The SMU school of law has often prided itself on being”the Harvard of the South.” It has a long list ofdistinguished alumni who have changed the face of law and historyitself through their contributions. Many of these people wouldnever have been able to achieve their dreams of helping thecommunity if not for the evening classes that used to beavailable.

Three famous alumni of the evening law school program spoke atone or both of the meetings being held as a new evening law schoolprogram is being launched.

“I never would have been able to study law without it [theevening law program],” said Walt Shumann, an attorney forHunt Oil. “I had a family to support, bills to pay … Icould not give up a paying job to take classes. How would I havepaid for the classes without a job?”

Shumann is a White House Fellow who holds a MBA and law degreefrom SMU. He is also a degreed geologist. He was part of the lastevening law class.

“I campaigned for Senate during my third year whilestudying for the student bar,” Shumann said. “Mycampaign promise was to support the evening law school program. Ifeel that I’m finally being given the chance to fulfill thatpromise.”

Louise Raggio was a mother of three at the time she attended theevening law school, graduating in 1952. She is known as the personwho re-wrote family law in Texas.

Raggio, who gave one-on-one interview time after a meeting, saidthat as late as 1968, women could not own property in Texas. Shecampaigned for reform of the laws regarding the rights andtreatment of women and children in the state.

She is a practicing lawyer and advocate for an improved justicesystem. She is also the author of “Texas Tornado: TheAutobiography of a Crusader for Women’s Rights and FamilyJustice.” She will speak at the Underwood Law Library Sept.23.

Another famous alumnus of the evening program is Tom Luce of thelaw firm of Luce and Hughes. Luce, a one-time candidate for Texasgovernor, has been actively involved in the community.

While Shumann, Raggio and Luce are examples of evening lawschool success, another says he succeeded after failing the nightschool program.

William H. Grumbles entered the night school program. He didnot, however, complete the rigorous requirements or make changes tothe law. Grumbles took the training he received in the law schooland applied it in other ways in his life.

Grumbles was a senior executive in the international sales andmarketing branch of Turner Broadcasting, but his path from studentto leader was not the one he had planned. 

“My grades were south of the equator and perilously closeto the pole when I attended SMU,” Grumbles said in a Julyinterview. “I attended the law school and wanted to be alawyer.”

Grumbles had taken the LSAT and had started course work in theevening law school when his LSAT scores came in.

“That [the scores] ended that idea,” Grumbles said.”However, there was one course that I took as a senior inbusiness. It required me to invest make-believe money in stocks andcreate a profitable portfolio. I invested in this new productcalled ‘cable television.’ When I sent out resumeslooking for work, this got out. I received a call from this companythat had a new product called HBO, or Home Box Office, in 1982.Everything just took off from there.”

Grumbles said the main key to his success was his work ethic andsome of the basic reasoning processes he learned as an SMUstudent.

“I was successful because of my work efforts,”Grumbles said. “I dealt with clients from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m.then did any other work that I could during the other hours of theday. I did the jobs that no one wanted, in the places no onewanted. I figured that I may not be as smart or have the rightdegrees that other guys in the business had, but I could sureoutwork them.”

When Grumbles retired from Turner Broadcasting, there were manyfond tributes to him and his achievements.

“No one in our industry is more widely respected for hisintegrity, intellect and humanity,” said Terry McGuirk,company chairman and chief executive.

Grumbles currently serves on the board of trustees for SMU andis an active volunteer in the community.