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2006 inductees
- Dr. Shirley Neeley, Education
- Kathleen Foster, Leadership
- Dr. Ellen Vitetta, Health/Health Research
- Amanda Dunbar, Arts
Dr. Shirley Neeley, Education
Despite 35 years in education - and counting - Dr. Shirley Neeley will never forget the beginning of the 2005 - 06 school year. Within a month, she faced and overcame her biggest professional challenge, and benefited 46,500 students and the state of Texas overall.
When Hurricanes Katrina and Rita hit the Gulf Coast in August and September of 2005, the former caused one of the largest migrations of Americans within the past century, while the latter devastated a smaller section of the upper Texas coast, where small towns and close-knit communities depend upon their schools as unifying institutions. As Texas Commissioner of Education, Dr. Neeley was charged with ensuring that almost 50,000 new students find Texas schools ready to receive them.
During the twin disasters that befell Texas and its neighboring states, Dr. Neeley traveled not only around the state, but also to Louisiana to meet with educators there about what Texas might do to help their children. For weeks, she kept long hours and held daily progress meetings, making herself constantly and consistently accessible.
Ultimately, Dr. Neeley and her devoted team of educational leaders provided Texas schools with a clear vision and purpose in opening their doors to new students, and in doing so, helped return a sense of normalcy and security to those transplanted children's disrupted lives.
Dr. Neeley began her education career in 1971 as an elementary-school teacher in Pasadena Independent School District. She taught there for three years, then left for a year to have her daughter, Brandy, and complete her Master of Science degree. Within eight years, she rose through the ranks to assistant principal, then principal, and eventually, to Superintendent of Galena ISD - the same district she had grown up in.
During her ten-year term as superintendent, Dr. Neeley built a cohesive administrative team and improved student performance, culminating with the district becoming Texas' largest exemplary school district from 2002 to 2004. Additionally, in 2003, Dr. Neeley was named the State of Texas' Superintendent of the Year, Region IV Superintendent of the Year, and Educator of the Month by Texas School Business magazine.
Named Texas Commissioner of Education in 2004 by Governor Rick Perry,
Dr. Neeley serves as head of the Texas Education Agency and is responsible for overseeing more than 1,035 school districts and 200 charter schools, educating 4.4-million Texas schoolchildren. The self-described "head cheerleader for Texas schools," Dr. Neeley's approach has been characterized by her high energy, high expectations, and complete commitment to doing what's best for our kids. Dr. Neeley is dedicated to every Texas child receiving a first class education, so that they can become both productive citizens and lifelong learners.
Kathleen Foster, Leadership
It was 1982, and Kathleen Foster had $500 and a dream. She had spent eight years working with the mentally ill and homeless and discovered a serious need: parents trying to deal with their own homelessness, mental illness, chemical abuse or joblessness could not provide adequately for their children, so those children needed help, too. Kathleen Foster, with her friend Bill Jones, rented a house in a poor section of Houston and began taking in these young children in crisis, providing them with a safe home. They called it Casa de Esperanza de los Niños - the House of Hope for Children.
Ms. Foster's original plan was to care for the children short-term, until their parents got back on their feet. But the magnitude of the problem soon became clear as more and more children appeared, traumatized by abuse or neglect, many of them physically fragile or emotionally disturbed. Casa de Esperanza grew out of necessity, eventually incorporating into a nonprofit agency with Ms. Foster as director.
Today, Ms. Foster directs an organization with a full-time staff of 45, a volunteer force of over 400, and an annual budget of more than $2 million. Every year, Casa de Esperanza provides a multi-faceted, comprehensive program for hundreds of traditionally difficult to serve children, ranging from birth to age six.
Casa de Esperanza's Residential Program provides the highest quality foster care through nine agency foster homes and over 40 community-based foster homes. Casa Caseworkers help parents get the right treatment and services to provide a stable home. The in-house medical clinic provides medical evaluation and treatment for the children, while the Children's Development Center provides psychological, psychiatric and developmental evaluation and therapy. Casa de Esperanza's after-care and outreach program supports families during children's transition back into their homes, while adoption and post-adoption programs serve children who can't return to their biological families.
Casa Academy offers school-age children a flexible, less stressful educational environment. Through the generosity of major donors, a scholarship program has recently been established to help former Casa de Esperanza children attend a college, university or technical/vocational school. All services are provided free of charge, and the organization's budget is raised from only private sources, with no government funding.
Twenty years ago, as the AIDS epidemic emerged, Ms. Foster expanded Casa de Esperanza's mission to include HIV-positive children. It was among the first agencies nationwide to recognize and respond to this growing need, and today, has been serving these children longer than any other agency nationwide.
To date, under Ms. Foster's leadership, Casa de Esperanza has served over 2,000 indigent children and their families, and has facilitated more than 185 special-needs adoptions. Through her dedication to breaking the cycle of abuse and neglect, Ms. Foster has not only improved the lives of thousands of Texas children, but also diminished future societal costs. Every year, Ms. Foster and Casa de Esperanza save Texas taxpayers thousands of dollars by providing whole-child care for a minimal amount, for children who otherwise might be confined to a hospital, nursing home or psychiatric facility.
Ms. Foster's commitment has extended beyond her professional life and into her own home, where she is the mother of six adopted children. So whenever she talks with single or adoptive parents, Ms. Foster can relate to their parenting struggles and challenges at a very personal level. Ms. Foster 's personal passion and insightful guidance have led to changed lives and new hope for many Texas children who have suffered from abuse, neglect or HIV.
