Phillip Page and Mark E. Steiner, Ph. D., have taught thousands of aspiring lawyers during their tenure as faculty members at South Texas College of Law Houston. Both professors retired this year after having spent more than three decades in the classroom. Prof. Page began at South Texas Law 39 years ago; Dr. Steiner taught at South Texas for 34 years.
While the South Texas Community is happy for these two, they will be missed by all. We invite colleagues, students, and alumni to leave comments, fond memories, and well wishes at: https://www.stcl.edu/steiner-and-page/
Professor Phillip Page: A Long and Interesting Venture
Professor Phillip Page taught contracts and intellectual property classes at STCL Houston starting in 1984. Although he has retired from the classroom, he will continue to offer his legal expertise and guidance in the Trademarks/IP Clinic that is part of the Randall O. Sorrels Clinics. Recently, Prof. Page put together some of his thoughts on the last 39 years.
“When recently viewing the decanal portrait array on the second floor, I realized that I had been here long enough to have served under MOST of the deans that STCL has ever had. This has been a long and interesting venture. Since I have spent, in essence, my entire adult life here I may lack the perspective to compare this trip to some other I might have taken. But it has been a hell of a ride.
As for most of us in this profession, I think first of the many students I have been able to work with over the years. I know it is a cliché, but I have learned from them and am grateful. While their knowledge base coming into law school may not yet be vast, their energy, curiosity, and concern were often impressive, and I hope contagious.
I have been very lucky in the teaching duties that have been mine. When I came here in 1984 nobody on the faculty had ever focused on intellectual property. I was given IP carte blanche so long as I taught contracts pretty much every term. At the time I thought this was just a bargain struck so I could pursue copyright, trademark, and such. It proved to be otherwise, for which I shall always be grateful.
I have been especially blessed since none of my students were either forced into my courses because of a dipping GPA, nor resentfully enduring bar material that would soon come to haunt them. They were either in IP courses (none of which are bar related) because of professional interest or in contracts on the first day of law school. And here they were eager and open-eyed to discover “contracts” was not a course in drafting insurance clauses, learning to put every “whereas” and “heretofore” in the right place. Rather it was the basis for all transactions in a civilized society. While the IP courses were always exciting and changing with developing technology, the delight in teaching contracts never faded.
Each class was new and presented its own challenge and delight. So, to answer your question, contracts was undoubtedly my favorite course, and each academic year gave me a new chance to see their faces brighten with understanding (usually around week 5).
Because a lot of my career was focused on IP issues, this meant being engaged with music, art, advertising, theatre, and other cultural endeavors. For many years I was involved with Texas Accountants and Lawyers for the Arts, a pro bono organization offering services to artists and arts organizations. It was always rewarding to see how a little help could mean the world to folks who could not otherwise sort their affairs.
As for what I shall miss most being out of regular rotation, the answer is two things. Obviously, the student engagement has been a kick, but also the day-to-day work with my colleagues on faculty and staff. While I hope not to lose touch with everyone in this wonderful community, I know that I shall no longer have quite the same chance to tease Mandi, spar with Alicia, gossip with Monica, or top Dr. Steiner snark for snark.
Back in February when my retirement from the full-time faculty became official, I sent around a little email salute trying to say how much South Texas has meant to me. Aside from family and a few close friends, this school has been the center of my life since 1984. While my wife and I do now intend to travel, cook, garden, volunteer, and do other rewarding things, nothing that now comes my way will be better than my life at STCL. – Cheers.”
Dr. Mark E. Steiner: A Rewarding and Gratifying Experience
Dr. Steiner’s thoughts about his 34-year career at STCL Houston, in Q&A format, follow:
Q: What does it mean to you that you had the opportunity to educate and influence hundreds – more likely thousands – of law students over the years?
A: It’s been very rewarding teaching the students at South Texas and very gratifying to see them succeed in the practice of law.
Q: What was your favorite course to teach, and why?
A: My favorite courses to teach were Texas Pretrial Procedure and Consumer Transactions, both of which, until recently, were tested on the Texas bar exam. I knew I would be helping students pass the bar exam and would be teaching them two subjects that most Texas lawyers would find useful to know.
Q: What service opportunities opened to you because you were a law professor at South Texas — and how did that service impact your life?
A: For the last 15 years, I’ve been able to do pro bono immigration legal services for local non-profits like BakerRipley and Catholic Charities and will continue to do so in my retirement. It’s been a very meaningful experience to know I’ve positively impacted the lives of immigrants in Houston.
Q: What did you most look forward to when each new academic year started?
A: When the academic year started, I wasn’t behind yet, which was a great and short-lived feeling.
Q: What will you miss most about being a full-time law professor?
A: I’ll miss regularly seeing and conversating with colleagues like Derek Fincham, Mandi Gibson, Phillip Page, Shelby Moore, Monica Ortale, Louie Rodriguez, Chris Rogers, and Pete Wisniowski. And I’ll really miss working at a place where the first person I saw every morning was Jerome Crews!
Q: What honor or recognition that you received over the years meant the most to you and why?
A:
- I was very happy to be the school’s faculty nominee for the inaugural Pro Bono Honor Roll of the American Association of Law Schools.
- I was very proud to twice to be recognized for the AALS teaching excellence awards for the school because it meant I was fulfilling my primary mission as a law professor.
- I’m proudest of getting one particular student evaluation after teaching Legal Writing in my first semester as a full-time professor. The student said, “He teached me real good how to write.”
Q: What else would you like to share that I didn’t ask?
A: I first taught at South Texas in the summer of 1989 as an adjunct professor teaching Legal Writing to an entering class that started in the summer. The new dean sensibly decided that adjuncts shouldn’t be teaching first-year courses. Although my services were no longer needed as an adjunct, I was then asked to teach full-time that fall. (I taught 300 students that academic year!) I chose not to return the following year because I wanted to finish my doctorate in history. That put the school in a bind for covering the LRW classes, so I was asked to teach one section as an adjunct, which I agreed to do. This meant I was hired twice to replace myself.
