By:  Ritter                                                       H.B. No. 3262



A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to the establishment of a Center for Excellence at Lamar 
University at Beaumont.
	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:                        
	SECTION 1.  Subchapter E, Chapter 96, Education Code is 
amended by adding Section 96.708 to read as follows:
	Sec. 96.708.  LAMAR UNIVERSITY CENTER FOR DEAF STUDIES.  (a)  
In this section:
		(1)  "Board" means the board of regents of the Texas 
State University System.
		(2)  "Center" means the Lamar University Center for 
Deaf Studies.    
	(b)  The board shall establish the Lamar University Center 
for Deaf Studies for the purposes of advancing deaf education 
programs in Texas.
	(c)  The center shall:                                                  
		(1)  collaborate with the Texas Commission for the Deaf 
and Hard of Hearing and the Texas School for the Deaf to assess deaf 
education needs in the state and strategies to address them;
		(2)  study bilingual education programs for the deaf;                  
		(3)  study improved teacher training; and                              
		(4)  study incorporation of technology into deaf 
education           
	(d)  The center shall develop a strategic plan to guide and 
evaluate the center's progress toward achieving the purposes of the 
center in accordance with this section.  The strategic plan must:
		(1)  describe the goals, objectives, and performance 
standards for each of the center's programs and how those programs 
help the center to achieve its purposes;
		(2)  assess the needs of the center's programs and 
faculty; and      
		(3)  assess the center's need for new initiatives.                     
	(e)  The organization, control, and management of the center 
are vested in the board.
	(f)  The employment of personnel by and the operating budget 
of the center are subject to board approval.  An employee of the 
center is an employee of the Texas State University System.
	(g)  The board shall select a site for the center at the Lamar 
University at Beaumont.
	(h)  The center may enter into an agreement or may cooperate 
with a public or private entity to perform the research functions of 
the center.
	(i)  The board may solicit, accept, and administer gifts and 
grants from any public or private source for the use and benefit of 
the center.
	SECTION 2.  The board of regents of the Texas State 
University System shall establish the Center for Deaf Studies as 
provided by Section 96.708, Education Code, as added by this Act, 
not later than January 1, 2005.
	SECTION 3.  This Act takes effect immediately if it receives 
a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as 
provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution.  If this 
Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this 
Act takes effect September 1, 2003.