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Means Is a Quiet Mentor By Martha Deller, Fort Worth Business Press Robert Francis (left), editor for the Fort Worth Business Press, and Aric Short (right), associate dean for academic affairs and professor of law at Texas Wesleyan, present Judge Terry Means with the 2012 Texas Wesleyan University Excellence in Justice Award. 20
Terry Means was only 8 when he became hooked on politics watching the Republican and Democratic national conventions on television. By 14, Means was volunteering in his first political campaign. And he was pretty sure he wanted to go to law school. “Politics is always connected to the law,” said Means, now a U.S. district judge in Fort Worth. Because his home state of New Mexico had no law school until 1954, many lawyers in Means’ ranching community had attended Southern Methodist University in Dallas. So that’s where Means applied – unaided by a family with no college attendees. He arrived at SMU “sight unseen and scared to death,” he recalled. An experienced student government leader, Means jumped into an evolving SMU governance system, helping design the University Assembly, which spread powers among students, faculty and administrators. It took Means five years to earn a double major in political science and history. But along the way, he worked with two powerful political mentors – before they became Gov. Bill Clements and President George H.W. Bush. Clements, a member of the SMU board of trustees, appointed Means to the state appellate court in 1988. Bush, whose 1970 U.S. Senate campaign Means helped run, appointed Means to his federal bench in 1990. Means also learned to mentor other students during the height of anti-war protests and fraternity hazing while an undergraduate at SMU. “It taught me about leadership by example, trying to get young men to do what they ought to do and become better people,” he said. 21 feature story Means continues to quietly mentor young people, from law students to soccer players. Those qualities were cited by Texas Wesleyan School of Law officials who selected Means for the Excellence in Justice Award created by the school in 2009. Casey Dyer Oliver, a 2006 Wesleyan alumna who heads the school’s alumni relations and external affairs department, said Means emulates the characteristics the school promotes. Each year, Means administers an oath and offers advice to incoming Wesleyan law students. “That’s a huge moment in their lives,” Oliver said. “Judge Means opens the door for them to come to his chambers, talk about the cases. I know some alumni still have that relationship with him. He is really genuine about his caring for our students.” Means said he welcomes the opportunity to offset bad influences with good influences. He said he gladly wrote a glowing recommendation for a young attorney seeking a new position. “He’s not alone,” he said. “I don’t have time to go out and look for them. But if they happen into my life, I go out of my way to help them because I know they’re not being helped by a lot of ruthless people in this world.” Means is just as proud of the young soccer players he has coached. Boosting the confidence of an unskilled player is among his major accomplishments, he said. “Of all the things that people have called me, the one I most value is ‘Coach,’” he said. “I think there’s more impact there than just about anything you can do.”. “Of all the things that people have called me, the one I most value is ‘Coach,’ … I think there’s more impact there than just about anything you can do.”
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Page 53 and 54: Current employment: Tarrant County
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