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R E S O L U T I O N
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WHEREAS, Lydia Patterson Institute in El Paso is marking its |
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100th anniversary in 2013, and this milestone provides a fitting |
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opportunity to pay tribute to the powerful impact that the school |
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has had in the lives of countless young people; and |
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WHEREAS, The institute's groundwork was first laid in the |
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early 20th century when Lydia Patterson, a Methodist laywoman |
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working through the women's outreach ministry of her church, took |
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notice of the lack of schools available for young Hispanic boys in |
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the barrio and began arranging classes out of the homes of some of |
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her fellow Methodists; in time, she envisioned a more centralized |
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location to educate high school students and train future Methodist |
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ministers, but she died before it could be realized; a few |
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like-minded contemporaries took up her mission, and in 1913, after |
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her husband donated a substantial sum to finance its construction, |
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Lydia Patterson Institute opened its doors; and |
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WHEREAS, Today, Lydia Patterson Institute provides a |
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challenging academic environment and a source of Christian |
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instruction for more than 400 high school-age men and women, a |
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majority of whom live in the Mexican border town of Ciudad Juarez; |
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as one of the first schools in the United States to emphasize the |
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teaching of English as a second language, the institute has a |
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longstanding record of nurturing bilingualism and biculturalism |
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and preparing its students for success in higher education; and |
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WHEREAS, The efficacy of its academic programming can be seen |
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in Lydia Patterson students' outstanding record of achievement, |
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with graduation rates among entering freshmen exceeding 95 percent |
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and with more than 90 percent of seniors going on to attend |
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universities in the United States; the graduating class of 2010 |
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collectively received more than $2 million in competitive college |
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scholarships; and |
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WHEREAS, Over the course of a century of "building bridges on |
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the border," Lydia Patterson Institute has helped many motivated |
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young leaders develop a strong foundation of knowledge that will |
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serve them throughout their lives, and its enduring success is |
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indeed a tribute to the numerous dedicated educators and |
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administrators who have graced its halls; now, therefore, be it |
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RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 83rd Texas |
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Legislature hereby honor Lydia Patterson Institute on the occasion |
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of its centennial and extend to its teachers, staff, and students |
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sincere best wishes for the future; and, be it further |
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RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be |
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prepared for the institute as an expression of high regard by the |
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Texas House of Representatives. |