South Texas College of Law Houston — long accredited by the American Bar Association (ABA) — recently received an additional accreditation from the Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE).
“Adding Middle States accreditation opens the door for us to consider new degrees beyond our excellent JD,” said South Texas Law President and Dean Reynaldo Valencia. “As the law school advances into its second century, we look forward to reaching more students by offering new programs with a legal focus.”
South Texas Law is now dually accredited by the ABA and the MSCHE.
The law school submitted extensive written documentation to the MSCHE to provide a comprehensive picture of the law school’s academic program, administrative operations, and board governance. The law school then welcomed a site-visit team from the MSCHE to inspect the law school and meet with the board, faculty, staff, and students. General Counsel and Chief Operations Officer Stephanie Maher coordinated and led the process.
Obtaining additional accreditation has been a long-term strategic goal of the law school for nearly 20 years. With accreditation from the MSCHE, the law school is now able to develop non-JD degrees and consider other partnerships and opportunities not previously available with accreditation only from the ABA.
“Adding the MSCHE accreditation will allow us to continue to open doors for individuals seeking to advance their careers and make an impact on our community,” Valencia said.
South Texas Law is an independent law school founded in 1923 to provide a legal education for working professionals. As the law school advances into its second century, it enrolls more than 1,000 students each year — primarily full-time, traditional-aged students — and it continues to develop innovative ways to prepare practice-ready attorneys who serve the profession with distinction.
