“You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream.” —C.S. Lewis
“I have always been delighted at the prospect of a new day, a fresh try, one more start….” ―J.B. Priestley
This morning is a bittersweet moment for me as I share the news that I will be stepping down as Dean of CSU Law when my current term ends on June 30, 2025 to become the 10th President of Baldwin Wallace University (BW). Below is a message to the CSU community from President Laura Bloomberg and Provost Nigamanth Sridhar that was sent a few minutes ago.
Brevity has never been my strong suit, so please be patient with me as I reflect on how meaningful this role has been for me personally and professionally. While I’m very excited about this rare opportunity to lead such an iconic university, I will always cherish my time serving this iconic law school. Serving as Dean the past 9 years has been one of the greatest honors of my life.
Our law school’s efforts have spanned a variety of initiatives, but the thread that has bound them together has been our students. They are our North Star – we are committed to their personal and professional lifelong success. There is nothing more meaningful to me than to have been part of their journey. It has been a privilege to watch our students learn and grow, reflect and debate, and to witness them becoming lawyer-leaders.
Most fundamentally, we have been guided by our mission: Learn Law. Live Justice. What does that mean? To me, it means that law is the means; justice is the end. I have watched eight classes of students graduate and step into the world and I look forward to watching the Class of 2025 graduate this May. Already our recent graduates are making significant contributions to furthering that mission. This is a time of profound challenge in our profession and in our world. We need lawyer-leaders more than ever.
I quickly fell in love with our law school when I arrived in 2016 and will always be grateful for the special opportunity to work with such talented students, staff, faculty, and university colleagues. I’ve been inspired by our faculty’s commitment to teaching our students and producing scholarship that grapples with some of our society’s biggest challenges. I’ve been inspired by our staff whose tireless work around the clock to serve our students is too often underappreciated. And it has been one of the great joys of my life to work with the most loyal, engaged, and supportive alumni of any law school in the nation. They open doors for our students and graduates every day.
We are a law school on the rise. We recently enrolled the largest first year class in 15 years, a 96% increase in enrollment since 2016. We broke new ground by being one of the first law schools in the nation to launch a part-time online JD program, providing access to a legal education and new careers for many throughout the country who never before thought it would be possible because of family and work commitments.
We’ve strategically expanded our curriculum, programs, and centers of excellence to meet the fast-changing needs of the legal market. At a time when the value of hands-on learning is becoming increasingly clear, we have expanded the number of experiential learning opportunities in our preeminent clinical and externship programs. We have recognized the extraordinary success of hundreds of our distinguished graduates by the establishment of our annual Hall of Fame Celebration, which last year attracted over 650 supporters.
I have no doubt that even better and brighter days lie ahead for CSU Law and for the University under the extraordinary leadership of President Laura Bloomberg and Provost Nigamanth Sridhar. New challenges lie ahead such as the study and integration of AI into legal education, and preparation for the NextGen Bar Exam. With the next era of leadership will come opportunities for new ideas, fresh perspectives, and exciting innovations.
My deep thanks to the CSU Law community for trusting me with the responsibility of leading this extraordinary law school. It has been an honor and a joy. I look forward to continuing to work with you until June 30, and I’ll remain committed to our law school’s mission and success for the rest of my life.
Ironic twist of history: CSU Law was founded in 1897, when Ohio Court of Appeals Judge Willis Vickery and other notable Cleveland attorneys and judges organized the Baldwin University Law School. In 1899, the law school merged with Cleveland Law School and was incorporated under the name of the Cleveland Law School of Baldwin University (Baldwin-Wallace College after 1913), an association that lasted through 1926.
I guess you could say I’m going back to our roots.
My best,
Lee
The views and opinions expressed in my Monday Morning Message are solely my own and do not reflect the views and opinions of the law school or the university.
For copies of past messages, please go to this link: Monday Morning Messages
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