For immediate release, April 7, 2023
STCL Houston Founder’s Day Celebrates its 100 Years of Excellence in Legal Education; Community Invited April 13 for Centennial Commemoration, State of the Law School Address, History Installation
South Texas College of Law Houston — Houston’s oldest law school — will highlight 100 years of excellence in legal education during its April 13 Centennial Founder’s Day Celebration. The community is invited to this momentous occasion.
“STCL Houston has been a significant contributor to Houston and to Texas for 100 years,” said President and Dean Michael F. Barry. “More than 16,000 legal professionals – federal and state appellate and trial judges, litigators and transactional attorneys, prosecutors and defense counsel, corporate counsel and public interest attorneys, and leaders in government and in industry – credit South Texas with preparing them for a lifetime of successful practice and service. We look forward to your presence to help us mark this momentous occasion.”
As the program begins at 9 a.m., STCL Houston Board of Director Chair Genora K. Boykins ’85 will welcome guests. The event’s highlight will be Dean Barry’s state of the law school multi-media presentation, “STCL at 100.” He is STCL Houston’s 11th dean.
Special proclamations will be presented by Texas Supreme Court Chief Justice Nathan L. Hecht U.S. Representative Sheila Jackson Lee, Harris County Commissioner Rodney Ellis, City Councilman Robert Gallegos, and Mayor Sylvester Turner. Other guest speakers include U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Jennifer Walker Elrod, State Bar of Texas President Laura Gibson, YMCA of Greater Houston President and CEO Stephen Ives, Executive Director Betty Balli Torres of the Texas Access to Justice Foundation, Baylor Law Dean Bradley J.B. Toben, and Vinson & Elkins Partner David Oelman — the great-grand nephew of STCL Houston’s founding dean, the Honorable Joseph C. Hutcheson, Jr.
A number of national and state officials will be featured in recorded remarks, including Governor Greg Abbott, Texas Representative and STCL Houston alumna Ann Johnson, and U.S. Senators John Cornyn and Ted Cruz. After the Dean Barry’s address concludes, guests are invited to an open house and self-guided tours of “A Century on Display,” a history installation in the atrium focused on the law school’s centennial theme of honoring the past, celebrating the present, and building the future. Learn more at stcl.edu/centennial.
STCL Houston was established by influential Houstonians in 1923 to meet a pressing need for capable attorneys to serve a growing city. Over succeeding generations, visionary leaders, committed faculty and staff, and dedicated students and alumni have laid a strong foundation for the mission-driven law school. Focused on diversity, opportunity, excellence, and service, South Texas is ready to embark on a great second century.
“We have a unique opportunity before us at this 100-year mark,” Barry said. “We are anchored in the impressive legacy of the school’s past, and we are pursuing innovative strategies that will equip the next generation of South Texas law graduates to be ready for a future we cannot yet see clearly. We will continue the tradition of preparing attorneys who are ready to meet the ever-evolving legal needs of their diverse communities.”
EVENT: Centennial Founder’s Day for South Texas College of Law Houston
WHAT: Community event to celebrate Centennial of Houston’s oldest law school
WHEN: 8 a.m. to Noon, Thursday, April 13; program begins at 9 a.m.
WHERE: STCL Houston campus, 1303 San Jacinto St., Houston, Texas 77002
RSVP: stcl.edu/foundersday; media calls may be directed to Pamela Gibbs-Smith, 713-646-1799, or Michelle Morris, 713-646-1794
