The meme below has been going around about the different framing for medical school and law school. I get why it is kind of amusing, but it is mostly rather upsetting because it resonates too readily with too many people.
Although that has never been the institutional approach anywhere I have been, I will concede that there are at least some faculty members (and plenty members of the bench and bar) who think this way about law school and the legal profession.
When I became a dean, I decided to do it, in part, because of how much I believe in the legal profession and what we are charged to do. I believed, and I continue to believe, that lawyers are there to help people in what is often their worst of times. Even when it is not bad, it is still usually a very significant time. At the risk of being cliché, that means our jobs come with great power and responsibility.
Despite what you may hear, our law students today are capable, smart, and caring. They may not view the world the way we did, but we didn’t view the world the same as our predecessors, either. There are challenges and different expectations, but there is no lack of ability or commitment. Our students and our profession will be in good hands. But we will need to work to do the good things expected of us. That has always been true.
During orientation, when we welcome our students, the first thing we tell that is that they belong here. I also tell them that they are here because we believe in them and that we expect each one of them to succeed. That is the truth. We don’t admit anyone we don’t expect to succeed, and while not every single student is successful (for a variety of reasons), we are correct far more often than not.
Encouragement doesn’t stop during orientation. I also try to provide reminders throughout the year so that students don’t forget why they are here. This is my message from January:
As we prepare for grades to come in, I want to encourage you to keep some perspective. If things went well, that’s awesome, and keep at it. If things did not go as you’d hoped, please talk to your professors, your friends, and your student support team. The new year is a time for us to reset and restart, and everyone starts fresh.
As you already know, law school is a lot of work. It needs to be because the jobs we have as lawyers are important ones. Try not to get discouraged when school or work is hard. We help people through some of their most challenging and complex problems. And the reality is, you wouldn’t be here if it were easy. You have sought out a rewarding, but difficult, profession, and it’s because you are committed to helping people. Embrace the challenge, and know we believe in you. We really do.
When I started here more than four years ago, I asked out community to commit to three things consistent with our Jesuit values: (1) Faith, (2) Trust, and (3) Hope. I ask you to commit to faith, spiritually, if that’s important to you, as well as faith in your abilities, in our profession, and in one another. I also ask you to choose trust. Trust the process, trust that we want the best for you, and trust that you can do this. Finally, I ask that you work to create hope: hope for a better tomorrow; hope for your clients and community, and hope for those who are suffering.
Faith and trust are choices. No one can give them to you. You must decide whether to have faith and whether to trust. I promise that we will work to give you reasons to have faith and to trust us, but in the end, the choice, the power, is yours. Hope, on the other hand, is something we can try to give people. We’ll try to do that for you, and I hope you will try to do it for others.
I wish you have a great semester, whether it’s your first spring semester, your second, or your last, and I look forward to all you will accomplish in 2024. Work hard, work together, and take care of yourselves and each other, and good things will follow.
As lawyers, we should always remember the great power and privilege that comes with our role. It is our job to do well and do good. I very much believe in our profession. And to all the lawyers and law students out there, for what it’s worth, I believe in you.