Student Affairs Office

Dean Bangs was raised in Southern California on country music and got to Texas almost as fast as she could.

She has been the Assistant Dean for Student Affairs at Texas Law since 2013. Together with the amazing members of the Student Affairs team, Dean Bangs coordinates and supports student and academic services, co-curricular and extracurricular programming, and student-focused special events. She counsels students on a wide range of academic, personal, and professional matters and serves as one of the Law School's Title IX liaisons. She has also served on the Texas Roundtable on Lawyer Well-Being.

Dean Bangs graduated with honors from Harvard College and Harvard Law School.  Prior to joining academia, she was a judicial law clerk on the Ninth Circuit and in the Central District of California and a trial attorney in the United States Department of Justice. She then worked for a number of years as the director of legal research and writing at both Harvard Law School and the University of Oklahoma College of Law, where she also taught civil procedure and disability law. When she's not at the law school (which is rare), Dean Bangs is mom to two school-age children. She loves live music and drinks too much coffee. Her door is always open to students.

Make an appointment with Dean Bangs.

Meg Clifford is the Assistant Director of Academic Success. She supports the academic transition to law school, offers individual counseling to students who need academic support, and helps students navigate the law school experience through passing the bar.

Meg spent 10 years as a post-graduate fellow and staff attorney at Texas Law with the Mitoff Pro Bono Program and the Justice Center for Public Interest Law, where she was instrumental in developing and implementing free legal service clinics including expunction, name and gender marker changes, driver’s license recovery, and educational equity, and mentoring and supporting law students. Meg also served as a program advisor and curricula writer for the Explore Law program, and advocate and advisor to the Pipeline Program and incoming law students.

A double Longhorn, Meg earned her BA and law degree at UT Austin. Prior to law school, Meg was a teacher in The Bronx, New York. Ask her about breakfast tacos, podcasts and books that have nothing to do with law school, and what it was like to be there when Texas Football won the National Championship.

Make an appointment with Meg.

Hong Tran Escobar serves as Assistant Director of Student Affairs & Community Engagement in the School of Law. In addition to providing academic advising to 1/3 of the class, she supports student organizations and affinity groups with a focus on equity and inclusion.

Prior to joining the Student Affairs team, Hong worked as the Law School Admissions Coach at The University of Texas at Austin. She has also worked as a Career Coach in the Career Services Office at Texas Law and served as a department director at the State Bar of Texas, supporting the Texas Access to Justice Commission.

Hong earned her BA in Political Science and Sociology from the University of Oregon, her JD from Seattle University School of Law, and visited the University of Texas School of Law during her 3L year.

In her free time, Hong enjoys reading YA books written by diverse authors, traveling to tropical destinations, and getting the best deals on just about anything.

Make an appointment with Hong.

Christopher Sokol serves as Assistant Director of Student Affairs in the School of Law.

Christopher earned a B.A. in History from the University of Texas at Austin and a J.D. from Notre Dame Law School.  After graduating from law school, he worked in college athletics for 8 years at Chaminade University of Honolulu, UCLA, and the University of Oklahoma.  While at Oklahoma, he became an adjunct faculty member, teaching Sports Law and NCAA Compliance.

Returning to the law school setting changed his career path and led to him becoming the Director of Student Success at Oklahoma City University School of Law and the resident Sports Law Professor.

A native Texan, Christopher grew up in Plano and loves Austin.  In his free time, he enjoys reading, writing, listening to live music, and being outside with his wife and dog.

Make an appointment with Christopher.

Collyn is the first person you will meet in the Student Affairs Office. Collyn supports a wide range of student-focused programming and events and offers guidance to student organization leaders. Outside of the student support role, he performs many functions to ensure smooth operation and function of the Student Affairs Office at Texas Law.

Collyn received his BA in Public Policy and Education with focus on Social & Economic Justice from UNC Chapel Hill (Go Heels!) Prior to Texas Law, Collyn has worked a variety of roles in student affairs with deep experience in New Student Orientations and New Student & Family Transition. In his free-time he loves to find new restaurants and coffee shops to try out in the area as well as enjoying all of the art that Austin has to offer.

As Director for Academic Service and the Registrar, Sarah oversees functions related to registration, course schedule production, exam administration, grade reporting, and faculty support. Sarah earned a B.A. in Hispanic Linguistics and a M.Ed. in Educational Administration, both from The University of Texas at Austin. She has worked at UT for over twenty years as an academic advisor and advising administrator in the College of Liberal Arts and in the Department of Aerospace Engineering and Engineering Mechanics.

A native Texan, Sarah grew up in San Antonio and once she came to Austin for college, she never left! She has a love-hate relationship with all things sports, particularly the San Antonio Spurs and the Texas Longhorns.  In her free time, she enjoys reading, gardening, volunteering at her church, and any sort of outdoor activity with her husband.

Julie manages coordination and administration of the exam process for midterm and final exams. She assists the Director of Academic Services with coordination of adjunct faculty teaching and scheduling, data analysis, reporting, and special projects. In this role, Julie assists with management of operations and administration including current policies and operations related to registration catalogs and course maintenance. She also assists in the administration and coordination of accommodations for Law students.

Julie moved to Austin from Charlotte, North Carolina. She received her B.A. and M.Ed. in Special Education at The University of North Carolina at Charlotte and taught students with moderate to severe disabilities in North Carolina public schools for almost ten years. Julie loves to sing, see all the live music, hike, and spend time with friends and family. She is thoroughly enjoying all the Texas food!

Leticia manages and supports student registration processes, administers non-law student registration, and manages enrollment. She assists the Director of Academic Services with course scheduling and maintains student records for transfer work, study abroad, and independent instruction.

Leticia grew up in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. She received her B.A. in Psychology with a minor in Forensic Psychology at Texas State University. She enjoys going to restaurants and coffee shops and watching movies with her husband.

Ian oversees and supports administrative functions by performing essential duties to serve as a liaison between law students and law licensing authorities. He provides faculty support and assistance regarding textbooks, course instructor evaluations and room reservations. He performs exam troubleshooting and provides software support.

Ian grew up in San Antonio and played a multitude of sports as a kid. He then left Texas and went to the University of Oregon. He graduated with a B.S. in Environmental Studies and a minor in Earth Science. Ian is a big advocate for the environment and everything that encompasses it. He is a huge supporter of environmental law. In his free time, he watches sports and television, enjoys outdoor recreation, and loves to find new places to eat. Ian appreciates the large art and food culture in Austin!