Law School Academic Support Blog

CALI Webinars: First One Is Friday, November 13th

A posting of interest to ASPers from Prof. Debra Cohen, Visiting Associate Professor and Interim Director of ASP at University of Baltimore School of Law (dcohen@ubalt.edu):

I thought the ASP community might be interested in an upcoming CALI Webinar.    On Friday, November 13 at 3pm (eastern time) Professor Wise and I are going to speak about integrating CALI in our classes.  One of the things I am going to focus on is how I integrate CALI into my work in academic success.   If anyone is interested,  they can register at the below link.

REGISTER NOW: Using CALI Lessons in Your Teaching

Presenters: Professors Deb Cohen, Southern New England School of Law, and Sally Wise, University of Miami School of Law.

More upcoming webinars:

November 27: Using Moodle Management Software in Law School Courses
Professor Vernellia Randall of the University of Dayton School of Law will present on using Moodle (moodle.org), an open-source course management system.

December 11: Five Steps to Promoting CALI at Your School

We'll cover free, easy, and effective ways to ensure your students know about CALI and CALI Lessons, some of the few free study tools available to them in law school. We strongly encourage CALI Reps to attend...this one's for you.

Dec 7: Save the Date! NECASP Conference on TA's and Student Mentors in ASP

On Monday, December 7, 2009, NECASP (New England Consortium of Academic Support Professionals) will be holding its first conference at Suffolk University Law School.  This will be a one-day conference that will run from approximately 9:30 AM to 4:00 PM.  The fee for attending the conference is $20, and this cost will cover your breakfast and lunch at the event.  

As this is our nascent organization's first conference, we are extremely fortunate that two of the ASP community's "heavy hitters" have agreed to speak at the event.  Joanne Harvest Koren of the University of Miami School of Law and Paula Manning of Whittier Law School (short bios appear below) will speak on the use of teaching assistants and student mentors as integral parts of an Academic Support Program.

As the date of the conference gets closer, we will be in touch with more information about registration, additional speakers, local hotels, etc.

We look forward to seeing you in December, and remember to save the date!

The NECASP Executive Committee

Herbert Ramy (Suffolk University Law School

Louis Schulze (New England Law Boston)

Melinda Drew (Northeastern University School of Law)

Sunny Mulligan (Franklin Pierce Law Center)

Rebecca Flanagan (University of Connecticut School of Law)

   

Joanne Harvest Koren, Director of the Academic Achievement Program, earned a B.A. in Education with high honors from the University of Florida in 1977 and a J.D. in 1984 from the University of Miami School of Law, where she was an associate editor of the University of Miami Law Review.  She taught in the Miami-Dade County public schools before she earned her law degree. After graduating from the Law School, she practiced law in Miami and worked as a pro bono attorney for the Miami-Dade County Guardian Ad Litem Program.  She is a member of the American Bar Association, the Florida Bar, and the Dade County Bar. She taught as a Legal Research and Writing instructor at the Law School from 1984-1988, and then again from 1990-1994.  She also taught Legal Analysis and Legal Writing at the Law School's James Weldon Johnson /Robert H. Waters Summer Institute from 1991-2006.  In the summer of 1994, she created the Academic Achievement Program and was named its Director. Under her direction, the program has gained national attention and grown into a multi-faceted program, with more than 350 law students regularly participating every semester.  In the fall of 1996, she was named the director the Law School's Writing Center. Additionally, she is a member of the AALS Section on Academic Support and the Executive Committee of the AALS Section on Women in Legal Education. In addition, she served as a member of the 2008 Florida Democratic Lawyers' Council-Obama for America.

   

Paula Manning is Associate Dean for Student and Graduate Academic Support at Whittier Law School in Costa Mesa, California. Ms. Manning directs the school's academic support programs, including an extensive Bar Preparation Program. Before joining the faculty at Whittier, she held faculty and administrative positions at Western State University College of Law; she taught substantive and bar preparation courses, and served as Assistant Director of both the Legal Writing and Academic Support programs. For the past eight years, she has developed curricula and provided instruction in various bar preparation courses. She has lectured locally and nationally on preparing students for the bar examination.

Are you interested in increasing legal profession diversity or in education law?

There are a number of us in academic success who also participate in our law schools’ pipeline efforts with public education, charter schools, colleges, and/or local bar groups.  Our goal is to interest minority students in K-12 and university to stay in school and continue their education.  Hopefully, a number of the students with whom we work will eventually enroll in law school and increase diversity in the legal profession.

 

The Education Law/Wingspread Conference (hosted by University of Southern Maine) will be held in Portland, Me July 19 – 22.  There is a special Wingspread Consortium track during several days of the conference for those who work with pipeline efforts in law schools.  The conference will also interest those of you with specialties in education law.  You can refer to the conference website at Education Law/Wingspread Conference or contact Sarah Redfield sarah.redfield@gmail.com for more information.

