SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 318
WHEREAS, Distinguished representatives of the Texas Tech
University System are gathering at the State Capitol on March 1,
2017, to celebrate the system's vital role in the Lone Star
State; and
WHEREAS, The system, governed by a nine-member board of
regents and Chancellor Robert L. Duncan, consists of Texas Tech
University, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Angelo
State University, and Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center
at El Paso; the system is a $2 billion enterprise currently
educating more than 51,000 students, conducting approximately $225
million in research expenditures annually, and counting nearly
325,000 alumni; the system also has an endowment of over $1 billion
and some 20,000 faculty and staff who are focused on advancing
higher education, health care, research, and outreach across the
state; and
WHEREAS, Each component of the system provides innovative
educational and research opportunities; Texas Tech University is
a major comprehensive research university led by President
Lawrence Schovanec; by enrolling more than 36,000 students in 10
colleges and two schools, Texas Tech University has set a new
fall enrollment record for the past eight years, an enrollment
increase of 23 percent since 2007; with the goal of being one of
the nation's premier research institutions, the university
increased its total research expenditures to $166 million in
2016, which was up more than 20 percent since 2012; additionally,
the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education
listed Texas Tech University in its Highest Research Activity
category, elevating the university as one of 115 Tier One
research institutions in the nation; and
WHEREAS, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center is
composed of five schools in various health care disciplines,
including medicine, nursing, pharmacy, health professions, and
biomedical sciences, and the center has trained more than 24,000
health care professionals; overseen by Dr. Tedd L. Mitchell,
Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center enrolls more than
4,600 students and has dedicated more than $260 million in
research expenditures in the past five years, with significant
studies in such areas as aging, cancer, reproduction, and genetic
diseases; the university also graduates more health care
professionals than any other health-related institution in Texas
and meets the health care needs of more than 2.7 million people
who live throughout a vast 108-county area; and
WHEREAS, Joining the system in 2007, Angelo State
University enrolls more than 9,600 students in six colleges and
is directed by President Brian J. May; designated as a Hispanic
Serving Institution, Angelo State University was the first
university in the state to offer a degree in computer science and
has been named to The Princeton Review's Best Colleges list for
the past eight consecutive years; what is unique to Angelo State
University is its Carr Scholarship program, which is funded by
one of the largest endowments at a regional university in the
United States, thus making scholarships possible for one of every
three of its students; and
WHEREAS, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center at
El Paso became a stand-alone health science center in 2013,
making it the fourth and newest member of the Texas Tech
University System; Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center
at El Paso is composed of the Paul L. Foster School of Medicine,
the Gayle Greve Hunt School of Nursing, and the Graduate School
of Biomedical Sciences; headed by Dr. Richard Lange, the center
has enrolled more than 600 students, is home to the first medical
school on the nation's southern border, and conducts important
research focused on cancer, diabetes and obesity, infectious
diseases, and the neurosciences; and
WHEREAS, Through its missions, the Texas Tech University
System and its four component institutions continue to better the
higher education and health care landscapes, and in so doing, the
system has contributed to the remarkable achievements of the
state as a whole; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the Senate of the State of Texas, 85th
Legislature, hereby recognize March 1, 2017, as Texas Tech
University System Day at the State Capitol and extend a warm
welcome to all those from the system who are visiting here today.
Perry, Buckingham,
Campbell, RodrÃguez,
Seliger, West
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Member, Texas Senate Member, Texas Senate
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Member, Texas Senate Member, Texas Senate
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Member, Texas Senate Member, Texas Senate
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President of the Senate
I hereby certify that the
above Resolution was adopted by
the Senate on March 1, 2017.
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Secretary of the Senate