| 1 | 1 | | 89R820 KSM-D |
|---|
| 2 | 2 | | By: González of Dallas H.C.R. No. 19 |
|---|
| 3 | 3 | | |
|---|
| 4 | 4 | | |
|---|
| 5 | 5 | | |
|---|
| 6 | 6 | | |
|---|
| 7 | 7 | | CONCURRENT RESOLUTION |
|---|
| 8 | 8 | | WHEREAS, Pioneering lawmaker Irma Rangel left an indelible |
|---|
| 9 | 9 | | imprint on the State of Texas; and |
|---|
| 10 | 10 | | WHEREAS, In 1976, Irma Rangel became the first Mexican |
|---|
| 11 | 11 | | American woman elected to the Texas Legislature; she embarked on a |
|---|
| 12 | 12 | | mission to dismantle structural inequities and improve the lives of |
|---|
| 13 | 13 | | the most vulnerable; during more than a quarter century in office, |
|---|
| 14 | 14 | | she secured passage of numerous bills that empowered the |
|---|
| 15 | 15 | | disadvantaged, including legislation extending the absentee voting |
|---|
| 16 | 16 | | system, creating centers for victims of domestic violence, and |
|---|
| 17 | 17 | | providing educational and employment programs to mothers with |
|---|
| 18 | 18 | | dependent children; and |
|---|
| 19 | 19 | | WHEREAS, Representative Rangel worked tirelessly to ensure |
|---|
| 20 | 20 | | access to quality instruction at all levels and transformed the |
|---|
| 21 | 21 | | state's higher education landscape; as chair of the Higher |
|---|
| 22 | 22 | | Education Committee, she expanded opportunities for low-income and |
|---|
| 23 | 23 | | minority youth; she was the primary sponsor of the bill that gave |
|---|
| 24 | 24 | | high school students in the top 10 percent of their graduating class |
|---|
| 25 | 25 | | automatic admission to the state's best public universities; |
|---|
| 26 | 26 | | moreover, she was instrumental in providing funding for the first |
|---|
| 27 | 27 | | professional school in South Texas; in appreciation, Texas A&M |
|---|
| 28 | 28 | | University-Kingsville named that school the Irma Rangel College of |
|---|
| 29 | 29 | | Pharmacy; also honoring her legacy are the Irma Lerma Rangel Young |
|---|
| 30 | 30 | | Women's Leadership School in Dallas and the Irma Rangel Public |
|---|
| 31 | 31 | | Policy Institute at The University of Texas at Austin; and |
|---|
| 32 | 32 | | WHEREAS, Born in Kingsville in 1931, Representative Rangel |
|---|
| 33 | 33 | | attended a segregated elementary school; she went on to earn a |
|---|
| 34 | 34 | | bachelor's degree in business administration from Texas A&M |
|---|
| 35 | 35 | | University-Kingsville and taught in Texas, California, and |
|---|
| 36 | 36 | | Venezuela for 14 years; determined to make a greater impact, she |
|---|
| 37 | 37 | | graduated from St. Mary's University School of Law and became the |
|---|
| 38 | 38 | | first Mexican American woman district attorney in Corpus Christi; |
|---|
| 39 | 39 | | she returned to Kingsville to open a law practice and became |
|---|
| 40 | 40 | | involved in grassroots politics; and |
|---|
| 41 | 41 | | WHEREAS, Representative Rangel served in the legislature |
|---|
| 42 | 42 | | until 2003, when she lost her battle with brain cancer; since then, |
|---|
| 43 | 43 | | her enormous contributions have continued to resonate, and the |
|---|
| 44 | 44 | | naming of a state building in her honor would be a fitting tribute |
|---|
| 45 | 45 | | to a trailblazer who opened avenues of advancement for all Texans; |
|---|
| 46 | 46 | | now, therefore, be it |
|---|
| 47 | 47 | | RESOLVED, That the 89th Legislature of the State of Texas |
|---|
| 48 | 48 | | hereby direct the Texas Facilities Commission to name the building |
|---|
| 49 | 49 | | being constructed in Phase Two of the Texas Capitol Complex Master |
|---|
| 50 | 50 | | Plan at the northwest corner of Congress Avenue and 15th Street the |
|---|
| 51 | 51 | | Irma Rangel Building; and, be it further |
|---|
| 52 | 52 | | RESOLVED, That the secretary of state forward an official |
|---|
| 53 | 53 | | copy of this resolution to the chair and executive director of the |
|---|
| 54 | 54 | | Texas Facilities Commission. |
|---|