By Craddick                                           H.C.R. No. 46
         77R3149 MMS-D                           
                             HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
 1-1           WHEREAS, Ryan Berthold, a senior at Lee High School in
 1-2     Midland, has received an Achievement Award in Writing through a
 1-3     competition sponsored by the National Council of Teachers of
 1-4     English (NCTE); and
 1-5           WHEREAS, Mr. Berthold is one of 654 winners out of nearly
 1-6     3,000 students from across the country who were nominated for this
 1-7     prestigious accolade; and
 1-8           WHEREAS, Students competing for the award are nominated
 1-9     during their junior year; they are required to submit a writing
1-10     sample, either prose or poetry, that they consider their best work,
1-11     and  an essay written under teacher supervision in a set time
1-12     period; and
1-13           WHEREAS, The students' written work is evaluated by a
1-14     committee of teachers, who then submit nominations to the NCTE; Lee
1-15     High School was allowed to submit the work of five students on the
1-16     basis of its 10th-, 11th-, and 12th-grade enrollment, and
1-17     Mr. Berthold was the only Midland student who received the award;
1-18     and
1-19           WHEREAS, A leading contender for valedictorian in a senior
1-20     class of 699 students, Mr. Berthold juggles a multitude of
1-21     extracurricular activities, including the speech and debate team
1-22     and the academic decathlon team, as well as various UIL academic
1-23     teams; and
1-24           WHEREAS, Two other endeavors testify to this student's
 2-1     wide-ranging talents and signal his interest and ability in the
 2-2     realm of engineering:  he belongs to a Texas BEST robotics team,
 2-3     whose mission is to design and build a remote-controlled machine
 2-4     for a robotics competition, and he has helped to construct a
 2-5     trebuchet, a medieval catapult, that Lee High School sends to an
 2-6     annual trebuchet competition; and
 2-7           WHEREAS, Mr. Berthold's superior grades have earned him
 2-8     membership in the National Honor Society and the National Spanish
 2-9     Honor Society, and he is in the running for selection as a National
2-10     Merit finalist; and
2-11           WHEREAS, A gifted and creative young man, Mr. Berthold has
2-12     compiled a record of accomplishments that promises a bright and
2-13     fulfilling future, and it is a pleasure to join his parents, Pat
2-14     and Rob Berthold, and the staff and students of Lee High School in
2-15     paying tribute to this outstanding new achievement; now, therefore,
2-16     be it
2-17           RESOLVED, That the 77th Legislature of the State of Texas
2-18     hereby commend Ryan Berthold on his receipt of an Achievement Award
2-19     in Writing and extend to him sincere best wishes for success and
2-20     happiness in the years ahead; and, be it further
2-21           RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be
2-22     prepared for Ryan Berthold as an expression of high regard by the
2-23     Texas House of Representatives and Senate.