| 1 | 1 | | 88S30351 KSM-D |
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| 2 | 2 | | By: González, Jessica H.C.R. No. 3 |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | |
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| 5 | 5 | | CONCURRENT RESOLUTION |
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| 6 | 6 | | WHEREAS, Pioneering lawmaker Irma Rangel left an indelible |
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| 7 | 7 | | imprint on the State of Texas; and |
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| 8 | 8 | | WHEREAS, In 1976, Irma Rangel became the first Mexican |
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| 9 | 9 | | American woman elected to the Texas Legislature; she embarked on a |
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| 10 | 10 | | mission to dismantle structural inequities and improve the lives of |
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| 11 | 11 | | the most vulnerable; during more than a quarter century in office, |
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| 12 | 12 | | she secured passage of numerous bills that empowered the |
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| 13 | 13 | | disadvantaged, including legislation extending the absentee voting |
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| 14 | 14 | | system, creating centers for victims of domestic violence, and |
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| 15 | 15 | | providing educational and employment programs to mothers with |
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| 16 | 16 | | dependent children; and |
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| 17 | 17 | | WHEREAS, Representative Rangel worked tirelessly to ensure |
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| 18 | 18 | | access to quality instruction at all levels and transformed the |
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| 19 | 19 | | state's higher education landscape; as chair of the Higher |
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| 20 | 20 | | Education Committee, she expanded opportunities for low-income and |
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| 21 | 21 | | minority youth; she was the primary sponsor of the bill that gave |
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| 22 | 22 | | high school students in the top 10 percent of their graduating class |
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| 23 | 23 | | automatic admission to the state's best public universities; |
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| 24 | 24 | | moreover, she was instrumental in providing funding for the first |
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| 25 | 25 | | professional school in South Texas; in appreciation, Texas A&M |
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| 26 | 26 | | University-Kingsville named that school the Irma Rangel College of |
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| 27 | 27 | | Pharmacy; also honoring her legacy are the Irma Lerma Rangel Young |
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| 28 | 28 | | Women's Leadership School in Dallas and the Irma Rangel Public |
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| 29 | 29 | | Policy Institute at The University of Texas at Austin; and |
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| 30 | 30 | | WHEREAS, Born in Kingsville in 1931, Representative Rangel |
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| 31 | 31 | | attended a segregated elementary school; she went on to earn a |
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| 32 | 32 | | bachelor's degree in business administration from Texas A&M |
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| 33 | 33 | | University-Kingsville and taught in Texas, California, and |
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| 34 | 34 | | Venezuela for 14 years; determined to make a greater impact, she |
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| 35 | 35 | | graduated from St. Mary's University School of Law and became the |
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| 36 | 36 | | first Mexican American woman district attorney in Corpus Christi; |
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| 37 | 37 | | she returned to Kingsville to open a law practice and became |
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| 38 | 38 | | involved in grassroots politics; and |
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| 39 | 39 | | WHEREAS, Representative Rangel served in the legislature |
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| 40 | 40 | | until 2003, when she lost her battle with brain cancer; since then, |
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| 41 | 41 | | her enormous contributions have continued to resonate, and the |
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| 42 | 42 | | naming of a state building in her honor would be a fitting tribute |
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| 43 | 43 | | to a trailblazer who opened avenues of advancement for all Texans; |
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| 44 | 44 | | now, therefore, be it |
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| 45 | 45 | | RESOLVED, That the 88th Legislature of the State of Texas, |
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| 46 | 46 | | 3rd Called Session, hereby direct the Texas Facilities Commission |
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| 47 | 47 | | to name the building being constructed in Phase Two of the Texas |
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| 48 | 48 | | Capitol Complex Master Plan at the northwest corner of Congress |
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| 49 | 49 | | Avenue and 15th Street the Irma Rangel Building; and, be it further |
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| 50 | 50 | | RESOLVED, That the secretary of state forward an official |
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| 51 | 51 | | copy of this resolution to the chair and executive director of the |
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| 52 | 52 | | Texas Facilities Commission. |
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