79S31206 JH-D

By:  Hegar                                                        H.R. No. 409



R E S O L U T I O N
	WHEREAS, The year 2006 marks the 130th anniversary of the 
founding of Prairie View A&M University, and that auspicious 
occasion was celebrated at a special gathering in Houston on April 
29 entitled "Celebrating the View at 130 Years"; and
	WHEREAS, The second-oldest public institution for higher 
learning in Texas, the college was established on August 14, 1876, 
by an act of the Texas Legislature; originally known as Alta Vista 
Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas for Colored Youth, the 
school subsequently had a variety of names, including Prairie View 
State Normal School, Prairie View State Normal & Industrial 
College, and Prairie View University, before receiving its current 
designation in 1973; while the names may have changed, its mission 
has remained the same, and in its 13 decades of service, the college 
has granted 46,000 degrees, preparing a multitude of students for a 
broad range of rewarding careers; and
	WHEREAS, The university has long been known for producing 
top-notch engineers, nurses, and educators, and its Reserve Officer 
Training Corps has a sterling reputation for developing talented 
military leaders; nearly 1,800 commissioned officers and nine 
flag-rank officers have attended Prairie View A&M, and the 
education they received at the university no doubt made them more 
capable soldiers who have contributed greatly to the defense of the 
nation; and
	WHEREAS, Musicians, too, have found the Prairie View campus 
fertile ground for their creativity, with one of the college's 
best-known graduates being rhythm-and-blues pioneer Charles Mose 
Brown; and
	WHEREAS, Today, this highly acclaimed institution has an 
enrollment of more than 6,000 students who are pursuing degrees in 
39 different majors; of these, 2,000 are involved in graduate 
studies, where they can specialize in any of 31 master's degree 
programs and four doctoral programs; and
	WHEREAS, Having been born in the tumultuous era of post-Civil 
War Reconstruction as Texas' first state-supported college for 
African Americans, Prairie View A&M can reflect proudly on that 
heritage even as it embraces its current duty of educating students 
of all races and backgrounds, and its success in these past and 
present endeavors makes it a proud contributor to educational 
excellence in the Lone Star State; now, therefore, be it
	RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 79th Texas 
Legislature, 3rd Called Session, hereby honor Prairie View A&M 
University on the 130th anniversary of its founding and extend 
sincere best wishes to its educators, students, and alumni; and, be 
it further
	RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be 
prepared for the university as an expression of high regard by the 
Texas House of Representatives.