--- title: HR 115. Alzaga, Juana P.; commend collection: bills id: 2025-2026/hr115 cite_as: HR 115, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.) canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hr115 md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hr115.md text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hr115/text source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/69691 date: 2025-01-29 status: passed corpus_version: bills-2026-09-13 license: Public record of the Georgia General Assembly, via LegiScan; see about.md publisher: Georgia Commons, an independent project of Georgia Civic Data. Not the State of Georgia. Not legal advice. up: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026.md previous: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hr114.md next: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hr116.md index: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/index.md omitted: votes and history omitted_chars: 131 omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hr115.md?full=1 bill_number: HR 115 session: 2025-2026 Regular Session session_slug: 2025-2026 chamber: House bill_type: resolution status_date: 2025-01-29 last_action: House Read and Adopted sponsors: - Karen Lupton text_version: Introduced has_text: true legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/HR115/2025 upstream_id: 1947552 summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5 topic_tags: - music education - Gwinnett County schools - DeKalb County schools - legislative commendation --- # HR 115. Alzaga, Juana P.; commend ## Text House Resolution 115 By: Representative Lupton of the 83rd A RESOLUTION Recognizing and commending Juana P. Alzaga; and for other purposes. WHEREAS, Juana P. Alzaga began her distinguished teaching career in 1978, establishing orchestra programs at Miami Edison Middle School and High School in Miami, Florida; and WHEREAS, in 1985, she joined Gwinnett County Schools and developed orchestra programs at Pinckneyville Middle School, Summerour Middle School, and Norcross High School; and WHEREAS, she conducted the Gwinnett County Festival Orchestra from 1988 to 1994 and later served as conductor of the Metropolitan Youth Symphony Orchestra, associate conductor of the Emory Junior Chamber Orchestra, and a visiting orchestra director at the Paideia School; and WHEREAS, Juana P. Alzaga pursued advanced training as a violinist and conductor at the North Carolina Conductors' Institute and the Juilliard Conductor's Institute, later becoming a sought-after clinician and adjudicator for many music organizations in metro Atlanta; and WHEREAS, in April 2021, she founded the Buford Highway Orchestra Project (BHOP) as a pilot program with 10 students, which has since grown to serve 55 young musicians from 19 DeKalb County schools; and WHEREAS, the BHOP provides after-school and weekend enrichment opportunities for disadvantaged students from third to eighth grade who reside in the Buford Highway Corridor, giving them access to music education and fostering skills, parent involvement, and community-wide engagement; and WHEREAS, Juana P. Alzaga has received numerous accolades for her contributions to music education, including the 2022 Georgia ASTA Lifetime Achievement Award and the 2023 Telemundo Community Hero Award; and WHEREAS, it is abundantly fitting and proper that the outstanding accomplishments of this remarkable and distinguished individual be appropriately recognized. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES that the members of this body recognize and commend Juana P. Alzaga for her decades of contributions on behalf of the youth of this state and beyond as well as extend the most sincere best wishes for continued health and happiness. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Clerk of the House of Representatives is authorized and directed to make an appropriate copy of this resolution available for distribution to Juana P. Alzaga. ## Summaries written by Georgia Commons The following was written by claude-sonnet-5 from the text above and is not part of the resolution. Quote the text, not the summary. A Georgia House resolution commends Juana P. Alzaga, a longtime music educator, for her decades of teaching and founding a youth orchestra program in the Buford Highway Corridor. ### Plain-language summary This is a commendation resolution from the Georgia House of Representatives, not a change to state law. It honors Juana P. Alzaga, who began teaching orchestra in 1978 and later built orchestra programs in Gwinnett County Schools starting in 1985, conducted several regional youth orchestras, and trained as a violinist and conductor at institutions including the Juilliard Conductor's Institute. The resolution highlights her founding of the Buford Highway Orchestra Project in April 2021, which grew from 10 students to 55 young musicians from 19 DeKalb County schools, serving disadvantaged students in grades three through eight. It also notes awards she has received, including the 2022 Georgia ASTA Lifetime Achievement Award and the 2023 Telemundo Community Hero Award. The House directs its Clerk to send Alzaga a copy of the resolution. ### What it does - Formally recognizes and commends Juana P. Alzaga for her career in music education in the Georgia House of Representatives. - Directs the Clerk of the House of Representatives to prepare and distribute a copy of the resolution to Alzaga. - Creates no new law, funding, or regulatory requirement, since it is a ceremonial commendation resolution. ### Who it affects The resolution directly names Juana P. Alzaga, a music educator. It also references students in the Buford Highway Orchestra Project, DeKalb County schools, and Gwinnett County Schools, though it does not impose any obligations on them. ### Why it matters The resolution has no legal or financial effect on Georgians; it serves as a public, official statement of appreciation from the Georgia House of Representatives for one individual's contributions to youth music education in metro Atlanta. ### Key provisions - The whereas clauses recount Alzaga's career, from starting orchestra programs in Miami in 1978 to joining Gwinnett County Schools in 1985. - The resolution describes her founding of the Buford Highway Orchestra Project in April 2021 and its growth to 55 students from 19 DeKalb County schools. - The resolving clause states the House commends Alzaga for her contributions on behalf of Georgia's youth. - A further resolving clause directs the Clerk of the House of Representatives to distribute a copy of the resolution to Alzaga. ## Status - Status: Passed (2025-01-29) - Last action: House Read and Adopted (2025-01-29) - Sponsors: Karen Lupton - Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/69691 > The history, votes, and amendments (131 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hr115.md?full=1