 

I will be at the conference with my pipeline team members from our main TTU campus and a local high school.  We will be presenting at several sessions.  I hope that we will see some of you there.  (Amy Jarmon) 

      

LSAC Academic Assistance Workshop-St. Louis

I  was not able to make all the breakout sessions because I don't have the power to be in multiple places at once, so I am covering just a 1/3 of what was presented. I heard only rave reviews from attendees at all the sessions, so I want to give a shout-out to everyone at the conference.

LSAC-St Louis started with a bang; a video starring Russell McClain of U Maryland Law School about a day in the life of an ASPer. It was hysterical, and very true. It is something I think many of us wish our Dean's would watch.  The de-briefing segment run by Paula Manning was hysterical.  Paula does a wonderful job of keeping us all in line.

Next up was the magnificent Joanne Koren of U Miami on building an academic support team. I think we all watched and wished we had the sort of supportive and giving faculty and administrative team as Joanne. She did leave us with some fantastic techniques for building our "show" at our own school. 

Because I was the presenter, along with Amy Jarmon, of ASP 101 and 202, I was notable to attend the other breakout sessions for the first afternoon. I can chime in by saying that I have previously attended Russell McClain's "Happily Singing the Blues" session, and it is one of the best, most innovative, presentations I have been a part of since I joined ASP. I have heard from fellow ASPer's that the faint of heart and the painfully shy may be a bit reticent at joining into the festivities of this session. To say any more would ruin the surprise (and purpose) of the presentation. 

Chris Hawthorne and Joan Van Tol did an amazing job of being both informative and hysterical explaining the new changes to FERPA and how that might impact our programs. I did not think it was possible to make FERPA amusing, but Chris Hawthorne of Loyola LA managed to do it.  I would suggest anyone that works with student TA's should get a copy of their handouts.

I will summarize Friday and Saturday's presentations tomorrow. 

Due to some technical difficulties, my PowerPoint for ASP 202 did not work as planned at the conference. I will try to attach it to this blog post. Please feel free to use and share the PowerPoint, but remember to give me some credit...I worked hard putting this together, even if you didn't see it at the conference!

Download ASP_202[1]

LSAC Academic Assistance Workshop-St. Louis

I  was not able to make all the breakout sessions because I don't have the power to be in multiple places at once, so I am covering just a 1/3 of what was presented. I heard only rave reviews from attendees at all the sessions, so I want to give a shout-out to everyone at the conference.

LSAC-St Louis started with a bang; a video starring Russell McClain of U Maryland Law School about a day in the life of an ASPer. It was hysterical, and very true. It is something I think many of us wish our Dean's would watch.  The de-briefing segment run by Paula Manning was hysterical.  Paula does a wonderful job of keeping us all in line.

Next up was the magnificent Joanne Koren of U Miami on building an academic support team. I think we all watched and wished we had the sort of supportive and giving faculty and administrative team as Joanne. She did leave us with some fantastic techniques for building our "show" at our own school. 

Because I was the presenter, along with Amy Jarmon, of ASP 101 and 202, I was notable to attend the other breakout sessions for the first afternoon. I can chime in by saying that I have previously attended Russell McClain's "Happily Singing the Blues" session, and it is one of the best, most innovative, presentations I have been a part of since I joined ASP. I have heard from fellow ASPer's that the faint of heart and the painfully shy may be a bit reticent at joining into the festivities of this session. To say any more would ruin the surprise (and purpose) of the presentation. 

Chris Hawthorne and Joan Van Tol did an amazing job of being both informative and hysterical explaining the new changes to FERPA and how that might impact our programs. I did not think it was possible to make FERPA amusing, but Chris Hawthorne of Loyola LA managed to do it.  I would suggest anyone that works with student TA's should get a copy of their handouts.

I will summarize Friday and Saturday's presentations tomorrow. 

Due to some technical difficulties, my PowerPoint for ASP 202 did not work as planned at the conference. I will try to attach it to this blog post. Please feel free to use and share the PowerPoint, but remember to give me some credit...I worked hard putting this together, even if you didn't see it at the conference!

Download ASP_202[1]

LSAC Academic Assistance Training Workshop Update

This year's workshop is being held in St. Louis, June 3 - 6.  You should have received registration materials in the mail, but if you did not the materials are posted at: Registration Materials for St. Louise LSAC AATW.  You will not need a password to access the materials. 

The registration deadline is May 8, 2009.  If space is available for more than one representative per school, LSAC will post an announcement on the ASP listserv on May 9th.    

This year's theme is "Lights, Camera, Action: Producing a Successful Academic Assistance Program.  The registration fee is $100 for the school's designated representative (your Dean or Associate Dean must certify that you are the person representing your law school) and covers most meals.  Once your registration is received, you can register for the hotel.  LSAC is covering hotel costs. 

Transportation costs are the responsibility of the registrant.  However, travel assistance from LSAC is available for a limited number of registrants whose circumstances indicate severe hardship.  If you are applying for hardship assistance, you need to contact Kent Lollis as soon as possible.

I hope to see all of you ASPers in St. Louis.  These meetings are always very informative and worthwhile.  (Amy Jarmon)

   

LSAC Academic Assistance Training Workshop St. Louis June 3-6, 2009

As those of you on the Academic Support listserv know, Kent Lollis from LSAC posted a "heads up" regarding this year's St. Louis meeting.  Once the official announcement and registration materials come out in April, this website will post more information.

