H.R. No. 1176
R E S O L U T I O N
WHEREAS, Sellers Middle School in the Garland Independent
School District earned designation as an AVID National
Demonstration School in January 2013, marking the third time the
institution has secured this distinction; and
WHEREAS, Advanced Via Individual Determination, or AVID, is a
college readiness program designed to increase the academic
performance of underserved students and make college enrollment
more attainable; with the support of the school's faculty members,
participants learn organizational and study skills and practice
critical thinking, and they are required to take at least one
honors, pre-AP, or AP course; students also receive academic
assistance from their peers and college tutors; and
WHEREAS, In 2003, with a $25,000 grant from the BEST
Education Foundation, Sellers Middle School became the first
Garland ISD campus to employ the AVID program, and in 2007, and
again in 2010, it was named an AVID National Demonstration School;
the initiative was started by former principal Janice Howard, now
the AVID director for the district, who noticed that very few
minority learners took advanced placement classes; over the years,
Sellers implemented the program schoolwide, and today AVID
strategies are applied in every classroom; and
WHEREAS, Expansion to other campuses has also followed, with
AVID currently part of the curriculum at 14 other Garland ISD
schools; less than two percent of AVID institutions are recognized
as National Demonstration Schools, however, and Sellers is one of
just 19 such sites in the entire state; the exemplary results at
Sellers have served as a model for AVID programs in other Texas
cities as well as for schools in Minnesota, Florida, and
California; and
WHEREAS, Sellers Middle School has demonstrated an
outstanding commitment to academic excellence and college
readiness, and its accomplishments are making a positive and
lasting difference in the lives of countless Garland students; now,
therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 83rd Texas
Legislature hereby congratulate Sellers Middle School on earning
designation as an AVID National Demonstration School for the third
time and extend to its students, faculty, and staff sincere best
wishes for continued success; and, be it further
RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be
prepared for the school as an expression of high regard by the Texas
House of Representatives.
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______________________________
Speaker of the House
I certify that H.R. No. 1176 was adopted by the House on April
17, 2013, by a non-record vote.
______________________________
Chief Clerk of the House