Shelly W. Schools served as a U.S. Immigration Judge for six years, from 2019 to 2025, at the Fort Worth Immigration Adjudication Center in Texas. She presided over more than 4,000 hearings, including removal proceedings, expedited removal proceedings, custody hearings, and competency inquiries.
She adjudicated applications for asylum, withholding of removal, protection under the Convention Against Torture, cancellation of removal for permanent and non-permanent residents, various types of adjustment of status, and removal of conditions on residence. Shelly offers behind-the-scenes insight into immigration court operations and understands how the changing landscape of immigration policy impacts removal cases.
Shelly also proudly served as a judge advocate in the United States Air Force for 22 years. Her roles included prosecutor, defense counsel, appellate defense counsel, military judge, and Chief Trial Judge of the Air Force. Her depth of criminal law experience proved valuable in her role as an immigration judge given the impact of criminal convictions on relief from removal.
Shelly earned a Bachelor of Business Administration in 1994 and a Juris Doctor in 1997 from the University of Mississippi and is a member of the Mississippi Bar.
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