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R E S O L U T I O N
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WHEREAS, Principal James Buchanan of Communications Arts |
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High School in San Antonio has been honored with the Friend of the |
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Profession Award by the Southwest Conference on Language Teaching |
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at the group's 2007 annual conference; and |
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WHEREAS, A graduate of Angelo State University with a |
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bachelor's degree in speech and theater, Mr. Buchanan also holds a |
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master's degree in educational administration from Texas A&M |
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University-Kingsville; and |
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WHEREAS, Over the course of his accomplished 35-year career, |
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Mr. Buchanan has worked as a director and actor in film, television, |
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radio, and the theater, and 14 of his plays have been produced in |
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the United States and Europe; a veteran educator, he has taught |
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theater and speech for 25 years in Sonora, Midland, and San Antonio, |
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and he was the theater director at Taft High School in San Antonio |
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for 10 years; and |
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WHEREAS, His devotion to teaching has been honored with |
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numerous awards; he has been named Texas Speech Teacher of the Year, |
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Midland Teacher of the Year, and Northside ISD Teacher of the Year; |
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in 1996 he was recognized as a Distinguished Educator by Trinity |
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University, and in 1998 he received a Texas Excellence in Teaching |
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Award from The University of Texas at Austin; named Administrator |
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of the Year by the Texas Educators of Foreign Languages Association |
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in 2003, he also won the San Antonio Mayor's Distinguished Leader |
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Award in 2006; and |
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WHEREAS, Mr. Buchanan is today the principal of |
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Communications Arts High School in San Antonio, a magnet school of |
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500 students, where under his leadership the teaching and use of |
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Spanish have become a top priority; named as one of the 100 best |
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high schools in the nation by Newsweek magazine, CAHS requires all |
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students to take at least three credits of Spanish instruction; the |
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school's students, 98 percent of whom enter college immediately |
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after graduation, learn to speak, write, and use electronic media |
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in Spanish as well as to advance their skills in English, and the |
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school publishes La Comunidad, the only school newspaper printed |
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entirely in Spanish; and |
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WHEREAS, A regional organization of foreign language |
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teachers, the Southwest Conference on Language Teaching represents |
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teachers from the southwest region for the purpose of enhancing the |
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teaching of foreign languages and recognizing excellence in |
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language study and teaching; the Friend of the Profession Award |
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recognizes an individual or organization not directly involved in |
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language teaching who has contributed significantly to the |
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profession; only five individuals have received the award since |
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1999; and |
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WHEREAS, Lauded by his colleagues and students for his |
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wholehearted support of the teaching of Spanish, Mr. Buchanan has |
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also been praised for encouraging teamwork and personal involvement |
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in decision making; he was instrumental in organizing field trips |
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to the San Antonio Museum of the Arts and for developing a |
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relationship with KVDA-Telemundo so that students could learn to |
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edit and air news stories in a Spanish-speaking environment; |
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bilingual himself, he has given speeches in Spanish and regularly |
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converses in Spanish with classes; and |
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WHEREAS, James Buchanan has shown himself to be a creative |
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and committed teacher and administrator, and his commitment to the |
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teaching of Spanish has greatly enriched the education and lives of |
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his students; now, therefore, be it |
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RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 80th Texas |
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Legislature hereby congratulate James Buchanan on winning the |
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Friend of the Profession Award from the Southwest Conference on |
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Language Teaching and extend to him sincere best wishes for |
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continued success; and, be it further |
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RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be |
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prepared for Mr. Buchanan as an expression of high regard by the |
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Texas House of Representatives. |
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Castro |
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______________________________ |
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Speaker of the House |
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I certify that H.R. No. 1929 was adopted by the House on May |
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18, 2007, by a non-record vote. |
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______________________________ |
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Chief Clerk of the House |