However, for the benefit of new ASP staff members who may not be on the listserv or who may not know about this bi-annual meeting, I wanted to mention it here.  You may need the lead-time to talk with your budget folks about monies to attend.

The bi-annual LSAC AATW is THE national conference for ASP folks.  The conference is always outstanding!!!!  Not only are the sessions superbly presented, but the materials that you receive are fabulous. 

ASP folks are the kindest, most generous, most innovative, and helpful folks in the world in my viewpoint.  For those of you who are new, this opportunity to meet other ASPers is invaluable.  You will make lots of connections with other professionals who will become your friends and mentors.  Conversations during the breaks often lead to swapping of additional materials and sharing of tips.

Questions can be sent to the planning committee members listed here or to Kent Lollis and his staff (klollis@LSAC.org).  The Planning Committee includes: Paul Bateman, Southwestern (Chair); Joyce Savio Herleth, St. Louis; Jennifer S. Kamita, Loyola Marymount; Paula J. Manning, Whittier; Russell McClain, Maryland; and Jannell Lundy Roberts, Loyola Marymount (and Chair of the Diversity Committee).

I have included a few of the points that Kent included in his e-mail below for those of you who do not know the drill:

• Registration materials will be made available in April.  
• The conference begins with reception/dinner on Wednesday evening and ends Saturday at 1:00 p.m.
• Registration will initially be limited to one person per law school.
• Registration will be $100.  LSAC will pay hotel.
• The topics include according to Kent's e-mail:
  • Introduction to the new LSAC Academic Assistance Website
  • Counseling students with disabilities
  • Working with students from different racial and cultural backgrounds
  • Basic elements in building an academic support program
  • Building a thriving academic support team
  • Basics of bar exam support
  • FERPA issues for the academic support professional
  • Deans’ perspectives on academic support and resource allocation
  • Securing resources for your program
  • Learning and technology
  • Creating a positive learning environment
  • Providing students with positive feedback
  • Supporting students in academic difficulty
  • Program evaluation tools

I hope to see many of you at the conference.  You will not be disappointed by this event.  (Amy Jarmon)

Call for Proposals from the AALS Section on Academic Support

Call for Proposals by the Workshop Program Committee for the AALS Section on Academic Support
2010 AALS Annual Meeting in New Orleans, Louisiana
Annual Meeting Dates:  January 6-10, 2010

The theme of our 2010 AALS workshop will be:

“Transforming Learning in the Classroom: the 21st Century Law Professor”

The AALS Section on Academic Support will showcase how professors are transforming the learning environment of their classrooms through innovative and creative methods.  Many of these methods  have their roots in traditional academic support tenets of varying lesson plans to reach different learning styles, providing feedback throughout the semester, assessing students in creative ways, engaging students both in and out of the classroom, and encouraging students to take responsibility for their own learning.   The committee requests proposals that demonstrate modern classroom and teaching techniques including but not limited to: active learning activities, teaching assessment procedures, exam drafting, skills development in doctrinal courses, and innovative lesson plans.  Show us what’s new and different in legal education in the 21st century! 

The Program Committee will give preference to presentations designed to engage the workshop audience, so proposals should contain a detailed explanation of both the substance of the presentation and the interactive methods to be employed.  In addition, we would like to highlight talent across a spectrum of law schools and will look for variety in presentations and presenters.  If you do not have a proposal to submit, but are interested in participating in a presentation, please contact Emily Randon (see below), as assistance with the overall workshop is always welcome.

Based on participant numbers for the last several years, we anticipate over 100 people attending the program.  To assist the presenters in the interactive piece, the program committee members and other volunteers will be on hand to act as facilitators with audience members.

Proposals must include the following information:
1.  A title for your presentation
2.  A brief description of the objectives or outcomes of your presentation.
3.  A brief description of how your presentation will support your stated objectives or outcomes.
4.  The amount of time allocated for your presentation and for the interactive exercise.  No single presenter should exceed 45 minutes in total time allowed.  Presentations as short as 15 minutes will be acceptable.
5.  A detailed description of how the presentation will be interactive.
6.  Whether you plan to distribute handouts, use PowerPoint, or employ other technology.
7.  A list of the conferences at which you have presented within the last three years, such as AALS, national or regional ASP or writing conferences, or other academic conferences.  (The committee is interested in this information because we wish to select and showcase seasoned, as well as fresh, talent.)
8.  Your school affiliation, title, courses taught, and contact information (include email address and telephone number).
9.  Any articles or books that you have published describing the lesson you will be demonstrating.

Send proposals by Monday, March 9, 2009 to Prof. Emily Randon, University of California, Davis School of Law, at the email address of elrandon@ucdavis.edu.  If you have questions, feel free to contact Emily Randon directly at 530-752-3434.

If you know of colleagues who are true innovators in techniques that achieve the objectives of the academic support community, please encourage them to submit proposals!

