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R E S O L U T I O N
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WHEREAS, Dr. Trudy Hanson retired from West Texas A&M |
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University on January 15, 2021, drawing to a close 31 years of |
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distinguished service to the university and more than 13 years as |
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head of its Department of Communication; and |
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WHEREAS, Dr. Hanson, whose parents were teachers, carried on |
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the family tradition by pursuing a career in education; after |
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moving to the area with her husband, Mike, in 1978, she was hired at |
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WTAMU in the fall of 1989; she initially taught basic public |
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speaking and business and professional communication courses, and |
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she went on to teach more than a dozen subjects; and |
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WHEREAS, In 2007, Dr. Hanson was appointed to lead the newly |
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created Department of Communication; as head of the department, she |
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handled an array of responsibilities, which include assisting with |
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student orientations, writing assessment reports, managing the |
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budget, conducting faculty performance reviews, and overseeing the |
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department's accreditation process; in addition to these duties, |
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she was tasked with coordinating the annual Storytelling Festival |
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and serving as advisor to both the Panhandle Storytelling Guild and |
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the Lambda Pi Eta National Communication Honor Society, and she has |
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further shared her insights as a member of the Academic Leadership |
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Council; over the course of this journey, she has experienced the |
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joy of seeing countless students learn and grow as aspiring |
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communication professionals; and |
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WHEREAS, Dr. Hanson has been affiliated with a number of |
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academic associations, including the Southern States Communication |
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Association and the Texas Speech Communication Association, both of |
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which she has led; she was recognized by the SSCA with its T. Earle |
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Johnson-Edwin Paget Distinguished Service Award in 2012; moreover, |
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she received the Colson-Herndon Educator Award by the Tejas |
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Storytelling Association in 2011, and a scholarship fund is being |
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established in her name at WTAMU; she has published several |
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textbooks on public speaking, and she served as editor of the Texas |
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Speech Communication Journal from 2004 to 2007; and |
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WHEREAS, Through her leadership, expertise, and vision, |
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Dr. Trudy Hanson has greatly benefited the students and faculty of |
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WTAMU and built a solid foundation for the future of the Department |
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of Communication, and her contributions will be remembered with |
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tremendous gratitude for many years to come; now, therefore, be it |
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RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 87th Texas |
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Legislature hereby congratulate Dr. Trudy Hanson on her retirement |
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from West Texas A&M University and extend to her sincere best wishes |
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as she begins the next exciting chapter of her life; and, be it |
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further |
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RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be |
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prepared for Dr. Hanson as an expression of high regard by the Texas |
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House of Representatives. |