Brian Shannon, a native of San Antonio, Texas, moved with his family to San Angelo in 1968, and graduated from San Angelo Central High School in 1977.
Then, after completing all degree requirements in two years, Shannon received a B.S. degree summa cum laude from Angelo State University in 1979, when he was also awarded the Presidential Award for the Outstanding Graduate. He then attended the University of Texas School of Law, graduating first in his class in 1982.
In January of 1983, Shannon began working for the Office of the General Counsel to the Secretary of the Air Force in Washington, D.C. After returning to Texas in 1986, Shannon was an associate with the Austin, Texas, law firm of Hughes & Luce.
In 1988, Shannon began his sixteen year career as a Professor at the Texas Tech University School of Law in Lubbock, Texas, where he has served as Associate Dean for Programs and Associate Dean for Student Affairs. Since 2001, Shannon has served as Associate Dean for Academic Affairs.
Over the past several years, Dean Shannon has distinguished himself with his commitment to furthering opportunities for people with disabilities through research and advocacy. His desire to confront these issues with such intensity is fueled in part by individuals close to him who have faced disabilities.
In 2000, on a pro bono basis, Shannon prepared and filed amicus curiae briefs in the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals and the United States Supreme Court on behalf of the K-T Support Group in PGA Tour, Inc. v. Casey Martin. The case was an ADA dispute involving cart use for Casey Martin, a golfer diagnosed with Klippel-Trenaunay Syndrome, an abnormal development of blood vessels that often happens pre-birth. The Supreme Court ultimately ruled 7-2 in favor of Mr. Martin.
In 2002, Shannon was appointed by the Texas Lt. Governor to serve on a task force relating to criminal competency issues. The work of the task force was enacted into law effective Jan. 1, 2004. In 2003, Texas Governor Rick Perry appointed Shannon to the Governor’s Committee on People with Disabilities. Governor Perry voiced confidence in Shannon, “We are confident that he will shoulder his duties to the Committee with the same exceptional level of devotion and professionalism which has earned him this position.”
Also, in 2002 Shannon received the 2002 Outstanding Law Review Article Award from the Texas Bar Foundation and the Mary Holdsworth Butt Award from the Texas Department of Mental Health & Mental Retardation for outstanding volunteer service. In June 2004, the Alternative Dispute Resolution Section of the State Bar of Texas bestowed the Justice Frank Evans Award to Shannon for his volunteer contributions.
Shannon has served for many year on the board for the Lubbock Regional Mental Health and Mental Retardation Center (and is the immediate past chair), and he is the vice chair (and a past chair) of the State Bar of Texas Disability Issues Committee. He has served on the boards of directors of Advocacy, Inc., the Lubbock County Bar Association, the Texas Alliance for the Mentally Ill, and the Texas Council of Community Mental Health & Mental Retardation Centers.
Shannon is the son of Jacqueline and the late Charley Shannon, a former professor, coach, and head of the ASU Kinesiology Department. Shannon and his wife, Jeannine, a 1981 Angelo State University graduate, have one daughter, Julia, a junior high school student.
As profiled in the 2004 Fall Alumni Magazine.
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