We look forward to seeing you in New Orleans!

The ASP Section Program Committee:
Emily Randon, Chair
Robin Boyle Laisure
Hillary Burgess
Barbara McFarland
Kathy Garcia
ASP Section Chair:  Pavel Wonsowicz

Reminder: Institute for Law Teaching and Learning Conference Proposals due TODAY

A reminder for anyone who may have let this fall off their radar in the chaos of the start of the semester:

The Institute for Law Teaching and Learning Summer Conference in Spokane, WA is soliciting proposals for workshops. The last day to submit a proposal is TODAY, February 20, 2009. The conference will be June 23-24, 2009, and focus on "Implementing Best Practices and Educating Lawyers: Teaching Skills and Professionalism Across the Curriculum".

Guidelines for proposals:

Limited to one-page, single-spaced, and include:
-Title of workshop
-Name, address, phone number, and email of presenter(s)
-A summary of the contents of the workshop, including goals and methods

Submit proposals via email to Professor Gerry Hess, Co-Director
Institute for Teaching and Learning
ghess@lawschool.gonzaga.edu

(RCF)

Notes from AALS ASP Business Meeting

(Please note: any errors are mine. If I made any egregious errors, let me know and I will fix. RCF)

Meeting of ASP Academic Support Business Meeting

January 7, 2009

Start of meeting: 6:25 pm

Kris Franklin: open meeting

Discussion of conflict with Balance in Legal Education Business Meeting. Motion to join the Balance business meeting was tabled until we addressed unique ASP issues.

Usually business meeting is held at close of the session, this is a change from previous years because we wanted an opportunity to talk with one another during a meeting when so many ASP folks are in one place.

First order of business: Last year, a number of committees were formed and met. They did a lot. Brief reports from the committees:

Bar Passage Committee: Many members, including the leader of the committee could not make it to the meeting. As a committee, they put together a letter regarding bar passage, that was not adopted, but there was a positive response to the letter. Move to continue the meeting.

Program Committee: Thank you to those presenting, did a wonderful job this year on the joint session with Teaching Methods. Thank you Vinita and Robin.

Website Committee: Started to help “jump-off” from Barbara Glesner-Fines website that we have been using as a group for some time. This year, AALS will be building a website for each section. Additionally, RuthAnn McKinney is creating an ASP resource website through LSAC, which is going “swimmingly”. Decision to wait and see what else is going on before we go forward and expend additional resources on a website.

Nominations Committee: Pavel is moving onto Chair, Kris is moving to immediate past chair, replacing Nancy Soonpaa. This moves Kristin Holmquist to chair-elect, Mike Swartz to secretary, Robin to treasurer, and moves onto and among the board members:

2009-2010 Slate:

Officers, serving one year terms:

Chair: Pavel Wonsowicz—UCLA Law

Chair Elect—Kristin Holmquist--Berkeley Law School

Secretary--Michael Hunter Schwartz—Washburn Law

Treasurer—Robin Boyle—St. John’s Law

Executive Committee Board Members:

Board A (expiry 2011)—Paula Manning—Whittier Law School

Board B (expiry 2011)—Rebecca Flanagan—Vermont Law School

Board C (expiry 2010)—Jeff Minetti—

Stetson Law

School

Board D (expiry 2010)—LaRasz Moody—Villanova Law (filling the seat vacated by Vinita Bali)

Kris Franklin moved to accept the board. Seconded. Kris moved to accept nominations from the floor. No nominations from the floor were put forward. Move to accept new board. Voted; Congratulation to the new board.

Carry-over business from 2009 business meeting:
Suggestion from last year—creation of a section award to recognize those who serve in ASP and have done extraordinary things for the field. The idea was put through the listserv as well as discussed at the meeting last year. There was some consternation about singling out one or two people when so many people are doing so many wonderful things; it doesn’t feel “ASP-ish.” A committee was formed that was favorable to creation of such an award. A draft has been circulated among the board, however, the AALS Executive Committee must approve. Because of this, the award can only be provisionally adopted at this point.

Commentary from the Award Committee—Jeff Minetti
Only three people responded from the listserv. Thank you to Barbara McFarland for her had work on this issue. The committee felt it was time to start honoring those who made significant contributions to ASP. Discussion of by-laws and how to approve the award. Discussion of what was meant by “present for quorum” in the bylaws, and how to approve such an award.

Barbara McFarland
Should note that the committee was not “balanced”; because those who volunteered for the awards committee were those in favor of creating the award.

Alison Nissen
This is one more thing, along with student support, to honor us, and additionally benefit our students when we are recognized for the work we do with them.

Jeff Minetti
This award will help us decide who we are as a field by recognizing who is the very best among us.

Kris Franklin moved that this year’s board tinker with the details on the award and get started. All in favor, vote was unanimous.

Open topics:
Should we have a section newsletter?
The Learning Curve hasn’t come out in a while, and isn’t an “official” newsletter of this section. Ken Rosenblum, as a past editor of The Learning Curve, volunteered to assist getting The Learning Curve started again. Noted that Hillary Burgess is working with David Nadvorney to get things started again. Also noted that we should be making repeated appeals for articles for a new issue of The Learning Curve by everyone in ASP. At this time, no new section newsletter was approved.

