South Texas College of Law Houston (STCL Houston) recently hired two new professors, adding to its 50-strong, full-time faculty.
Beginning in fall 2021, Ryan H. Nelson and D’Andra Millsap Shu will teach civil procedure and legal research and writing, respectively.
“I am delighted to welcome assistant professors Ryan Nelson and D’Andra Shu to the South Texas College of Law Houston family,” said Michael F. Barry, president and dean of STCL Houston. “Each is an exceptional scholar and teacher. They also bring a wealth of professional experience to their new roles at our law school. But what makes D’Andra and Ryan special is their commitment to their students and to the STCL Houston mission of excellence, service, opportunity, and diversity, both within our own community and in the legal profession.”
Before joining STCL Houston as an assistant professor of law, Nelson completed a research fellowship with the Harvard Law School Project on Disability, and he also taught on the adjunct faculty at Boston University School of Law, New England Law | Boston, and New York Law School.
Nelson earned an LL.M. from Harvard Law School, where he was awarded the Irving Oberman Memorial Prize for Best Paper on Law and Social Change. He is a cum laude graduate of the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law at Yeshiva University, where he served on the editorial board of the Moot Court Honor Society, and he received a B.S.B.A. in economics from the University of Florida.
“I’m thrilled to be joining South Texas!” said Nelson. “I was born and raised on the Gulf Coast in Tampa, Florida, so moving down south feels a lot like a homecoming for me. I’ve been an educator for years, so what drew me to South Texas was its unparalleled dedication to teaching, not to mention its commitment to diversity and practical legal training. At the same time, my husband had the opportunity to join Texas Children’s Hospital as a pediatric cardiac intensivist, so the stars aligned for us to relocate to Houston and become part of the South Texas family.”
Prior to joining the STCL Houston faculty as an assistant professor of law, Shu taught legal writing and served as the co-director of the Legal Writing program at Thurgood Marshall School of Law at Texas Southern University. Her legal expertise includes legal research and writing, appellate litigation, and disability law. Before becoming an educator, Shu practiced employment law and general trial and appellate litigation at the firms of Baker Botts and Morgan, Lewis & Bockius, both in Houston. She also worked for Justice Carolyn Dineen King on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, Justice Eva M. Guzman on the Texas Supreme Court, and Justice Leslie Brock Yates on the Fourteenth Court of Appeals in Houston.
Shu earned a J.D. summa cum laude, as valedictorian, from the University of Houston Law Center, where she served as editor-in-chief of the Houston Law Review. She is a magna cum laude graduate with a B.S. in political science from Weber State University in Ogden, Utah.
“I am so excited to bring my passion for teaching legal writing to the students of South Texas College of Law Houston,” said Shu. “Lawyers are professional writers, and mastering legal writing is the key to success in practice. I look forward to putting in the hard work with our students to help them be the best legal writers they can be. The students, staff, and faculty already have been so warm and welcoming. I’m honored to be a part of the South Texas family.”
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Ryan H. Nelson recently joined the South Texas College of Law Houston (STCL Houston) faculty as an assistant professor of law. Before joining Houston’s oldest law school, he completed a research fellowship with the Harvard Law School Project on Disability, and he also taught on the adjunct faculty at Boston University School of Law, New England Law | Boston, and New York Law School. His expertise includes employment law and discrimination. He will begin teaching civil procedure to STCL Houston students this fall. |
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D’Andra Millsap Shu recently joined the South Texas College of Law Houston (STCL Houston) faculty as an assistant professor of law. Prior to joining the STCL Houston faculty as an assistant professor of law, Shu taught legal writing and served as the co-director of the Legal Writing program at Thurgood Marshall School of Law at Texas Southern University. Her legal expertise includes legal research and writing, appellate litigation, and disability law. She will begin teaching STCL Houston students this fall. |
