Rosa Lee Franklin (née Gourdine; born April 4, 1927) is an American politician and nurse who served as a member of the

Washington State Senate The Washington State Senate is the upper house of the Washington State Legislature. The body consists of 49 members, each representing a district with a population of nearly 160,000. The State Senate meets at the Washington State Capitol, Legis ...

from 1993 to 2011, representing the for the 29th District. She also served as the President Pro Tempore for the Senate.

Early life and education

Franklin was born Rosa Lee Gourdine on April 4, 1927, the fifth child born to Henrietta Bryant and James Edwin Gourdine. She was born in a house built by her father in Cordesville, an unincorporated community in Berkeley County, South Carolina, historically known for

Moncks Corner, South Carolina Moncks Corner is a town in and the county seat of Berkeley County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 7,885 at the 2010 United States census, 2010 census. As defined by the U.S. Census Bureau, Moncks Corner is included within the Ch ...

. The youngest of 12 children, she was raised by her aunt and uncle in

Georgetown, South Carolina Georgetown is the third oldest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina and the county seat of Georgetown County, South Carolina, Georgetown County, in the South Carolina Lowcountry, Lowcountry. As of the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census ...

. After graduating high school, Franklin studied nursing at the

Good Samaritan-Waverly Hospital Good Samaritan-Waverly Hospital, also known as “Good Sam” Hospital and Waverly Hospital, is a historic hospital for African-American patients located in Columbia, South Carolina. It was built in 1952, and is a two-story, brick building in the ...

School of Nursing in

Columbia, South Carolina Columbia is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of South Carolina. With a population of 136,632 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is List of municipalities in South Carolina, the second-mo ...

. She later worked at a state hospital in

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

and at the

Brooklyn Jewish Hospital and Medical Center The Brooklyn Jewish Hospital and Medical Center was an academic, sectarian hospital in Crown Heights and Prospect Heights in Central Brooklyn. It merged with St. John's Episcopal Hospital to form Interfaith Medical Center in 1983. History ...

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. Franklin moved to

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

with her husband, James Franklin, a member of the military. They eventually relocated to

Tacoma, Washington Tacoma ( ) is the county seat of Pierce County, Washington, United States. A port city, it is situated along Washington's Puget Sound, southwest of Seattle, southwest of Bellevue, Washington, Bellevue, northeast of the state capital, Olympia ...

. After settling in Tacoma, Franklin earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Biology and English from the

University of Puget Sound The University of Puget Sound is a private liberal arts college in Tacoma, Washington, United States. It was founded in 1888. The institution offers a variety of undergraduate degrees as well as five graduate programs in counseling, education, oc ...

. She then earned a Master of Arts in social sciences and human relations from

Pacific Lutheran University Pacific Lutheran University (PLU) is a Private university, private Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, Lutheran university in Parkland, Washington. It was founded by Norwegian Lutheran immigrants in 1890. PLU is sponsored by the 580 congreg ...

Lakewood, Washington Lakewood is a city in Pierce County, Washington, United States. The population was 63,612 at the 2020 census. It is the second-largest city in the county, behind Tacoma, and is a suburban bedroom community. Lakewood is adjacent to Joint Base ...

. She also holds a women's Health Care Specialist Certificate from the

University of Washington The University of Washington (UW and informally U-Dub or U Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington, United States. Founded in 1861, the University of Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast of the Uni ...

Gynecorp Training Program.Official Rosa Franklin Biography on the Washington Senate Democratic Caucus website
/ref> She was later awarded an honorary doctorate from the

Career

Franklin worked as a

registered nurse A registered nurse (RN) is a healthcare professional who has graduated or successfully passed a nursing program from a recognized nursing school and met the requirements outlined by a country, state, province or similar government-authorized ...

before becoming an elected representative. In 1972, Franklin ran for a seat on the

Tacoma City Council The Tacoma City Council is the major governing body in the city of Tacoma, Washington. The city council has one mayor and eight council members, who are elected to serve four-year terms. The city council has the power to write the laws of the city, ...

. Despite losing, she remained active in local politics and served as a Precinct Committee Officer for the Democratic Party and as a member of the

League of Women Voters The League of Women Voters (LWV) is a nonpartisan American nonprofit political organization. Founded in 1920, its ongoing major activities include Voter registration, registering voters, providing voter information, boosting voter turnout and adv ...

. She was a

Washington Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...

delegate to the

Democratic National Convention The Democratic National Convention (DNC) is a series of presidential nominating conventions held every four years since 1832 by the United States Democratic Party. They have been administered by the Democratic National Committee since the 18 ...

in 1976, 1988, and 2008. Franklin was elected to the

Washington House of Representatives The Washington House of Representatives is the lower house of the Washington State Legislature, and along with the Washington State Senate makes up the legislature of the U.S. state of Washington. It is composed of 98 Representatives from 49 ...

in 1990 to represent the 29th District, and she won re-election in November 1992. After the state senator from the 29th district died in January 1993, Franklin was nominated as his successor.

Personal life

Franklin and her husband James have been married for sixty-two years and have three children and five grandchildren.

References

1927 births Living people Democratic Party Washington (state) state senators Women state legislators in Washington (state) African-American state legislators in Washington (state) 20th-century African-American women politicians 20th-century American women politicians American nurses 21st-century African-American politicians 21st-century African-American women politicians 20th-century African-American politicians Democratic Party members of the Washington House of Representatives African-American nurses 20th-century members of the Washington State Legislature 21st-century members of the Washington State Legislature {{Washington-WASenate-stub

Early life and education

Career

Personal life

See also

References