H.R. No. 1109 R E S O L U T I O N 1-1 WHEREAS, Over the past two decades, Dallas Service, 1-2 Employment and Redevelopment (SER)-Jobs for Progress, Inc., has 1-3 provided outstanding service in helping disadvantaged members of 1-4 society overcome obstacles to economic opportunity and thus to both 1-5 realize their personal potential and become productive, 1-6 contributing individuals; and 1-7 WHEREAS, Currently celebrating its 24th year of community 1-8 service, this worthy nonprofit organization has achieved a notable 1-9 record of success in its efforts to provide hope, work skills, and 1-10 better job opportunities for school dropouts, unskilled workers, 1-11 and people with limited English-speaking ability, and in the 1-12 process has emerged as the largest job training program in the 1-13 entire Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex; and 1-14 WHEREAS, Since its inception, Dallas SER has proven its worth 1-15 to the business community as well by developing a vital human 1-16 resource into a reliable, productive workforce to meet the needs of 1-17 an increasingly technological marketplace; and 1-18 WHEREAS, Dallas SER has benefited in turn from the business 1-19 community's recognition of the organization's value in this regard, 1-20 forming mutually beneficial partnerships with nearly all of the 1-21 major national and regional corporations doing business in the area 1-22 as well as many of the more prominent locally owned and operated 1-23 enterprises; and 1-24 WHEREAS, Dallas SER achieves its principal goal of breaking 2-1 the cycle of poverty, low educational attainment, and welfare by 2-2 offering a variety of programs for its target clientele, including 2-3 a 12-week course in English as a second language for individuals 2-4 with limited English proficiency, a 10-week general equivalency 2-5 diploma (GED) course for school dropouts wishing to complete their 2-6 high school education, and occupational skills training courses for 2-7 persons seeking to enhance their employment opportunities; and 2-8 WHEREAS, In collaboration with area employers, Dallas SER 2-9 also makes on-the-job training possible for persons looking for 2-10 work by matching job seekers with available job openings and then 2-11 reimbursing participating employers for part of the employees' 2-12 salaries during the initial weeks of employment when the employees 2-13 are undergoing the training necessary to perform their job-related 2-14 duties; and 2-15 WHEREAS, The program's success in achieving its goals and 2-16 purposes is evident in its remarkable growth over the past 24 2-17 years; since Dallas SER was founded more than 24,000 students have 2-18 completed the program and a remarkably high percentage of them have 2-19 successfully gone on to find full-time, unsubsidized employment as 2-20 productive members of Texas' workforce; and 2-21 WHEREAS, Deeply appreciative of Dallas SER's valuable 2-22 contribution to the state's economic well-being in developing a 2-23 significant part of our increasingly important human resources over 2-24 the years, the members of this body wish to take advantage of the 2-25 organization's 24th anniversary and join our fellow Texans in 2-26 bestowing well-deserved praise and recognition on this outstanding 2-27 community service organization; now, therefore, be it 3-1 RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 74th Texas 3-2 Legislature hereby honor Dallas Service, Employment and 3-3 Redevelopment (SER)-Jobs for Progress, Inc., on its outstanding 3-4 contributions to the betterment of the community and extend best 3-5 wishes on the occasion of its 24th anniversary of exceptional 3-6 service to the people of this state; and, be it further 3-7 RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be 3-8 prepared for Dallas SER as an expression of high esteem by the 3-9 Texas House of Representatives.