1
2
_________________________________ _________________________________ 3
Councilmember Kenyan R. McDuffie Councilmember Zachary Parker 4
5
6
_______________________________ 7
Councilmember Anita Bonds 8
9
10
11
12
A CEREMONAL RESOLUTION 13
__________ 14
15
IN THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA 16
__________ 17
18
To recognize and honor the life and accomplishments of Dr. Bertha Holliday. 19
20
WHEREAS, Dr. Bertha Holliday was born in Kansas City, Missouri on November 15, 1947 21
where she was raised by her parents Attorney Harold Lee Garrett, Sr. and Margaret Garrett Holliday along 22
with her brother Harold Lee Holliday, Jr.; 23
24
WHEREAS, Dr. Bertha Holliday walked her first picket line with her segregated kindergarten 25
class in a successful protest that led to their classes being relocated from a former dance hall; 26
27
WHEREAS, Dr. Bertha Holliday attended the University of Chicago, where she graduated with a 28
Bachelor of Arts in Psychology; 29
30
WHEREAS, Dr. Bertha Holliday attended Harvard University where she graduated with an EdM 31
in Counselor Education/School Counseling and Guidance Services, and obtained a PhD in Community 32
Psychology at the University of Texas at Austin; 33
34
WHEREAS, Dr. Bertha Holliday completed a post-doctoral fellowship in Lifespan Development 35
and Ecological Psychology at Cornell University; 36
37
WHEREAS, Dr. Bertha Holliday was on the faculty of the Department of Psychology and Human 38
Development at Vanderbilt University; 39
WHEREAS, Dr. Bertha Holliday was a community psychologist and known for her activism on 40
ethnic minority issues; 41
42
WHEREAS, Dr. Bertha Holliday was Senior Director of the Office of Ethnic Minority Affairs at 43
the American Psychological Association and retired from the office in 2010 after 16 years of service; 44
45
WHEREAS, Dr. Bertha Holliday was a Fellow of the American Psychological Association’s 46
Division 45 (Society for the Psychological Study of Culture, Ethnicity & Race) and received the 47
Distinguished Career Contribution to Service Award in 2001; 48
49
2
WHEREAS, Dr. Bertha Holliday was awarded the Social Justice Action Award from the Teachers 50
College at Columbia University in 2011; 51
52
WHEREAS, Dr. Bertha Holliday was a resident in the Bloomingdale neighborhood in Ward 5 53
since 1989; 54
55
WHEREAS, Dr. Bertha Holliday was a Bloomingdale Civic Association board member for more 56
than 13 years and served four consecutive terms (2015-2022) as the Advisory Neighborhood 57
Commissioner for ANC 5E; 58
59
WHEREAS, Dr. Bertha Holliday founded and served as co-Director of the Bloomingdale Civic 60
Association’s Bloomingdale Village Square Project where she helped produce a Bloomingdale oral 61
history film, a Bloomingdale history timeline, an extensive Bloomingdale design plan and 62
recommendations report, and advocated for the advancement of the North Capitol Street Deckover Park 63
proposal; 64
65
WHEREAS, Dr. Bertha Holliday chaired several Bloomingdale House Tours which functioned as 66
fundraisers for the Bloomingdale Civic Association Scholarship Fund; 67
68
WHEREAS, Dr. Bertha Holliday passed on December 28, 2023 and leaves a legacy that will live 69
on for generations to come. 70
71
RESOLVED, BY THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, that this resolution 72
may be cited as the “Dr. Bertha Holliday Posthumous Recognition Resolution of 2024”. 73
74
Sec. 2. The Council of the District of Columbia honors Dr. Bertha Holliday for her years of 75
dedication to her community, family, and friends where she was a leader and pillar of the community. 76
77
Sec. 3. This resolution shall take effect immediately upon the first date of publication in the 78
District of Columbia Register. 79