TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — The University of Alabama School of Law announced today a $1.5 million gift from Hugh F. Culverhouse Jr., a trial attorney, investor and land owner in Sarasota, Florida.
The gift will establish the Hugh F. Culverhouse, Jr. Chair in Constitutional Law and will serve as a foundation for a center for constitutional studies. Culverhouse’s father, Hugh F. Culverhouse Sr., is a 1947 graduate of Alabama Law.
The younger Culverhouse said his desire to fund an endowed chair in constitutional law springs from his love of the Constitution and his respect for Mark E. Brandon, dean of Alabama Law, “who has devoted his life to the study and teaching of the U.S. Constitution.”
“My love comes from being a trial lawyer since 1975 and seeing the document live in my work as a federal prosecutor and as a federal criminal defense attorney,” he said. “As I matured, I realized the importance of the Constitution in providing checks and balances in governing this nation. This document is ever moving in its interpretation and yet never moving in its principles.”
Campus leaders applauded Culverhouse, his gift to Alabama Law and his generous support of The University of Alabama.
“Mr. Culverhouse has proven himself a committed friend and supporter of the Capstone. We are incredibly grateful for his continued generosity, and we look forward to seeing the lasting impact of this gift in our students’ lives, on our campus and beyond,” said UA President Stuart R. Bell.
Brandon said the gift will allow Alabama Law “to train future lawyers for the highest levels of practice, cultivate leadership in constitutional democracy, and enhance the well-being of the University, state and nation.”
“For many years, and across a wide range of projects and commitments, Hugh Culverhouse has shown himself to be a person of exceptional vision, depth and generosity,” Brandon said. “I am in awe of his philanthropy and deeply moved by his friendship with the School of Law.”
Culverhouse has donated more than $7 million to The University of Alabama Culverhouse College of Commerce and Business Administration. In 2015, he donated a total of $2,522,000 to the Crimson Tide Foundation, with $2,250,000 going to a women’s golf scholarship in honor of his mother, Joy McCann Culverhouse, a 1942 UA graduate who starred as a golfer.
About the UA School of Law
One of America’s leading public law schools and consistently ranked as one of the best values in legal education, The University of Alabama School of Law offers a challenging curriculum with over 150 electives, several dual enrollment opportunities, Master of Laws degrees, and a J.S.D. With a student-to-faculty ratio of 8.7:1, the Law School offers students a rigorous, hands-on learning experience, with strong student engagement in clinical programs, legal journals, moot court teams and trial advocacy.
Contact
Monique Fields, manager of communications, UA School of Law, 205-348-5195, mfields@law.ua.edu