Transition to new chair: Pavel Wonsowicz

Continue with the nominating committee. Noted by Ken Rosenblum that this committee is actually required by the AALS bylaws. If chose t be on the nominating committee, cannot seek or accept an executive position while serving on the nominating committee.

Bar Passage Committee: Paula Manning noted that a number of people committed electronically to continuing the committee. If others want to join, contact Paula Manning, “the more the merrier.”

Planning Committee: Robin Boyle has served as the head of the planning committee for three years; Vinita would have taken over but has moved on from ASP. Emily Randon of UC-Davis volunteered to take over for Robin, with Robin’s wise assistance, Kathy Garcia, Hillary Hoffman, and Barbara McFarland also volunteered for the planning committee.

Joanne Koren noted how it was wonderful to combine with another section. This year ASP combined with teaching methods for a joint session at annual meeting, maybe explore joint session with Balance in Legal Education?

Kris Franklin moved to discuss whether to continue with the ASP breakfast. There is significant concern over the cost of the section breakfast.

Announcements:

LSAC National Meeting will be Wednesday June 3-June 6 at St. Louis University.  Barbara McFarland received approved from her Dean to host a small regional ASP meeting at Northern Kentucky. Contact Barbara if interested. The proposed date is immediately after the LSAC National conference to provide an opportunity to share materials with those that cannot attend.

Emily Randon solicited interested people for a western regional ASP meeting. Contact Emily if you want to get involved.  They will meet tonight after the meeting to organize.

No further business-Meeting adjoined.

(RCF)

Regional Academic Support Organizations: Report from the New England Consortium of Academic Support Professionals Organizational Meeting

Here is a summary of what was discussed and decided at the first meeting of the New England Consortium of Academic Support Professionals (NECASP).  I am posting the summary of the meeting in hopes that other areas will decide to launch their own local ASP groups. The meetings do not need to be as formal as NECASP; but here is an idea of what one group decided to do. 

The members in attendance reached the following decisions:
1.    The primary goal of the New England Consortium of Academic Support Professionals will be to organize and present conferences on subjects relevant to academic support professionals.
2.    Holding joint conferences will be a future goal of NECASP. 
3.    The primary focus of these conferences will be on practical topics (e.g. the methods of law school academic support), but conferences may also include presentations or sessions on academic/ scholarly topics relevant to academic support.
4.    NECASP will establish a TWEN Webcourse to facilitate easier communication and to enable members to post documents, links, and other relevant information for the use of NECASP members.  There will be a link from this TWEN webcourse to the ASP-blog’s compilation of academic support scholarship. 
5.    A Board of Directors will be established for NECASP.  The current Board of Directors is:  (1) Melinda Drew (Northeastern); (2) Rebecca Flanagan (Vermont); (3) Sunny Mullligan (Franklin Pierce); (4) Herb Ramy (Suffolk) (co-chair); (2) Louis Schulze (New England) (co-chair). 
6.      NECASP will hold one conference annually.  It will also conduct a business meeting and/ or “local ASP discussion,” at a time and in a manner determined by the NECASP Board of Directors.  A Business Meeting will be conducted in the Spring of 2009 to discuss the first conference. 
7.    The NECASP Board of Directors, based upon input from NECASP members, will determine when and where to hold the conferences and business meetings. 
8.    At the first Business Meeting, the membership will determine the scope of conference topics (i.e. very broad topics vs. a themed conference vs. specific topics).
9.    A brief set of by-laws will govern NECASP.  NECASP will also create a Mission Statement.
10.  Membership in NECASP will initially be open to academic support professionals in the field of law, only.

(RCF)

Reminder: NE-ASP Organizational Meeting TOMORROW at New England Law School

Tomorrow is the first New England Regional ASP Meeting.  It will be held at New England Law School in Boston.  This will be an organizational meeting, and we will be discussing a variety of issues. I am posting the agenda so other regions can use this as a possible jumping-off point for organizing their own groups.  An abbreviated agenda follows:

Goals of NECASP
    1.    Discussion of methods of Academic Support?
    2.    A forum for presentation of academic papers?
    3.    A forum for presentations of a more practical nature?
    4.    Should we do more than just hold conferences? 
    5.    Should the organization provide leadership opportunities for those in the field?

Format of NECASP.
    1.   How often should we meet?
    2.    When should conferences be held? 
    3.    Should each conference be practical or should one of them include more academic topics?
    4.    To what degree should we restrict or direct the topics? 
    5.    Should each conference focus on a specific theme?
        (i.e. Learning Disabilities, ESL, Pipeline Initiatives, Learning Styles, Bar Exam) or should presenters         be given wide latitude to choose their own subject?

C.    Organization of NECASP
    1.    Should there be officers, a steering committee, or no formal leadership?
    2.    Does this organization require the formality of by-laws?

