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R E S O L U T I O N
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WHEREAS, The University of Texas at Dallas has greatly |
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benefited from the visionary leadership of President Richard C. |
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Benson, who has guided the institution over the past eight years; |
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and |
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WHEREAS, In his role at UTD's helm, Dr. Benson has launched |
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ambitious fundraising endeavors, including the New Dimensions |
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campaign, which has amassed more than $415 million to date; he has |
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also overseen tens of millions of dollars in research expenditures, |
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and his tenure has coincided with the advancement of several |
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significant campus projects, including the opening of the Texas |
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Instruments Biomedical Engineering and Sciences Building and the |
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breaking of ground on the 12-acre Athenaeum cultural district; and |
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WHEREAS, Dr. Benson earned his bachelor's degree in aerospace |
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and mechanical science from Princeton University in 1973, his |
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master's degree in mechanical engineering from the University of |
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Virginia in 1974, and his doctorate in mechanical engineering from |
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the University of California, Berkeley, in 1977; prior to the start |
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of his career in higher education, he was employed with the Xerox |
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Corporation; in 1980, he became a professor of mechanical |
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engineering at the University of Rochester, where he later served |
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as an associate dean and chair of the Department of Mechanical |
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Engineering; and |
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WHEREAS, While at Penn State from 1995 to 2005, Dr. Benson |
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headed the Department of Mechanical Engineering, later renamed the |
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Department of Mechanical and Nuclear Engineering; he also served as |
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dean of the College of Engineering at Virginia Tech from 2005 to |
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2016, during which time that department achieved record growth; and |
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WHEREAS, Dr. Benson has been honored on many occasions by the |
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American Society of Mechanical Engineers, of which he has been a |
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Fellow since 1998; he received ASME's Henry Hess Award in 1984, and |
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in 2009, he was elected to a three-year term on the organization's |
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board of governors; he has further held editorial positions with |
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several ASME publications, including its Journal of Applied |
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Mechanics; and |
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WHEREAS, Throughout his tenure as president, Dr. Richard |
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Benson has worked tirelessly to elevate UTD's status as a |
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first-rate research university and a premier institution of higher |
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learning, and his achievements will continue to be appreciated for |
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many years to come; now, therefore, be it |
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RESOLVED, That the Senate of the 89th Texas Legislature |
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hereby honor President Richard C. Benson for his outstanding |
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service to The University of Texas at Dallas and the field of higher |
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education and extend to him sincere best wishes for the future; and, |
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be it further |
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RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be |
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prepared for Dr. Benson as an expression of high regard by the Texas |
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Senate. |