FAYETTEVILLE — Former Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson will return to his alma mater — the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville School of Law — this spring as executive in residence.

As executive in residence,

Hutchinson, a 1975 graduate of the law school, will teach a course on leadership in state and federal government and participate in continuing legal education and moot court programs, according to Tammy Tucker, director of communications and marketing for the School of Law.

A former Republican candidate for president of the United States, Hutchinson served as the 46th governor, and in his last election, he was re-elected with 65% of the vote, having received more votes than any other Republican candidate for governor in the state’s history.

“Teaching at the law school next year is an opportunity to mentor students and give back to the law school that helped shape the direction of my life,” Hutchinson said Thursday. “I have been blessed to have extraordinary experiences in life, from dealing with national security issues to courtroom drama, and this is an opportunity to teach about lessons learned and the future challenges we face as a nation.”

Hutchinson, now 73, spoke at the welcoming orientation for incoming law students this year, according to Tucker. During his law career, Hutchinson participated in more than 80 major jury trials, both as a prosecutor and defense attorney.

“We are thrilled to have an alumnus with Governor Hutchinson’s stature and expertise join the School of Law faculty as the first ex

ecutive in residence during this centennial year, (and) he is looking forward to interacting with our students and welcoming them to stop by his office,” Dean Cynthia Nance said Thursday.

“They will also be the beneficiaries of his extensive trial practice experience because he has agreed to participate in judging the internal spring moot court competitions.”

When he spoke at orientation, students “were very engaged and inquisitive about his experiences as a law student and his extensive legal and political careers,” she added.

“Because of the high demand from students wanting to take his class, we are creating a lottery system to determine which students will

have that opportunity.”

Hutchinson first held public office as the city attorney of Bentonville from 1977 to 1978. As a U.S. Attorney, he successfully investigated and prosecuted a group of rightwing extremists called the Covenant, the Sword and the Arm of the Lord in 1984 and 1985, according to the Encyclopedia of Arkansas.

A partner in the Karr & Hutchinson law firm from 1986 to 1996, Hutchinson founded a consulting firm, Hutchinson Group, LLC, in Little Rock and also accepted a one-year position with the Venable Law Firm in Washington, D.C., in 2005.

“Hutchinson’s professional career as an accomplished attorney and his political career as a United States representative, governor, and presidential candidate make him an excellent addition to the law

school community,” Nance said in a news release from the university Thursday. “We are thrilled for him to teach and to engage with the next generation of lawyers.”

The university’s law school “is where it all began for me,” so “to be here is an honor and exhilarating,” Hutchinson said in the news release. “To see the excitement of the students and their dedication to make a difference and pursue justice is inspiring.”

His career in public service started when President Ronald Reagan appointed him as the youngest U.S. Attorney in the nation, for the Western District of Arkansas, and in 1996, he won the first of three consecutive terms in the U.S. House of Representatives, according to the university.

During Hutchinson’s third term in Congress, President

George W. Bush appointed Hutchinson to serve as administrator of the Drug Enforcement Administration and later as the nation’s first undersecretary of Homeland Security for border protection.

Elected in 1996 to the U.S. House of Representatives — where he served on the Judiciary and Intelligence Committees — he was appointed by the House of Representatives to try the impeachment case against then-President Bill Clinton in the United States Senate. A graduate of Bob Jones University, he and his wife, Susan, have four children and seven grandchildren.

Hutchinson’s compensation for his work with the School of Law was not available Thursday. Tucker said Hutchinson’s “contract is still being finalized since he isn’t starting until spring.”