[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 51 (Tuesday, April 20, 2004)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E571-E572]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               CONGRATULATING EDINBURG NORTH HIGH SCHOOL

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                          HON. RUBEN HINOJOSA

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, April 20, 2004

  Mr. HINOJOSA. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to ask my colleagues to join 
me in congratulating Edinburg North High School for being selected for 
one of the 2004 College Board Inspiration Awards. Edinburg North is one 
of three exemplary high schools in the nation being honored for their 
steadfast commitment to fostering student success in some of America's 
most poverty-stricken communities. Each school receives a prize of 
$25,000 to use in furthering its academic goals. The Inspiration Awards 
recognize outstanding work in improving the academic environment and 
helping economically disadvantaged students achieve the promise of 
higher education. I would like to congratulate the superintendent, 
Eugenio Gutierrez, the principal, Mario Salinas, the teachers, 
students, and entire school community for this prestigious award.
  Edinburg North High School is truly an inspiration for all of us who 
value education and academic excellence for all students. For the 
Hispanic community, it reaffirms our core faith in our own potential. 
Over 95 percent of the students at Edinburg North are Hispanic, and 
eighty percent of them are bilingual.
  Edinburg North High School has succeeded in the face of many 
challenges. More than half of its students participate in the free and 
reduced price lunch program. Many students are the children of migrant 
and seasonal farm workers, and many of these young people work in the 
fields themselves. As recently as the late 1990s, Edinburg North's poor 
academic performance led the state of Texas to notify all parents that 
they had the option of sending their children to another school.
  The school community--students, parents, teachers, administrators, 
local officials, and community leaders--made a commitment to turn 
things. The school did not merely aim for proficiency, but rather it 
reached for excellence with stunning results.
  The school community decided although its students come from the most 
economically disadvantaged part of the district, they were not going to 
be educationally disadvantaged. Edinburg North High School made access 
to challenging courses a number one priority. It instituted an ``open-
door'' policy for advanced placement courses, and now enrolls more 
students in college-level courses than any other school in the city. 
Over the last five years, Edinburg North has doubled the number of 
students taking at least one advanced placement exam.
  This focus on rigorous courses has opened the doors to higher 
education for students of Edinburg North, many of whom are the first in 
their families to attend college. Last year almost three-quarters of 
the students were accepted to college, including some of the most 
selective institutions in the nation, such as the Massachusetts 
Institute of Technology, Dartmouth College, Columbia University, and 
Rice University.
  This is what is possible when we invest in excellence in the Hispanic 
community. I urge my colleagues to join me in saluting Edinburg North 
High School for its achievement and applauding the college Board for 
sponsoring the

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Inspiration Awards. May each year be more competitive than the last.

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