a teacher, principal, 
special education director, assistant superintendent, and deputy 
superintendent. In 1995, following the death of her husband, she was 
elected to fill his seat as the next Marin County Superintendent, a 
position she has held for seven terms.
  As Superintendent, Mary Jane fulfilled an essential role in shaping 
the trajectory of students' education at a critical age and ensuring 
our schools receive vital funding including overseeing 40,000 students 
and the distribution of $450 million. Marin County Office of Education 
(MCOE) is responsible for the fiscal oversight of Marin County's 18 
school districts budgets, and provides a variety of services including 
technology and educational programming for both public and private K-12 
schools; managing regionalized special education programs; and offering 
professional development for teachers, instructional assistants, 
administrators, and school board trustees; among many other services. 
Mary Jane managed these roles with a high degree of commitment, always 
applying the highest standards and a laser focus on what is best for 
children. She developed a well-deserved reputation for her 
collaborative leadership style, and ability to cultivate strong 
partnerships among school districts, community organizations, 
businesses, and local governments.
  Among her numerous accomplishments is the establishment of the Marin 
County School to Career Partnership and SchoolsRule-Marin, a joint 
effort by the county's public-school foundations to raise funds for K-
12 students countywide to ensure access to critical educational 
opportunities is available for all public students, regardless of zip 
code. This program continues to combat the county's equality gap more 
than a decade later. Unafraid to take bold stances on deeply rooted and 
complicated issues, Mary Jane also played an essential role in 
prompting the state's 2019 historic desegregation order that resulted 
in the Sausalito Marin City Unified School District. She has been a 
fierce advocate for increasing access to early education and preschool. 
Beyond her work with MCOE, she shares her talent and time on the Board 
of Directors for the Fiscal Crisis and Management Assistance Team 
(FCMAT), the Marin County Treasury Oversight Committee, and is the 
former President of the California County Superintendents Educational 
Services Association (CCSESA) representing all 58 California County 
Superintendents of Schools.
  Superintendent Burke's work to improve public schools is regarded as 
a model for other counties throughout California. Her expertise has 
earned admiration and recognition from influential changemakers 
throughout Marin County and the State of California, as well as a 
plethora of awards and honors including California Assembly's 2021 
``State of California Woman of the Year'' for her

[[Page E563]]

COVID-19 response. Throughout my tenure in the California State 
Assembly and the U.S. House of Representatives, I have sought and 
valued her advice on education matters.
  Madam Speaker, Mary Jane Burke leaves an indelible legacy as she 
retires and I respectfully ask that you join me in expressing immense 
gratitude to Mary Jane Burke for her extraordinary generosity of 
spirit, unwavering commitment, and innumerable contributions to 
improving the quality of life for communities in Marin County and 
California and extending to her best wishes on her next endeavors.

                          ____________________