By: Kubiak H.R. No. 584 73R9259 JLZ-D R E S O L U T I O N 1-1 WHEREAS, Toni Lundgren recently received well-deserved public 1-2 recognition for her outstanding efforts to preserve and protect one 1-3 of the community's most valuable natural resources when she was 1-4 presented with the Governor's Award in Environmental Excellence; 1-5 and 1-6 WHEREAS, The principal force behind the Cameron Independent 1-7 School District's highly acclaimed Classroom on the Creek water 1-8 monitoring program, Ms. Lundgren is indeed a worthy recipient of 1-9 this prestigious award, whose purpose is to recognize individuals 1-10 and organizations who have made significant contributions in the 1-11 field of public environmental education; and 1-12 WHEREAS, The Classroom on the Creek program, which earned the 1-13 Cameron school district commendation from the Texas Water 1-14 Commission when the agency selected the district as a partner in 1-15 the statewide Clean Texas 2000 campaign, is the culmination of a 1-16 process that began in 1989 when Ms. Lundgren became involved in one 1-17 of her son's science projects; and 1-18 WHEREAS, Through her interest in her son's project on water 1-19 quality, she became aware of Texas Watch, a volunteer water 1-20 monitoring project; she immediately joined the statewide group's 1-21 efforts and began monitoring the water quality at a nearby spot on 1-22 Big Elm Creek; and 1-23 WHEREAS, In February 1992, she hit upon the idea of expanding 1-24 the program and bringing it into the community's schools, where 2-1 eager and curious young people could become more actively involved 2-2 and enjoy fun, practical, hands-on experience and apply to real 2-3 life situations lessons learned in the classroom; and 2-4 WHEREAS, Presenting her idea to the school superintendent and 2-5 then to the high school biology and chemistry teachers, she 2-6 received an enthusiastic response and, with their support and 2-7 encouragement, she applied to the federal Environmental Protection 2-8 Agency for a grant to develop and implement the idea; and 2-9 WHEREAS, Money from the grant, which was awarded in July 2-10 1992, was used to purchase water-quality kits and to provide 2-11 training for the teachers who would make the Classroom on the Creek 2-12 a reality; further assistance was provided by the school district, 2-13 which contributed $10,000 worth of equipment and services, and the 2-14 Brazos River Authority, which helped with the necessary teacher 2-15 training; and 2-16 WHEREAS, Meeting with immediate success when it began in 2-17 January 1993, with more than two dozen school districts along the 2-18 Little River watershed participating in the program, Ms. Lundgren's 2-19 project already has achieved statewide recognition as one of the 2-20 state's most innovative environmental programs; and 2-21 WHEREAS, So successful has the program been that plans are 2-22 being made to expand the project to include schools and communities 2-23 throughout the watershed, an area that encompasses about 50 school 2-24 districts between Milam and Eastland counties; and 2-25 WHEREAS, Beyond the benefits to be derived from allowing 2-26 students the opportunity to gain firsthand knowledge about the 2-27 world around them, the program offers many long-term benefits to 3-1 the people of this state by increasing our general awareness of our 3-2 precious natural heritage and of the wide-ranging impact of our 3-3 actions on a delicately balanced ecosystem where the fate of all 3-4 living beings is inextricably interconnected; and 3-5 WHEREAS, Ms. Lundgren is truly deserving of special 3-6 recognition for her role in helping to spread this vitally 3-7 important message and to educate the public about the necessity of 3-8 managing our natural resources wisely and with the utmost care; 3-9 now, therefore, be it 3-10 RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 73rd Texas 3-11 Legislature hereby congratulate Toni Lundgren on her selection as a 3-12 recipient of the Governor's Award in Environmental Excellence and 3-13 commend her for the outstanding efforts that earned her this great 3-14 honor; and, be it further 3-15 RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be 3-16 prepared for Ms. Lundgren as an expression of high esteem by the 3-17 Texas House of Representatives.