Texas Southern University, located in Houston, Texas, is a public, co-educational institution of higher learning. Born from a racially segregated society, this university’s main aim is to serve African-Americans in Texas, by offering them a program of study comparable to that available to white Texans. The history of the university is associated with the Houston College for Negroes, which had been founded in 1927. It was a bold institution at that time by offering African-Americans an opportunity for higher education. In 1947, the State of Texas purchased the college from the Houston Independent School District, to create a university. The Texas Southern University for Negroes was officially opened by the 50th Texas Legislature in March 1947 on the site of the college under the temporary administration of Allen E. Norton. On recommendation of a delegation of students, the state legislature changed the name to Texas Southern University in June 1951. After its inception, it became the first state-supported institution to house a law school for blacks. The school, as well as the university at-large, has a unique history among America's law schools. Presently known as the Thurgood Marshall School of Law, it was created as a consequence of a 1946 lawsuit, brought by Heman M. Sweatt. In 1973, the Legislature designated Texas Southern University as a "special purpose institution for urban programming." When it came into being, it had one permanent building, one faculty member, and a handful of students. Since, it has grown from several temporary structures, into the 45-building, 150-acre campus it is today, near the heart of downtown Houston. The university offers programs in a number of areas, including pharmacy, dentistry, arts and sciences, journalism, education, literature, law, medicine, and other professional courses. It has eight schools, namely, the College of Arts and Sciences, the College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, the Thurgood Marshall School of Law, the College of Education, the College of Continuing Education, the School of Technology, the Jesse H. Jones School of Business, and the Graduate School.