Bill Text: TX HR554 | 2019-2020 | 86th Legislature | Enrolled
Bill Title: Commemorating the 10th anniversary of the founding of Texas A&M University-San Antonio.
Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1)
Status: (Passed) 2019-03-15 - Reported enrolled [HR554 Detail]
Download: Texas-2019-HR554-Enrolled.html
| H.R. No. 554 | ||
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| WHEREAS, Texas A&M University-San Antonio is celebrating its | ||
| 10th anniversary in 2019, and this milestone offers a fitting | ||
| opportunity to pay tribute to this dynamic institution; and | ||
| WHEREAS, State Senator Frank Madla was an instrumental figure | ||
| in the establishment of A&M-SA; in the late 1990s, he initiated the | ||
| process of locating an institution of higher education on the South | ||
| Side of San Antonio, and the first courses were offered in 2000, | ||
| when 126 students began studies under the auspices of The Texas A&M | ||
| University System; initially, classes were held at Palo Alto | ||
| Community College, and land for a permanent campus was acquired in | ||
| 2007; the official founding of Texas A&M University-San Antonio as | ||
| a stand-alone university took place in May 2009, with the passage of | ||
| Senate Bill 629 by the Texas Legislature and the bill's subsequent | ||
| signing by Governor Rick Perry; and | ||
| WHEREAS, The first decade in the A&M-SA saga has been filled | ||
| with notable accomplishments; Dr. Maria Hernandez Ferrier was | ||
| named inaugural president in 2010 and helped guide the college's | ||
| early development, including the opening of the Main Campus | ||
| building in 2011; Dr. Cynthia Teniente-Matson took the reins in | ||
| 2014 and has overseen further additions to the university's | ||
| facilities, including the completion of the campus's first | ||
| dormitory, Esperanza Hall, in 2017 and the three-story Science and | ||
| Technology Building in 2018; and | ||
| WHEREAS, One of the defining characteristics of the past 10 | ||
| years has been the university's robust growth; enrollment has | ||
| increased by more than 300 percent during that period, reaching a | ||
| present total of 6,500, and over 8,000 students have earned an | ||
| A&M-SA degree to date; from the outset, the institution has placed a | ||
| special focus on serving underrepresented communities in the local | ||
| area, and it has pioneered programs to help students overcome | ||
| financial and academic barriers to completing their studies; today, | ||
| nearly three-quarters of A&M-SA students are Hispanic, 60 percent | ||
| are female, and 77 percent are the first members of their families | ||
| to attend college; and | ||
| WHEREAS, Since its inception, Texas A&M University-San | ||
| Antonio has excelled in its educational mission, helping the | ||
| members of its diverse student body to prepare for the challenges | ||
| and opportunities of the future, and all those associated with the | ||
| institution may take justifiable pride in its outstanding record of | ||
| achievement; now, therefore, be it | ||
| RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 86th Texas | ||
| Legislature hereby commemorate the 10th anniversary of the founding | ||
| of Texas A&M University-San Antonio and extend to the school's | ||
| students, faculty, and administrators sincere best wishes for | ||
| continued success; and, be it further | ||
| RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be | ||
| prepared for the university as an expression of high regard by the | ||
| Texas House of Representatives. | ||
| Pacheco | ||
| ______________________________ | ||
| Speaker of the House | ||
| I certify that H.R. No. 554 was adopted by the House on March | ||
| 13, 2019, by a non-record vote. | ||
| ______________________________ | ||
| Chief Clerk of the House | ||
