[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 489 Introduced in House (IH)]

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114th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. RES. 489

    Commemorating the 88th Anniversary of Texas Southern University.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            October 23, 2015

 Ms. Jackson Lee (for herself, Mr. Clyburn, Mr. Al Green of Texas, Mr. 
Butterfield, Ms. Eddie Bernice Johnson of Texas, Mr. Bishop of Georgia, 
 Mr. Hurd of Texas, Mr. Cummings, Mr. Scott of Virginia, Mrs. Dingell, 
   Ms. DeLauro, Mr. Hoyer, Ms. Pelosi, Mr. Israel, Mr. Richmond, Mr. 
 Engel, and Mr. Doggett) submitted the following resolution; which was 
        referred to the Committee on Education and the Workforce

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
    Commemorating the 88th Anniversary of Texas Southern University.

Whereas, on September 14, 1927, the Houston Public School Board agreed to fund 
        the development of 2 junior colleges: Houston Junior College, which 
        later became the University of Houston, and Houston Colored Junior 
        College, which in 1934 was changed to a 4-year college under the name of 
        Houston College for Negroes;
Whereas in 1936, the Houston College for Negroes graduated its first class 
        comprised of 63 students and in 1943 added its first graduate program;
Whereas in 1946, Herman Marion Sweatt, an African-American Houston mail carrier, 
        applied to enroll in the law school at the University of Texas but was 
        denied admission because of his race, which prompted him to file suit 
        against the University of Texas;
Whereas rather than grant admission to Herman Sweatt, the Texas Legislature 
        passed Senate Bill 140 on March 3, 1947, providing for the establishment 
        of a Negro law school in Houston and the creation of a university to 
        surround it;
Whereas that law school would become the Thurgood Marshall School of Law at 
        Texas Southern University;
Whereas, on June 5, 1950, the Supreme Court decided Sweatt v. Painter, 339 U.S. 
        629, which held that the segregated law schools violated the Equal 
        Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment and laid the foundation for the 
        landmark decision in Brown v. Board of Education, 347 U.S. 483 (1954);
Whereas in 1973, the Texas Legislature designated Texas Southern University as a 
        ``special purpose'' institution for urban programming, which led to the 
        creation of 4 additional academic units: the College of Education, the 
        School of Public Affairs, the School of Communications and the Weekend 
        College;
Whereas Texas Southern University currently offers bachelor's, master's and 
        doctoral degree programs in the following academic colleges and schools: 
        the College of Liberal Arts and Behavioral Sciences; the College of 
        Pharmacy and Health Sciences; the College of Science and Technology; the 
        College of Education; the Barbara Jordan-Mickey Leland School of Public 
        Affairs; the School of Communication; the Thurgood Marshall School of 
        Law; the Jesse H. Jones School of Business; the Thomas Freeman Honors 
        College; the College of Continuing Education and the Graduate School;
Whereas the Thurgood Marshall School of Law has graduated more African-American 
        and Hispanic attorneys than any law school in the State of Texas, 
        including Harry E. Johnson, Sr., the President of the Martin Luther 
        King, Jr. National Memorial; Senfronia Calpernia Thompson, the longest 
        serving woman and African-American in the history of the Texas 
        Legislature; and Linda Reyna Yanez, the first Hispanic woman to serve as 
        a Texas State court appellate judge;
Whereas over the past 88 years alumni of Texas Southern University have 
        distinguished themselves and their alma mater in virtually every field 
        of civic, social, and economic activity, including Barbara Charline 
        Jordan and George ``Mickey'' Leland, the first 2 African-Americans to 
        represent Texas in the United States House of Representatives; Yolanda 
        Adams, Grammy Award winning gospel singer; Kase Lukman Lawal, Chairman 
        and CEO of CAMAC International Corporation; and Michael Strahan, 
        professional football player and national media personality;
Whereas in addition to Michael Strahan, who was inducted into the National 
        Football League Hall of Fame in 2014, Texas Southern University also 
        boasts several other graduates who went on to distinguished careers in 
        the National Football League, including: Arthur Cox, Fredrick Dean, 
        Kevin Harris, W.K. Hicks, Jack Holmes, James Williams, Gregg Briggs, 
        Charley Frazier, Leroy Mitchell, Andrew Rice, Marvell Simmons, David 
        Thomas, Melvin Baker, Kenny Burrough, Larry Crowe, Willie Ellison, Lloyd 
        Mumphord, Charles Philyaw, Joseph Anderson, Brett Maxie, Warren Wells, 
        Julius Adams, Donald Narcisse, Markus Howell, Cortez Hankton, Oliver 
        Celestin, and Warren Bone; and
Whereas, although initially established to educate African-Americans, Texas 
        Southern University has become one of the most diverse institutions in 
        Texas, providing a great education to future leaders from every 
        socioeconomic, cultural and ethnic background: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) congratulates Texas Southern University on the 88th 
        anniversary of its founding; and
            (2) recognizes the commitment of Texas Southern University 
        to academic excellence, quality instruction, innovative 
        research, and enduring contributions to its community, State, 
        Nation, and the world.
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