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R E S O L U T I O N
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WHEREAS, The oldest higher education institution in Austin, |
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Huston-Tillotson University, is marking its 150th anniversary on |
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February 28, 2025; and |
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WHEREAS, The historically Black university traces its roots |
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back to 1875 when it was originally founded as Tillotson Collegiate |
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and Normal Institute in honor of the Reverend George Jeffrey |
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Tillotson; early on, the college benefited from the support of the |
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Freedmen's Aid Society of the American Missionary Association, and |
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in 1909, it became known as Tillotson College; the school went on to |
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serve as a junior college and a women's college before becoming a |
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senior, coeducational institution in 1931; and |
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WHEREAS, Samuel Huston College was first organized by the |
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Reverend George Warren Richardson in 1876, when he leased St. Paul |
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Methodist Episcopal Church in Dallas; the school relocated to |
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Austin in 1878 and was housed in what is now Wesley United Methodist |
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Church; renamed in 1887 in honor of benefactor Samuel Huston of |
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Iowa, it was approved as a senior college by the Texas Department of |
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Education in 1926; and |
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WHEREAS, Located less than one mile apart in East Austin, the |
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two schools merged in 1952 to become the sole provider of higher |
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education for African Americans in Central Texas until Brown |
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v. Board of Education was decided two years later; the institution |
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officially changed its name to Huston-Tillotson University in 2005, |
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and today, it boasts an enrollment of more than 1,000 students on |
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its 23-acre campus and offers a wide range of undergraduate |
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degrees, as well as graduate degrees in business administration and |
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educational leadership; the university is a member of the Red River |
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Athletic Conference and is ably guided by president and CEO |
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Dr. Melva K. Wallace; and |
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WHEREAS, Since its inception, Huston-Tillotson University |
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has provided its students with an education that has enriched them |
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both academically and personally, and in so doing, it has made |
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important contributions to the Lone Star State and beyond; now, |
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therefore, be it |
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RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 89th Texas |
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Legislature hereby commemorate the 150th anniversary of |
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Huston-Tillotson University and extend to the school's faculty, |
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students, staff, and alumni sincere best wishes for the future; |
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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. |