H.R. No. 1730
 
 
 
R E S O L U T I O N
         WHEREAS, Former state senator Joe J. Bernal has devoted his
  life to expanding the horizons of opportunity for all Texans; and
         WHEREAS, The son of Jose and Antonia Bernal, Joe Bernal was
  born in San Antonio in 1927 and grew up with eight brothers and
  sisters on the city's west side; after graduating from Lanier High
  School, he enlisted in the U.S. Army and served as an infantryman in
  Manila and Tokyo with the Headquarters Squadron, Pacific Air
  Command; he attained the rank of sergeant before receiving his
  honorable discharge at the age of 19; and
         WHEREAS, Senator Bernal attended Trinity University through
  the G.I. Bill and earned his bachelor's degree in sociology; after
  teaching in the Kosciusko Independent School District for a year,
  he went on to serve at Burleson Elementary School in Edgewood ISD
  and then Crockett Elementary School in San Antonio ISD; along the
  way, he earned a master's degree in education with a minor in social
  work from Our Lady of the Lake College, and he was employed as a
  social worker by the Inman Christian Center for four years; and
         WHEREAS, In 1964, Joe Bernal was elected to the Texas House of
  Representatives, and he worked tirelessly in behalf of an amendment
  to the state constitution that allowed seniors who had lived in the
  U.S. for more than 25 years to receive benefits regardless of their
  citizenship status; voters in Bexar County sent him to the state
  senate in 1966, and over the course of two terms in office, he
  dedicated himself to increasing educational access and protecting
  vulnerable members of society; in 1969, he overcame fierce
  opposition to secure passage of the state's first bilingual
  education act, and he helped the state obtain federal funding for
  bilingual education; he was also instrumental in abolishing a law
  against using languages other than English in the classroom;
  moreover, he sponsored the bill establishing The University of
  Texas at San Antonio and battled tenaciously to pass it, and he
  achieved the same success with his bill founding the UTSA dental and
  nursing schools; his legislative initiatives further included the
  state's first minimum wage law, lesson-planning time for teachers,
  state-supported kindergarten programs, and funding for a criminal
  justice council; in addition, he chaired the Federal Programs and
  Relations, Claims, and Poverty in Texas Committees and led the
  Texas House and Senate Mexican American Caucus; and
         WHEREAS, While making a tremendous impact as a lawmaker,
  Senator Bernal was employed as executive director for the Guadalupe
  Community Center and then for the Commission for Mexican American
  Affairs; he later became director of the Bilingual Cost Analysis
  Project of the Intercultural Development Research Association and a
  regional director of ACTION, a federal agency that coordinated
  volunteer opportunities; and
         WHEREAS, Senator Bernal completed his doctoral degree in
  cultural foundations in education at The University of Texas at
  Austin, having written his dissertation on bilingual/bicultural
  education; from the early 1980s into the 1990s, he served as
  principal of Emma Frey Elementary School in Edgewood ISD and as
  assistant superintendent for instructional services for Harlandale
  ISD; in 1996, he was elected to the State Board of Education, and
  over the next decade, he championed bilingual education and fought
  to provide classrooms with Spanish-language textbooks and to have
  the elementary curriculum translated into Spanish; in addition, his
  efforts were crucial in bringing mariachi band competitions into
  the University Interscholastic League; twice reelected to the
  board, he served as its vice chair from 2001 to 2003 and chaired the
  committee on instruction; and
         WHEREAS, In 2014, Northside ISD named a new campus the
  Dr. Joe J. Bernal Middle School; previously, he and his wife,
  fellow educator Mary Esther Bernal, received the Lifetime
  Achievement Award from the Mexican American Legal Defense and
  Educational Fund for their efforts in behalf of the Latino
  community; the couple have shared more than six decades of
  marriage, and they are the parents of four children, Richard,
  Patrick, Bernard, and Rebecca; and
         WHEREAS, The destiny of a state is inextricably linked to the
  quality and equality of its public education system, and through
  his unyielding commitment to providing all Texans with a strong
  foundation on which to build, Joe Bernal has enriched the lives of
  innumerable people; now, therefore, be it
         RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 86th Texas
  Legislature hereby honor former state senator Joe Bernal for his
  outstanding contributions to the Lone Star State and extend to him
  sincere best wishes for the future; and, be it further
         
         RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be
  prepared for Senator Bernal as an expression of high regard by the
  Texas House of Representatives.
 
  Martinez Fischer
 
  ______________________________
  Speaker of the House     
 
         I certify that H.R. No. 1730 was adopted by the House on May
  24, 2019, by a non-record vote.
 
  ______________________________
  Chief Clerk of the House