If you have any questions about the meeting tomorrow, such as how to get to NE Law, please contact Louis Schultze at LSchulze@nesl.edu.

I will be posting a report from the meeting shortly.
(RCF)

6th annual New York Area Academic Support Workshop at Brooklyn Law School Nov. 14

Brooklyn Law School and New York Law School will host the 6th annual New
York Area Academic Support Workshop at Brooklyn Law School on Friday,
November 14, 2008.
As usual, this will be a small and rather intensive gathering of
academic support professionals and colleagues.  While most are from the
New York area, we invite and welcome ASP professionals from all over the
country. Last year people came from across the Brooklyn Bridge, up and
down the east coast, and from as far away as Texas and California. The
goal of these workshops is to share ideas and materials; everyone who
attends will be asked to propose a portion of the agenda and to lead
part of the discussion. In order to be able to share ideas effectively,
we plan to cap the number of participants at 20.

The morning session will focus on the intersection of ASP and doctrinal
teaching. Our plan is to include doctrinal professors who use ASP
principles/techniques in their classrooms, and also to discuss ways to
encourage more doctrinal faculty in our schools to do so.  We therefore
encourage doctrinal faculty interested in academic support, those doing
solely ASP work, and those doing both, to attend this event.
Participants should suggest a topic related to the theme and plan to
make a short presentation, offer materials, and/or lead a roundtable
discussion of a question or problem related to our work.

The agenda for the afternoon session of the workshop is open and we ask
participants to lead a short (15-20 minute) discussion on an ASP topic
of your choosing. Last year we discussed ASP's role in Introduction to
Law during Orientation, ASP and the Bar, and we brainstormed ways to
keep students motivated from 2nd semester to the Bar. It is not
necessary that you have all the answers, only that each of us shares our
thoughts, questions and materials in a structured way.

We plan to start the morning session at 9:30 a.m. (breakfast will be
provided), break for lunch (we'll serve that, too) and work through the
afternoon.  We hope everyone will also be able to join us at a local
restaurant for dinner.

For people outside the immediate NY area, this could mean an overnight
stay on Thursday, and maybe Friday as well.  Because this is not a
formal conference we do not charge any registration fee, but also cannot
arrange hotels, etc.  If you will need a hotel, the Marriott is directly
across the street from Brooklyn Law School, and there are several B & Bs
in the Brooklyn Heights area. If your travel budget does not cover a
hotel for a one-day workshop, we will seek volunteers to provide local
housing.

Please let us know if you are interested in coming for all or part of
the day, and what thoughts you have to share or topics you would like to
discuss.
We look forward to hearing from you.

Linda Feldman
Brooklyn Law School
Linda.feldman@brooklaw.edu

Kris Franklin
New York Law
School

kris.franklin@nyls.edu
(718) 780-7929(212) 431-2353

Report from the LSAC New ASP Professionals Workshop in Baltimore

I just returned from the LSAC New ASP Professionals Workshop at the University of Maryland Law School in Baltimore. As always, the planning committee did an absolutely fabulous job, and the workshop seemed to those who attended to go off without a hitch.  It was a wonderful opportunity to meet many new ASP professionals just joining our community. I am always delighted to be a part of a community that has so many enthusiastic and supportive colleagues, from those who have been a part of ASP for 20 years to 20 days.
For those who were not able to make the workshop, here are the highlights:
1) Ricardo Villarosa had a wonderful demonstration of how we all have full plates (or bowls), yet with proper time management, we can fit in more than we thought. His boulders-and-sand demonstration was a wonderful example of active learning, and one I hope to replicate for a workshop on time management for my 1L's and bar takers in 2008-2009.
2) Paul Bateman and Ruth McKinney had a fascinating presentation on learning styles, processing types, learning theory and material/knowledge/information absorption preferences.  It truly takes master teachers to present so much information is a coherent, manageable way in such a short amount of time.
3) Russell McClain taught us all how to "sing the blues" and learn more about teaching through practice than we thought possible.  I can say with certainty that was one of the most entertaining presentations I have ever been a part of in my life. Russell's confidence as a teacher and a musician carried many (or most) of us with no known musical talent through a demonstration of how teachers can create music (and wonder) in our students.
4) Linda Feldman and Susan Darrow-Kleinhaus led a fabulous session on exam taking strategies for our students.  It's always inspires me to see master teachers can lead us to new insights about topics we thought we knew inside and out.  I teach exam-taking skills at least twice a year, and I still came away from this presentation with new ideas of how to approach exam strategies with my students.
5) I presented on giving feedback to students. Thank you to my warm and wonderful audience! I am happy to send my Powerpoint to anyone not able to make the conference.
6) Kris Franklin and Paula Manning did an awesome job condensing 2+ years of ASP into one 1-hour presentation.  Kris's beautiful presentation on the importance of sorting and weighing details using the art of Mary Cassett and Jacob Lawrence masterfully blended visuals to demonstrate reading and critical judgment skills.  Paula, truly one of the best 3L/bar preparation teachers in the country, worked her way through her comprehensive bar prep program in less than 30 minutes, which is a marvel.  Paula's use of new technology, such as YouTube, to reach her students is groundbreaking. 
7) Michael Hunter Schwartz presentation on organizing material was wonderful. Another master teacher, Mike taught us how organizing material by creating multiple neural pathways helps us retain  information for use during exams.  Mike is really the master of cognitive science in legal education, and I strongly encourage anyone new to the ASP community to buy his Expert Learning for Law Students text as a primer on how students learn. 
8)The last presentation of the workshop was lead my Mike Schwartz and Ruth McKinney on professional excellence.  As wonderful it is to be an ASP professional, it is a profession with a high level of burnout. It is critical to maintain work-life balance early in your career in order to stay happy and healthy. I think we all appreciated Ruth telling us to breathe for a few moments. 

