R E S O L U T I O N 1-1 WHEREAS, The Texas House of Representatives takes great pride 1-2 in welcoming two distinguished guests, the Honorable D. Klaus 1-3 Franke and Mr. Alfons Schops, on the occasion of their visit to the 1-4 State Capitol; and 1-5 WHEREAS, These two gentlemen are actively involved in the 1-6 Texas-German Teacher Exchange Program, which sends Texas teachers 1-7 to Germany and places their German counterparts in schools 1-8 throughout the Lone Star State; now in its 10th year, this exciting 1-9 program is presently operating in 16 school districts in Texas and 1-10 boasts 52 teachers instructing students in such areas as math, 1-11 science, special education, and foreign language; and 1-12 WHEREAS, Senator Franke was first elected to the Berlin House 1-13 of Representatives in 1964, and he continues to serve the citizens 1-14 of Berlin as a respected member of that policy-making body; during 1-15 his long tenure, he has served as deputy speaker of the house as 1-16 well as minister for housing and construction in Berlin; and 1-17 WHEREAS, In 1991, this dedicated public servant was named 1-18 chairman of the House Budget Committee, and two years later he 1-19 became president of the Partnership of Parliaments; in addition to 1-20 holding those prestigious positions, Senator Franke is chairman of 1-21 the board of the Checkpoint Charlie Foundation; and 1-22 WHEREAS, Mr. Schops is currently employed as the executive 1-23 director of the Partnership of Parliaments and has served as 1-24 program director of the Checkpoint Charlie Foundation since 1995; a 2-1 devoted civil servant, he worked in the protocol section and the 2-2 public relations division of the Berlin House of Representatives 2-3 from 1988 to 1990; and 2-4 WHEREAS, Named deputy executive director of Initiative 2-5 Berlin-U.S.A. in 1993, Mr. Schops has done much to promote positive 2-6 relations between Germany and the United States; the chief personal 2-7 assistant to a member of the Federal Parliament, he gives freely of 2-8 his time to the Archdiocese of Berlin, serving as the chairman of 2-9 that organization's youth committee; and 2-10 WHEREAS, By helping to promote a cross-cultural educational 2-11 format for the young people of Texas and Germany, Senator Franke 2-12 and Mr. Schops are encouraging a greater understanding of the 2-13 similarities and differences that connect and define these regions; 2-14 the importance of this philosophy and the value of the program that 2-15 backs it cannot be overstated, and the outstanding efforts of these 2-16 fine gentlemen are indeed deserving of special legislative 2-17 recognition; now, therefore, be it 2-18 RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 75th Texas 2-19 Legislature hereby welcome the Honorable D. Klaus Franke and 2-20 Mr. Alfons Schops to the State Capitol and commend them for their 2-21 participation in the Texas-German Teacher Exchange Program; and, be 2-22 it further 2-23 RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be 2-24 prepared for Senator Franke and Mr. Schops as an expression of high 2-25 regard by the Texas House of Representatives. Coleman _______________________________ Speaker of the House I certify that H.R. No. 289 was adopted by the House on March 5, 1997, by a non-record vote. _______________________________ Chief Clerk of the House