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R E S O L U T I O N
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WHEREAS, Texas A&M University-San Antonio is celebrating its |
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10th anniversary in 2019, and this milestone offers a fitting |
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opportunity to pay tribute to this dynamic institution; and |
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WHEREAS, State Senator Frank Madla was an instrumental figure |
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in the establishment of A&M-SA; in the late 1990s, he initiated the |
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process of locating an institution of higher education on the South |
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Side of San Antonio, and the first courses were offered in 2000, |
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when 126 students began studies under the auspices of The Texas A&M |
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University System; initially, classes were held at Palo Alto |
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Community College, and land for a permanent campus was acquired in |
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2007; the official founding of Texas A&M University-San Antonio as |
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a stand-alone university took place in May 2009, with the passage of |
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Senate Bill 629 by the Texas Legislature and the bill's subsequent |
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signing by Governor Rick Perry; and |
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WHEREAS, The first decade in the A&M-SA saga has been filled |
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with notable accomplishments; Dr. Maria Hernandez Ferrier was |
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named inaugural president in 2010 and helped guide the college's |
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early development, including the opening of the Main Campus |
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building in 2011; Dr. Cynthia Teniente-Matson took the reins in |
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2014 and has overseen further additions to the university's |
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facilities, including the completion of the campus's first |
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dormitory, Esperanza Hall, in 2017 and the three-story Science and |
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Technology Building in 2018; and |
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WHEREAS, One of the defining characteristics of the past 10 |
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years has been the university's robust growth; enrollment has |
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increased by more than 300 percent during that period, reaching a |
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present total of 6,500, and over 8,000 students have earned an |
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A&M-SA degree to date; from the outset, the institution has placed a |
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special focus on serving underrepresented communities in the local |
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area, and it has pioneered programs to help students overcome |
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financial and academic barriers to completing their studies; today, |
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nearly three-quarters of A&M-SA students are Hispanic, 60 percent |
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are female, and 77 percent are the first members of their families |
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to attend college; and |
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WHEREAS, Since its inception, Texas A&M University-San |
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Antonio has excelled in its educational mission, helping the |
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members of its diverse student body to prepare for the challenges |
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and opportunities of the future, and all those associated with the |
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institution may take justifiable pride in its outstanding record of |
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achievement; now, therefore, be it |
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RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 86th Texas |
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Legislature hereby commemorate the 10th anniversary of the founding |
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of Texas A&M University-San Antonio and extend to the school's |
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students, faculty, and administrators 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 the university as an expression of high regard by the |
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Texas House of Representatives. |
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Pacheco |
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______________________________ |
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Speaker of the House |
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I certify that H.R. No. 554 was adopted by the House on March |
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13, 2019, by a non-record vote. |
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______________________________ |
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Chief Clerk of the House |
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