Thank you again to all planning committee and my fellow presenters--you are an amazing bunch! We are so lucky to be a part of such a wonderful and warm community.
(Rebecca Flanagan)

Wingspread Pipeline Conference

WINGSPREAD IX, University of Southern Maine, Portland, Maine, July 27-28 2008

Starting Sunday evening, Wingspread itself runs through Monday, followed by a law-themed strand for the full day on Tuesday and also the rest of the 15 th Annual Education & Law Conference (July 28-31).

Wingspread IX focuses on the role of career/theme, the relationships between LRE and diversity, plus the important roles of counseling & philanthropy. Specific sessions at Wingspread and in the following Ed & Law Conference sessions will include Wingspread for newcomers; law themed curricula and schools; multicultural education and resources; pipeline and admissions programs; curriculum lessons shared; student disability awareness; diversity and race neutrality; innovative law-themed programs; restroative justice models; why creativity in schools is so critical: thinking of MySpace, YouTube, etc. as positive learning environments; technology strand; the view from the Bench and the Bar. Presenters include several renowned law school faculty.

Contact

For Substantive Information Contact:
Professor Sarah E. Redfield

For Conference Information Contact:
Sherry Phillips, Assistant Director
Department of Conferences
(207) 780-5961
the Bench and the Bar.

2008 LSAC Workshop for New Academic Support Professionals

LSAC has e-mailed and mailed materials to ASP professionals regarding this year's Academic Assistance Topical Workshop for new professionals.  In addition, information has been sent through the ASP listserv.  However, if you are a new professional, you may have missed those sources of information.  So, the basic topic information and contact information are included below. (Amy Jarmon)

2008 LSAC Academic Assistance Topical Workshops

Workshop for New Academic Support Professionals

"Using Hands-On Strategies to Build a Strong Foundation for Successful Academic Support"

The University of Maryland School of Law, Baltimore, MD

June 12-14, 2008

Who Should Attend:

Registrationi for this workshop is restricted to faculty and administrators who work with academic assistance programs, either as a director or in a supporting capacity, with up to three years of experience.  For those new academic support faculty and adminsitrators with bar exam preparation responsibilities, there will be a conference devoted to that topic at Southwestern Law School, Los Angeles, California, September 19-20, 2008.  Separate registration materials will be provided for that workshop.  The topic for the third workshop has not been decided yet.

The Workshop Planning Committee wants each registrant to know that an intense training curriculum has been planned and attendance at all sessions is expected.

Additionial Information and Questions:

Questions concerning the curriculum or registration should be directed to Kent Lollis, klollis@lsac.org, 215.968.1227.  Logistical questionis should be directed to Russell A. McClain, rmcclain@law.umaryland.edu, 410.706.2271.

AALS Second Annual Reception - Wingspread P20 Leadership Pipeline Consortium

Please join us for the 2^nd Annual AALS Wingspread P20 Leadership Pipeline Consortium Reception. 

Wingspread is a group of P-20 educators, the bench, and the bar committed to working across the educational continuum to improve participation, persistence, and success of diverse students in high school and college, with the goal of enhancing their aspirations and capacity to move into positions in the legal profession and leadership of the nation.

Thursday, January 3, 2008, 6:30 - 7:30 p.m., Conference Room D, Executive Conference Center, Sheraton New York, 811 7th Ave., 53rd St., New York, NY

Deans Cynthia Fountaine, Texas Wesleyan; Geoffrey Mearns, Cleveland Marshall College of Law Cleveland State University; Elizabeth Rindskopf Parker, University of the Pacific McGeorge School of Law; Suellyn Scarnecchia, University of New Mexico School of Law; Ruthe Ashley, Chair ABA Presidential Advisory Council on Diversity

For more information on this reception or on Wingspread generally, contact Professor Sarah Redfield, sredfield@pacific.edu or 207-752-1721 (cell).

Scholarship Funds for Wingspread VIII P20 Pipeline Conference

There are Texas scholarship funds available for Texas law school team members that do not have other funding to attend the conference.  If you have a Texas law school team with the public/private schools or with colleges that works on a pipeline program, you may qualify for the scholarship funds.  The Texas Bar Foundation has provided a generous $20,000 grant to fund Texas teams.  There are also some limited funds available for California teams and teams from other states.  First come, first served for scholarships! 

