R-159 Page 1 of 1
2023
No. R-159. House concurrent resolution in memory of clinical psychologist and social justice activist Dr. Ann Ellis Raynolds of Pomfret.
(H.C.R.126)
Offered by: Representatives Christie of Hartford, Cole of Hartford, Holcombe of
Norwich, and Surprenant of Barnard Offered by: Senators Clarkson, McCormack, and White Whereas, the extraordinary life journey of Dr. Ann Raynolds began with her birth in
1928, and she graduated from the Chapin School, the Westover School, Cornell University,
and Goddard College, and Whereas, in 1965, as a passionate advocate for social justice, she organized the Springfield Head Start Program; served as the co-director of the former Consumer Control Community Child Care Inc., which served Windham and Windsor Counties; and, based on
these experiences, she decided to earn a doctorate in clinical psychology at the Massachusetts School of Professional Psychology (now known as William James College),
and Whereas, in Massachusetts, Ann Raynolds focused on bringing mental health services to the inner-city community of Boston, directing The Family Project while coordinating with the Roxbury Comprehensive and Whittier Street Community Health Center, and Whereas, Dr. Ann Raynolds subsequently assumed important roles in Boston as the clinical director of the former Boston City Hospital’s Department of Child Psychiatry, in the Department of Child Psychiatry at Beth Israel Hospital (now the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center), and as a lecturer at Boston University and at the Harvard University School of Medicine, and Whereas, her deep commitment to civil rights, combined with her own work experiences, served her well as an advisor on the PBS civil rights documentary series Eyes on the Prize and as a volunteer with the Greater Boston Interfaith Project, and Whereas, Dr. Ann Raynolds returned to Vermont, worked as a school psychologist,
engaged in political advocacy, and saw private patients until shortly prior to her death at
94 years of age on February 28, 2023, and three of her children survive her, now therefore be it Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives:
That the General Assembly extends its sincere condolences to the family of Dr. Ann Ellis Raynolds, and be it further Resolved: That the Secretary of State be directed to send a copy of this resolution to
the family of Ann Raynolds.
VT LEG #370838 v.1