85R11633 KSM-F

By: Frullo H.R. No. 624

R E S O L U T I O N

WHEREAS, Distinguished representatives of the Texas Tech University System are gathering at the State Capitol on March 1, 2017, to celebrate the system's vital role in the Lone Star State; and

WHEREAS, The Texas Tech University System, governed by its board of regents and Chancellor Robert L. Duncan, consists of Texas Tech University, Angelo State University, and the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Centers at Lubbock and El Paso; the system is a $2 billion enterprise currently educating more than 51,000 students, averaging approximately $225 million in research expenditures annually, and counting nearly 325,000 alumni; in addition, it has an endowment of over $1 billion and some 20,000 faculty and staff focused on advancing higher education, health care, research, and outreach across the state; and

WHEREAS, Each component of the system provides innovative educational and research opportunities; Texas Tech University is a major comprehensive research university, led by President Lawrence Schovanec; enrolling more than 36,000 students in 10 colleges and two schools, TTU has set a new fall enrollment record for the past eight years, and it has seen an enrollment increase of 23 percent since 2007; with the goal of being one of the nation's premier research institutions, the university's total expenditures in that area have increased to $166 million in 2016, up more than 20 percent since 2012; additionally, the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education listed Texas Tech in its Highest Research Activity category, elevating the university as one of the 115 Tier One research institutions in the nation; and

WHEREAS, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center is composed of five schools in various health care disciplines, including medicine, nursing, pharmacy, health professions, and biomedical sciences, and has trained more than 24,000 health care professionals; overseen by Dr. Tedd L. Mitchell, TTUHSC enrolls more than 4,600 students and has dedicated more than $260 million in research expenditures over the past five years, with significant studies in areas such as aging, cancer, reproduction, and genetic diseases; the university also graduates more health care professionals than any other health-related institution in Texas and addresses the medical needs of more than 2.7 million people who live throughout a vast 108-county area; and

WHEREAS, Joining the system in 2007, Angelo State University enrolls more than 9,600 students in six colleges and is directed by President Brian J. May; designated a Hispanic Serving Institution, ASU was the first university in the state to offer a degree in computer science and has been named to the Princeton Review's "Best Colleges" list for the past eight consecutive years; unique to ASU, its Carr Scholarship program is funded by one of the largest endowments at a regional university in the United States, thus making scholarships attainable by one of every three of its students; and

WHEREAS, The fourth and newest member of the system, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center at El Paso became a comprehensive health-related institution in 2013 and encompasses the Paul L. Foster School of Medicine, the Gayle Greve Hunt School of Nursing, and the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences; headed by Dr. Richard A. Lange, the university has enrolled more than 600 students, is home to the first medical school on the nation's southern border, and conducts important research focused on cancer, diabetes and obesity, infectious diseases, and neurosciences; and

WHEREAS, Through their missions, the Texas Tech University System and its four component institutions continue to better the higher education and health care landscapes, and in so doing, they are contributing to the remarkable achievements of the state as a whole; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 85th Texas Legislature hereby recognize March 1, 2017, as Texas Tech University System Day at the State Capitol and extend a warm welcome to all those from the system who are visiting here today.