H. Res. 684 

In the House of Representatives, U. S., 

September 23, 2009. 

Whereas in 1867, shortly after the end of the Civil War, with 

funds provided by the Freedman’s Bureau, Howard Normal and Theological Institute was established; 

Whereas the following year, the Board of Trustees voted to 

expand the institute’s curriculum and change the name 

to Howard University; 

Whereas in 1869, Howard University School of Law, which 

shares Howard University’s founding principles: Veritas 

et Utilitas (Truth and Service), was opened in an effort 

to address the great need to train lawyers who would 

have a strong commitment to helping African-Americans 

secure and protect their newly established rights granted 

by the 13th and 14th amendments to the Constitution; 

Whereas Howard Law School is the first law school dedicated 

to the education of African-Americans; 

Whereas Howard Law School’s original faculty members were 

former Dean of the Law School, John Mercer Langston, 

and the Honorable Albert Gallatin Riddle; 

Whereas John Mercer Langston, the namesake of Langston 

University, was the first African-American Member of the 

House of Representatives from the State of Virginia, representing Virginia’s 4th district, and former President of 
2 

•HRES 684 EH 

Virginia Normal and Collegiate Institute (presently 

known as Virginia State University); 

Whereas the Honorable Albert Gallatin Riddle, former Member of the 37th Congress, was an abolitionist and novelist; 

Whereas Charlotte E. Ray (class of 1872) was not only the 

first African-American female graduate of Howard Law 

School, but was also the first African-American female to 

practice law in the District of Columbia; 

Whereas James C. Napier (class of 1872), who was invited 

to attend Howard Law School by Dean John Mercer 

Langston, served as President William H. Taft’s Registrar of the Treasury, and is 1 of 5 African-Americans 

whose signature has appeared on currency of the United 

States; 

Whereas Robert H. Terrell (class of 1889) was the first African-American municipal judge for the District of Columbia; 

Whereas former Dean of Howard Law School, William Henry 

Hastie, became the first African-American Governor of 

the United States Virgin Islands, the first African-American Federal magistrate judge, and the first AfricanAmerican to be appointed as a Federal circuit court 

judge; 

Whereas former Vice Dean, Charles Hamilton Houston, widely known as, ‘‘the man who killed Jim Crow’’, was known 

to remark to his students that, ‘‘a lawyer is either a social engineer or a parasite on society * * *’’; 

Whereas Howard Law School served as the training ground 

and planning site for the lawyers who, through Brown v. 
3 

•HRES 684 EH 

Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas, rejected the notion that separate education equates to equal education; 

Whereas civil rights attorneys Oliver Hill (class of 1933) and 

co-counsel, Spottswood Robinson III (class of 1939), 

were attorneys for the plaintiffs in Davis v. County 

School Board of Prince Edward County, which was 1 of 

5 cases consolidated with Brown v. Board of Education 

of Topeka, Kansas; 

Whereas Thurgood Marshall (class of 1933) was the lead litigator to argue Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, 

Kansas, before the Supreme Court, and was later named 

Associate Justice on the Supreme Court; 

Whereas Damon Keith (class of 1949) is currently a senior 

judge for the United States Court of Appeals for the 

Sixth Circuit; 

Whereas Harris Wofford (class of 1954) is a former Senator 

from Pennsylvania and was a civil rights advisor to President John F. Kennedy; 

Whereas former Mayor of Richmond, Virginia, L. Douglas 

Wilder (class of 1959), was the first African-American 

elected as Governor in the United States; 

Whereas Vernon Jordan (class of 1960), former advisor to 

President Bill Clinton, noted that at Howard Law 

School, he found, ‘‘a wife, a career, and a reaffirmation 

of [his] faith in the mission of black people’’, and that 

his time at Howard, ‘‘saved [his] soul’’; 

Whereas Roland Burris (class of 1963) is a Member of the 

United States Senate; 

Whereas Gabrielle McDonald (class of 1966), Howard University Trustee Emerita, serves as an Arbitrator on the 

Iran-United States Claims Tribunal, is a former presi-
4 

•HRES 684 EH 

dent and judge of the International Criminal Tribunal for 

the former Yugoslavia, formerly served as a judge for the 

United States District Court for the Southern District of 

Texas and was elected to the ‘‘Texas Woman’s Hall of 

Fame’’; 

