Bill Text: TX HR481 | 2025-2026 | 89th Legislature | Enrolled

Texas House Resolution 481

Bill Title: Honoring President Richard C. Benson for his service to The University of Texas at Dallas and the field of higher education.

Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1)

Status: (Passed) 2025-04-01 - Reported enrolled [HR481 Detail]

Download: Texas-2025-HR481-Enrolled.html



	H.R. No. 481



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

	Plesa

	______________________________
	Speaker of the House

	I certify that H.R. No. 481 was adopted by the House on March
	31, 2025, by a non-record vote.

	______________________________
	Chief Clerk of the House