HCR19 - Directing the Texas Facilities Commission to name the building being constructed in Phase Two of the Texas Capitol Complex Master Plan at the northwest corner of Congress Avenue and 15th Street the Irma Rangel Building.

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