Information on the conference is given below including the link to the web site.  If you want more information specifically about any possible scholarship eligibility for your team, contact Dr. Amy L. Jarmon, Assistant Dean for Academic Success Programs, Texas Tech University School of Law at amy.jarmon@ttu.edu.

The Wingspread 8 Conference information can be found on the web site for Texas Wesleyan School of Law.  Just click on the conference link on the home page for the law school.  The conference general announcement is included below:

Wingspread VIII, Fort Worth, TX
Texas Wesleyan University School of Law
October 4, 5, 6, 2007

Cost: $125, which includes all meals beginning with dinner on Thursday evening through lunch on Saturday.

Starting Thursday evening, ending Saturday after lunch
PLUS Saturday meeting with medical and dental school team

About Wingspread: Wingspread is the collaborative national organization for professional school involvement in pipeline initiatives, an informal consortium with distinctive appeal, strengths, and impressive loyalty among its participants. It offers a highly placed and visible constituent base for national policy leadership and success in conceptually framing and drawing attention to the issues around diversity and the law community and the need for systemic and systematic change; enhancing the intellectual presence of law schools and their sister professional schools in the field of pipeline issues as participants, conveners, and collaborators; emphasizing, inspiring, and creating teams to work along the educational pipeline in site-specific projects; and assuring that lessons learned are lessons shared.

Wingspread involves a group of over 40 law-schools working with teams that includes P-20 educators, the bench, and the bar, all committed to working collaboratively across the educational continuum to improve the participation, persistence, and success of diverse students in high school and college. The goal of the group is to enhance these students’ aspirations and capacity to move into positions in the legal profession and in the leadership of the nation.

The 8th meeting of the group is focused on team-building and on action plans for collaborative improvement in outreach along the pipeline. The meeting also brings the law pipeline group together with their colleagues in medicine and dentistry. Specific sessions will include Wingspread for Newcomers; Law-Themed Curricula and Schools including both elementary and law magnet programs; Perspectives from our Sister Professions; Prelaw Programs; and the View from the Bench and the Bar. And, of course, Texas barbecue!  (Amy Jarmon)

Humanizing Legal Education Symposium

The following posting is from Michael Schwartz at Washburn School of Law:

Washburn still has 15 or so remaining slots for its Humanizing Legal Education Symposium, October 19-21.  The list of 32 presenters includes leading experts in the humanizing field, in the comprehensive law movement, and in the teaching and learning field.  The plenary speakers will be: Professor Larry Krieger of Florida State, Professor Susan Daicoff of Florida Coastal, Professor Barbara Glesner-Fines of UMKC, Professor Gerry Hess of Gonzaga, and Professor Paula Lustbader of Seattle.  The list of attendees already includes representatives from more than 40 law schools and includes a Canadian law professor, a Canadian dean and an Australian law professor.

The conference is free to all attendees.  Because space is so limited, please register as soon as possible.  The conference schedule and registration are online.  There are two ways to access the schedule and the registration form: either go to the Wasburn School of Law  homepage and find the link to the conference materials under “Upcoming Events” or go directly to Humanizing Legal Education Conference.  Register by clicking on the link labeled “Register Online” and then completing each of the fields in the registration form.

Wingspread 8 Conference for Law School Pipeline Projects

The Wingspread 8 Conference information can be found on the web site for Texas Wesleyan School of Law.  Just click on the conference link on the home page for the law school.  The conference general announcement is included below:

Wingspread VIII, Fort Worth, TX
Texas Wesleyan University School of Law & the Hilton Fort Worth
October 4, 5, 6, 2007

Cost: $125, which includes all meals beginning with dinner on Thursday evening through lunch on Saturday.

Starting Thursday evening, ending Saturday after lunch
PLUS Saturday meeting with medical and dental school team

About Wingspread: Wingspread is the collaborative national organization for professional school involvement in pipeline initiatives, an informal consortium with distinctive appeal, strengths, and impressive loyalty among its participants. It offers a highly placed and visible constituent base for national policy leadership and success in conceptually framing and drawing attention to the issues around diversity and the law community and the need for systemic and systematic change; enhancing the intellectual presence of law schools and their sister professional schools in the field of pipeline issues as participants, conveners, and collaborators; emphasizing, inspiring, and creating teams to work along the educational pipeline in site-specific projects; and assuring that lessons learned are lessons shared.

Wingspread involves a group of over 40 law-schools working with teams that includes P-20 educators, the bench, and the bar, all committed to working collaboratively across the educational continuum to improve the participation, persistence, and success of diverse students in high school and college. The goal of the group is to enhance these students’ aspirations and capacity to move into positions in the legal profession and in the leadership of the nation.

The 8th meeting of the group is focused on team-building and on action plans for collaborative improvement in outreach along the pipeline. The meeting also brings the law pipeline group together with their colleagues in medicine and dentistry. Specific sessions will include Wingspread for Newcomers; Law-Themed Curricula and Schools including both elementary and law magnet programs; Perspectives from our Sister Professions; Prelaw Programs; and the View from the Bench and the Bar. And, of course, Texas barbecue!