Whereas former Dean and professor at Howard Law School, 

J. Clay Smith (class of 1967), who was appointed by 

President Jimmy Carter in 1978 and President Ronald 

Reagan in 1981 to serve on the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, in the capacities of Commissioner 

and Acting Chairman, is the author of ‘‘Emancipation: 

The Making of the Black Lawyer 1844–1944’’ and 

‘‘Rebels in Law: Voices in History of Black Women Lawyers’’, and the editor of ‘‘Supreme Justice: Speeches and 

Writings’’, written by Thurgood Marshall; 

Whereas Wiley Daniel (class of 1971) was the first AfricanAmerican appointed as a judge for the United States 

District Court for the District of Colorado; 

Whereas Isaiah Leggett (class of 1974) is the County Executive for Montgomery County, Maryland; 

Whereas Jack Johnson (class of 1975) is the County Executive for Prince George’s County, Maryland; 

Whereas the recent addition of Vicky Miles-LeGrange (class 

of 1977) as Chief Judge of the United States District 

Court for the Western District of Oklahoma evidences 

the ongoing commitment of the faculty and staff of Howard Law School to equip alumni with the necessary tools 

to succeed at every level; 

Whereas Gregory Meeks (class of 1978) is a Member of the 

United States House of Representatives; 
5 

•HRES 684 EH 

Whereas former District of Columbia Mayors, Walter Washington (class of 1948) and Sharon Pratt Kelly (class of 

1968), and current Mayor, Adrian Fenty (class of 1996), 

are alumni of Howard Law School; 

Whereas Howard Law School is one of a select group of law 

schools that can boast having as alumni a Supreme Court 

Justice, numerous Federal and State judges, Members of 

both the House of Representatives and the Senate, a 

Governor, and several Mayors; 

Whereas the Princeton Review ranks Howard Law School’s 

faculty as the most diverse law school faculty in the Nation; 

Whereas Spencer Boyer, a Professor at Howard Law School, 

has 38 years of service, which makes him one of the most 

senior African-American law professors in the United 

States; 

Whereas the competitive efforts of the Huver I. Brown Trial 

Advocacy Moot Court Team, the Charles Hamilton Houston National Moot Court Team, and the Goler Teal 

Butcher International Moot Court Team are evidence of 

Howard Law School’s dedication to the vigorous training 

of zealous advocates; 

Whereas Howard Law School’s curriculum, which includes a 

study abroad program in Cape Town, South Africa, the 

Civil Rights Clinic, the Fair Housing Clinic, the World 

Food Law Institute, and the Institute of Intellectual 

Property and Social Justice, demonstrates an aggressive 

commitment to provide relevant hands-on instruction in 

an ever-evolving legal environment; 

Whereas for 10 years, through the Marshall-Brennan Constitutional Literacy Project, law students in the Howard 
6 

•HRES 684 EH 

University School of Law student-fellows program teach 

constitutional law in public high schools in the District 

of Columbia; 

Whereas Howard Law School’s comparatively low tuition and 

aggressive career services staff helped the school achieve 

a ranking of third on the Vault.com’s list of the most underrated law schools in the Nation; 

Whereas Howard Law School has contributed robustly to society through the education of attorneys who have gone 

on to serve the world in countless public and private capacities; and 

Whereas there is no greater illustration of Howard Law 

School’s motto, ‘‘Leadership for America and the Global 

Community’’, than the faculty, staff, students, and alumni of Howard University School of Law: Now, therefore, 

be it 

Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 

(1) recognizes Howard University School of Law’s 

profound achievements and unwavering commitment to 

social justice for all people; 

(2) encourages the continued dedication to the firstrate training of social engineers; and 

(3) congratulates Howard University President, 

Sidney A. Ribeau, Ph.D., Howard University School of 

Law Dean, Kurt L. Schmoke, J.D., and the faculty, 
7 

•HRES 684 EH 

staff, students, and alumni of Howard Law School on 

the momentous occasion of its 140th anniversary. 

Attest: 

Clerk.