Bill Text: TX HR2292 | 2023-2024 | 88th Legislature | Enrolled
Bill Title: Commemorating the dedication of a historical marker for the James D. Burrus Elementary School in Houston.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Passed) 2023-05-30 - Reported enrolled [HR2292 Detail]
Download: Texas-2023-HR2292-Enrolled.html
| H.R. No. 2292 | ||
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| WHEREAS, The James D. Burrus Alumni Association, the Harris | ||
| County Historical Commission, the Independence Heights | ||
| Conservancy, and the James D. Burrus Elementary School celebrated | ||
| the dedication of an Official Texas Historical Marker at the school | ||
| on February 8, 2023; and | ||
| WHEREAS, In 1908, African American families began settling in | ||
| the Independence Heights community, and in an effort to meet the | ||
| educational needs of area children, the Independence Heights School | ||
| was established in a local church; following a petition to the | ||
| Harris County Commissioners Court in 1911, a two-room house was | ||
| moved from Sunset Heights to East 39th Street to serve as the | ||
| official schoolhouse; in addition, the building functioned as an | ||
| important cultural center and hosted many political and community | ||
| meetings; Oliphant Lockwood Hubbard, the school's first teacher, | ||
| later became principal and mayor of Independence Heights; and | ||
| WHEREAS, In 1923, the Colored Citizens Committee addressed | ||
| the Houston school board about inequalities and proposed bond | ||
| allocation for the construction of a new school, which was | ||
| completed in 1928 at its current location on East 33rd Street; the | ||
| school was renamed after James Dallas Burrus, an educator who was | ||
| born into slavery and was a professor of mathematics at Fisk | ||
| University for 47 years; during its first year in operation, Burrus | ||
| Elementary had 5 teachers and served 185 students; by the 1930s, | ||
| enrollment had grown to more than 600 students, with 13 teachers on | ||
| staff; it became a junior high school for a time, but due to | ||
| rezoning, desegregation, and the addition of other middle schools, | ||
| the campus was later returned to an elementary school; and | ||
| WHEREAS, Over the course of its history, James D. Burrus | ||
| Elementary School has made a positive difference in the lives of | ||
| many Houston youth, and the dedication of this historical marker | ||
| provides a fitting tribute to the essential role it has played in | ||
| educating several generations of area residents; now, therefore, be | ||
| it | ||
| RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 88th Texas | ||
| Legislature hereby commemorate the dedication of an Official Texas | ||
| Historical Marker for the James D. Burrus Elementary School and | ||
| commend all those involved in securing this honor for their | ||
| efforts. | ||
| J. Johnson of Harris | ||
| ______________________________ | ||
| Speaker of the House | ||
| I certify that H.R. No. 2292 was adopted by the House on May | ||
| 29, 2023, by a non-record vote. | ||
| ______________________________ | ||
| Chief Clerk of the House | ||
