Ernest A. Raba (December 1, 1912 in

San Antonio San Antonio ( ; Spanish for " Saint Anthony") is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in Greater San Antonio. San Antonio is the third-largest metropolitan area in Texas and the 24th-largest metropolitan area in the ...

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

– December 3, 2007 in San Antonio, Texas) was a dean of the St. Mary's University School of Law.

Early life

Raba was born of immigrant parents. His father, Ernst W. Raba, was a well-known photographer and artist in San Antonio, Texas. He attended grammar school at St. Joseph Parochial School, then attended St. Mary’s Academy High School, the predecessor of Central Catholic.

Early career

Raba graduated summa cum laude from

St. Mary's University, Texas St. Mary's University is a private Catholic university in San Antonio, Texas, United States. Founded by the Society of Mary (Marianists) in 1852, St. Mary's is the oldest Catholic university in Texas and the American Southwest. With a student p ...

in 1934. He then received his law degree from St. Mary's University School of Law in 1937, graduating at the top of his class. After involvement in private practice, Raba taught as an Adjunct Law Professor at St. Mary's University School of Law. In 1942, he was inducted into the Army. Soon after, he was accepted into the first Judge Advocate General’s School for service members at the

University of Michigan Law School The University of Michigan Law School (branded as Michigan Law) is the law school of the University of Michigan, a public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Founded in 1859, the school offers Master of Laws (LLM), Master of Comparati ...

. Following the JAG program, Raba served in the JAGC 8th Service Command Headquarters in Dallas. He later served as Staff Judge Advocate at Fort Polk, Louisiana.

Dean of St. Mary's Law

Shortly after his time in the service, Raba was appointed Dean of St. Mary's University School of Law in 1946. Raba oversaw the move of the law campus from downtown San Antonio to its current location at the St. Mary's University campus. Raba also helped the Law School achieve accreditation from two national accreditation bodies. In 1978, Raba retired as the longest tenured law school dean in the United States.

Honors and awards

Among many other awards, Raba received the Distinguished Alumni Award (1977); Distinguished Law Graduate Award (1982); the St. Thomas More Award (1988); and the Lifetime Achievement Award (2005). Additionally, the main faculty building on the Law School campus is named after him.buildings on the St. Mary's campus
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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Raba, Ernest 1912 births 2007 deaths Educators from San Antonio St. Mary's University, Texas alumni St. Mary's University, Texas faculty Deans of law schools in the United States 20th-century American academics