St. Thomas College of Law named after Ben Crump
Dan Dolan, chair of the Benjamin L. Crump College of Law’s advisory board, Ben Crump, a civil rights attorney, and David Armstrong, president of St. Thomas University.
The St. Thomas University College of Law is now the Benjamin L. Crump College of Law.
This is the first law school in the country named after a practicing Black attorney, according to the university. The only other law school in the country named for a Black person is named after Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall.
“The naming of the Benjamin L. Crump College of Law at St. Thomas University is the latest step in an effort to encourage bridge-building among the legal profession, law enforcement, and our communities,” said David A. Armstrong, president of St. Thomas University. “Ben and I couldn’t be more different politically, but we share a passion for justice, and the hope that by working together, we can continue to drive meaningful change. Our faith in God, and our belief in the tenets laid out by our founding fathers in the U.S. Constitution, enable us to go beyond race and politics, and focus on the work necessary to truly make the United States the home of the free, and the brave.”
Crump, a nationally known civil rights lawyer based in Tallahassee, chose to partner with St. Thomas University and its law school, in part, because it is situated in Miami, a global city replete with ethnic and racial diversity.
St. Thomas is one of the country’s most diverse law schools. It was ranked #1 “Greatest Resources for Minority Students” in the 2022 and 2023 Princeton Review Best Law Schools’ rankings, and preLaw Magazine rated it among the top-10 “Best Schools for Racial Justice” (2022) in the United States.
“It is a privilege to be a part of the St. Thomas University legacy through the Benjamin L. Crump College of Law,” Crump said. “We have come such a long way in the journey to equality, but we are not there yet. The future change-makers and civil justice leaders that will matriculate from St. Thomas will soon be passed the torch from today’s civil rights icons and I have every confidence that they will meet the moment.”
Eighty-three percent of the school’s graduates are employed or pursue an advanced degree within 10 months following their graduation, according to St. Thomas. The college of law maintains a deep commitment to serving “the poor and most vulnerable,” exhibited by its pro bono immigration and tax clinics, as well as its John J. Brunetti Human Trafficking Institute.
