HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 1-1 WHEREAS, The 1999-2000 Midland High School Federal Reserve 1-2 Board Fed Challenge Team won the Fed Challenge national 1-3 championship, an attainment truly worthy of special recognition; 1-4 and 1-5 WHEREAS, The Midland championship team consisted of Kelly 1-6 Beall, Matt Josefy, Mason Manulik, Adam Martin, Ryan Myers, and 1-7 Robin Nelson and was coached by Hugh Franks with the assistance of 1-8 Julia Crain; and 1-9 WHEREAS, Established by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, 1-10 the Fed Challenge encourages economic literacy among high school 1-11 students by asking them to assume the role of Federal Reserve 1-12 monetary policy makers; teams make a 15-minute presentation 1-13 analyzing the current economic and financial situation, offering a 1-14 short-term forecast of conditions salient to the nation's economic 1-15 health, identifying issues of special concern for policy makers, 1-16 and finally, on the basis of this summation, recommending whether 1-17 the Federal Reserve should, on that particular day, raise, lower, 1-18 or leave unchanged the short-term interest rates; following their 1-19 presentation, teams field questions from a panel of judges that 1-20 usually includes Federal Reserve staff members, financial 1-21 professionals, and educators; and 1-22 WHEREAS, Preparation for the rigorous demands of the Fed 1-23 Challenge entails a major commitment on the part of team members, 1-24 who gather and analyze data covering a wide range of complex and 2-1 interconnected topics, both domestic and international, in order 2-2 to present the most cogent argument for their policy 2-3 recommendation; and 2-4 WHEREAS, Reaping the rewards of their considerable efforts, 2-5 the Midland students swept the field at the area competition in El 2-6 Paso and the district competition in Dallas before advancing to the 2-7 final competition in Washington, D.C., where, on May 1, 2000, they 2-8 capped their spectacular record with the national championship; and 2-9 WHEREAS, In reaching the pinnacle of the 2000 Fed Challenge, 2-10 this exceptional group surpassed the more than 300 teams nationwide 2-11 that entered the contest; the splendid achievement of the Midland 2-12 team earned each member a scholarship prize of $10,000, with 2-13 another $10,000 awarded to the team's coach and a $40,000 2-14 contribution given to the economics department at Midland High 2-15 School; and 2-16 WHEREAS, Through exhaustive preparation and tremendous 2-17 dedication, the members of the Midland Fed Challenge Team brought 2-18 great credit to their school and community and earned the 2-19 admiration and respect of their families, friends, and teachers, as 2-20 well as of all those associated with the Fed Challenge project; 2-21 now, therefore, be it 2-22 RESOLVED, That the 77th Legislature of the State of Texas 2-23 hereby honor the 1999-2000 Midland High School Fed Challenge Team 2-24 for its outstanding accomplishments and extend to its members 2-25 sincere best wishes for success and happiness in their future 2-26 endeavors; and, be it further 2-27 RESOLVED, That official copies of this resolution be prepared 3-1 for the Midland High School Fed Challenge Team and its coaches and 3-2 for Midland High School as an expression of high regard by the 3-3 Texas House of Representatives and Senate. Craddick _______________________________ _______________________________ President of the Senate Speaker of the House I certify that H.C.R. No. 47 was adopted by the House on April 5, 2001, by a non-record vote. _______________________________ Chief Clerk of the House I certify that H.C.R. No. 47 was adopted by the Senate on May 7, 2001, by a viva-voce vote. _______________________________ Secretary of the Senate APPROVED: __________________________ Date __________________________ Governor