Dr. Ellen Vitetta, Health/Health Research
Dr. Ellen Vitetta is an internationally acclaimed scientist, educator and academic leader. To say her achievements in science and medicine are impressive is a severe understatement; to her colleagues, her students and the public at-large, Dr. Vitetta and her accomplishments are nothing less than awe-inspiring.
Based at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical School in Dallas, Dr. Vitetta is a professor of microbiology, director of the Cancer Immunology Center, and holder of the Scheryle Simmons Patigian Distinguished Chair in Cancer Immunology.
She was the first female biomedical scientist from Texas ever elected to the most prestigious American honorific society for research excellence, the National Academy of Sciences.
A world-renowned immunologist, Dr. Vitetta pioneered the development of immunotoxins for the treatment of disease - especially lymphoma, breast cancer and AIDS. Immunotoxins act like a "smart bomb" among diseased cells, finding and destroying them without damaging the surrounding cells or tissue. Dr. Vitetta is also developing vaccines to protect against agents of biological warfare.
The author of more than 475 scientific articles, Dr. Vitetta is also one of the top ten female scientists in any scientific field in terms of how often other scientists refer to her publications. She has been honored by a long list of awards, including repeatedly receiving the Outstanding Faculty Teaching Award at Southwestern Medical School.
Dr. Vitetta is an extraordinary teacher and a dedicated advocate for advancing the careers of women in science and medicine. She has served as a thesis mentor for 25 Ph.D. or M.D./Ph.D. students and 58 postdoctoral fellows, about half of whom have been young women. One of her former graduate students, Dr. Linda Buck, won the 2004 Nobel Prize in Medicine or Physiology. Another student, Dr. Francis Ligler, was elected to the National Academy of Engineering as one of its very few female members.
Additionally, Dr. Vitetta chaired the school's Women in Science and Medicine Advisory Committee (WISMAC) for ten years. WISMAC was instrumental in creating an on-site childcare center and an endowed annual visiting professorship by a distinguished female scientist/physician, improving campus safety, and achieving salary equity for men and women. She has also participated in programs to encourage young women in high school and college to pursue careers in science, medicine and engineering.
Dr. Vitetta earned her Bachelor of Arts degree at Connecticut College, and her advanced degrees from New York University Medical and Graduate Schools. She is an active member of many organizations, including American Women in Science, the American Association of Cancer Research and the American Association of Immunologists, where she served as elected president of its 6,000 members in 1994. Her distinguished career in science and medicine not only helps strengthen the health and well-being of us all, but also helps inspire and motivate young women to follow in her remarkable footsteps.
Amanda Dunbar, Arts
When Amanda Dunbar enrolled in an after-school art class at 13, she never expected it would lead to two appearances on The Oprah Winfrey Show, million-dollar commissions, or help for thousands of children nationwide. But from the moment Ms. Dunbar picked up a paintbrush for the first time and created the portrait "Mother's Touch," everything about Amanda Dunbar's amazing talent, incredible career and inspirational generosity has exceeded expectations.
Born in Canada, Ms. Dunbar moved with her family to Allen, Texas , at the age of 12. A year later, she discovered her natural-born gift, and began painting in earnest. By 16, Ms. Dunbar had several sell-out art exhibitions and an understanding that her art could help people. Following the Columbine tragedy, Ms. Dunbar created the painted image "Angel Alliance" to symbolize her belief that all humans are spiritually connected. She then decided to also create a charity called Amanda's Angel Alliance, intended to empower young people to express themselves through the arts, rather than through violence. Ms. Dunbar's Angel Alliance uses its contributions - more than $500,000 to date - to support schools' and youth programs' curriculum and purchase art materials, so they can offer children the opportunity to express themselves through art.
Additionally, Ms. Dunbar works extensively on behalf of other charitable organizations. As an ambassador for the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, Ms. Dunbar has advocated for young victims of abduction and sexual exploitation, and has helped raise awareness and support of the organization. She also contributed her painting, "The Sprinkler," which the Center chose to represent the group's annual Hope Awards and Congressional Breakfast honoring exceptional law-enforcement teams and their efforts on behalf of children. Ms. Dunbar has worked for five years with Wednesday's Child, helping raise almost $200,000 to improve the lives of thousands of Texas foster children. She also helped the Texas Medical Association Foundation reach a new fundraising record at its Be Wise - Immunize campaign gala; with her donation of a specially commissioned painting, Ms. Dunbar helped provide important immunizations for 27,000 Texas children.
Following the tragic events of September 11th, Ms. Dunbar became a naturalized U.S. citizen. She created "9/11 M.I.A.," and released a print of the painting to her Gift That Gives Back program, which benefits the heroes of September 11th and her Angel Alliance. Proceeds went toward youth antiviolence efforts, and for every print sold, a sister print was given to the fire, police, EMS or hospital of the buyer's choice.
Ms. Dunbar holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in art history from Southern Methodist University, graduating cum laude with honors and distinction. She has studied in Italy , France , Brazil and Fiji . Ms. Dunbar has sold millions of dollars' worth of her art, and has donated more than a half-million dollars through her paintings.
Ultimately, Amanda Dunbar paints what matters to people, and is helping children here in Texas and across the country understand that they are important, and to see their potential through the inspiration, tools and role modeling she provides.