South Texas College of Law Houston honored Dean Emeritus James “Jim” Alfini during Tuesday’s re-dedication ceremony of its highly successful and well-regarded Frank Evans Center for Dispute Resolution.
Former students, colleagues, and practitioners from around the state of Texas, along with other honored guests, gathered to recognize Alfini’s key role in opening the center in 2004 and to celebrate the many accomplishments of the students, faculty, staff, and alumni since that time.
Interim Dean and President Jeff Rensberger welcomed the crowd and received a Congressional proclamation to honor Alfini from the office of the late U.S. Congressmember Sylvester Turner.
Frank Evans Center Director and Professor of Law Debra Berman, said, “Dean Alfini was instrumental in opening this center and bringing a spotlight to the world of dispute resolution nationwide. As the past chair of both the dispute resolution section of the American Bar Association and the American Association of Law schools, he has made a lasting impact on dispute resolution. He also has been its champion here at South Texas College of Law Houston.”
Berman credited Alfini’s hard work and reputation with elevating South Texas Law’s status nationally. “He solidified the law school’s standing as a premier institution for practical dispute resolution education,” she said.
A plaque is now proudly displayed in the Frank Evans Center that reads: “In grateful recognition of Dean Emeritus James Alfini, with thanks for his extraordinary service to South Texas College of Law Houston, and appreciation for the vision, dedication, and intellect he brought to this center.”
During the event, Alfini offered a brief history of the Frank Evans Center’s development, giving credit and thanks to the many former colleagues who helped make it a reality.
“I am so proud of the center and what it’s done,” he said. “It did not put South Texas on the map, but it helped keep us on the map. Thank you all for being here, for recognizing the center, and for recognizing Debra’s efforts. This has been a terrific evening.”
About the Franks Evans Center for Dispute Resolution
Originally established as the Center for Legal Responsibility, and now known as The Frank Evans Center for Dispute Resolution, it has been growing in scope and reputation for the last two decades. Since its inception, more than 2,000 students have taken a dispute resolution course, and more than 300 students have taken the mediation clinic. In the past decade, nearly 200 practicing attorneys and members of the judiciary have taken the center’s 40-hour comprehensive mediation training, sitting alongside South Texas Law’s students in an unprecedented teaching approach. Hundreds of students have competed in dispute resolution competitions, bringing home 25 first place wins. Approximately 4,500 students from 56 law schools have participated in STCL Houston’s Inter-School Negotiation Practicum.
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