[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 153 (2007), Part 13]
[Senate]
[Page 17906]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




SENATE RESOLUTION 261--EXPRESSING APPRECIATION FOR THE PROFOUND PUBLIC 
SERVICE AND EDUCATIONAL CONTRIBUTIONS OF DONALD JEFFRY HERBERT, FONDLY 
                        KNOWN AS ``MR. WIZARD''

  Mr. COLEMAN (for himself, Mr. Domenici, Mr. Alexander, Ms. Klobuchar, 
Mr. Feingold, and Mr. Durbin) submitted the following resolution; which 
was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary:

                              S. Res. 261

       Whereas many citizens of the United States remember Donald 
     Jeffry Herbert as ``Mr. Wizard'' and mourn his passing;
       Whereas Don Herbert was born in Waconia, Minnesota and 
     graduated from the La Crosse State Teacher's College in 
     Wisconsin in 1940 where he trained to be a science teacher;
       Whereas Don Herbert volunteered for the United States Army 
     Air Corps and served our country in the Atlantic theater and 
     earned the Distinguished Flying Cross and the Air Medal with 
     3 oak leaf clusters;
       Whereas Don Herbert developed the idea for science 
     programming culminating in ``Watch Mr. Wizard'', a live 
     television show produced from 1951 to 1964 and honored by a 
     Peabody Award in 1954;
       Whereas the National Science Foundation and the American 
     Chemical Society lauded Don Herbert and his show for 
     promoting interest in science and his contributions to 
     science education;
       Whereas ``Watch Mr. Wizard'' has been recognized by 
     numerous awards;
       Whereas an additional educational program, ``Mr. Wizard's 
     World'', inspired children from 1983 to 1990 on cable 
     television;
       Whereas ``Mr. Wizard'' continued to serve as an ambassador 
     for science education by authoring multiple books and 
     programs, and by traveling to schools and providing classroom 
     demonstrations;
       Whereas educational research indicates that young children 
     make decisions about future careers at a very early age and 
     are influenced greatly by positive contacts with science and 
     technology;
       Whereas a strong education in science and technology is one 
     of the building blocks of a productive, competitive, and 
     healthy society;
       Whereas ``Mr. Wizard'' encouraged children to duplicate his 
     experiments at home, driving independent inquiry into science 
     with simple household equipment;
       Whereas ``Mr. Wizard's'' dynamic and energetic science 
     experiments attracted unprecedented numbers of children to 
     educational programming, even those who were disinterested or 
     unmotivated in science;
       Whereas Mr. Wizard Science Clubs were started across the 
     United States and had more than 100,000 children enrolled in 
     5,000 clubs by the mid-1950s; and
       Whereas Don Herbert will be remembered as a pioneer of 
     commercial educational programming and instrumental in making 
     science education exciting and approachable for millions of 
     children across the United States: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) expresses appreciation for the profound public service 
     and educational contributions of Donald Jeffry Herbert;
       (2) recognizes the profound impact of higher educational 
     institutions that train teachers;
       (3) encourages students to honor the heritage of Don 
     Herbert by exploring our world through science, technology, 
     engineering, and mathematics fields; and
       (4) tenders condolences to the family of Don Herbert and 
     thanks them for their strong familial support of him.

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