Program 2009 New Law School Teachers Workshops New Law School Clinical Teachers

2009 Workshops:

Workshop for Pretenured Minority Law School Teachers
Workshop for New Law School Teachers
Workshop for Beginning Legal Writing Teachers

June 17 – June 21, 2009
Washington, D.C.

Program

Workshop for New Law School Teachers

THURSDAY, JUNE 18, 2009
4:00 - 7:30 p.m.
Registration

5:30 - 6:30 p.m.
Small Group Discussions (by subject matter)
The planning committee strongly encourages attendance at this first set of small group discussions.

6:30 - 7:30 p.m.
AALS Reception

7:30 p.m.
AALS Sponsored Dinner

Welcome
Rachel Moran, AALS President and University of California, Berkeley

Introduction
Randy E. Barnett, Georgetown University and Chair, Planning Committee for the 2009 AALS Workshop for New Law School Teachers, Workshop for Beginning Legal
Writing Teachers and Workshop for Pretenured Minority Law School Teachers

Speaker: The Honorable Guido Calabresi,
U.S. Circuit Judge, U.S. Court of Appeals, New Haven, Connecticut

In a career spanning 50 years, Guido Calabresi has achieved fame as a teacher, scholar, law school dean, and now a federal judge. In this keynote address, Judge Calabresi movingly describes the unique joys of being a law professor, and offers his experienced take on how to excel at each of the roles that legal academics must perform.

FRIDAY, JUNE 19, 2009
8:00 - 8:50 a.m.
AALS Section on Women in Legal Education Continental Breakfast with Questions and Answers

8:30 - 8:50 a.m.
Coffee and Tea

9:00 - 10:30 a.m.
Welcome
Susan Westerberg Prager, AALS Executive Vice President and Executive Director

Scholarship
Angela J. Davis, American University
Cheryl Hanna, Vermont Law School
Lawrence B. Solum, University of Illinois

Professors Davis, Hanna and Solum will address the hard questions about the “how-to” of scholarship. How do you start the writing process and manage competing demands on your time? When, where and how should you submit your manuscript? How do you handle student editors? What can you do to promote your scholarship after it appears? How do you develop a sustained body of work that merits the recognition of your peers?

10:30 - 10:45 a.m.
Refreshment Break

10:45 am - 11: 30 am
Concurrent Sessions

11:30 am - 12:15 pm
Concurrent Sessions

12:15 pm - 1:30 p.m.
AALS Luncheon

1:45 - 2:45 p.m.
Preparing for Your First Semester of Teaching
Dorothy Andrea Brown, Emory University
Graeme B. Dinwoodie, Chicago-Kent College of Law

2:45 - 3:00 p.m.
Refreshment Break

3:00 - 4:15 p.m.
Small Group Discussions

4:15 - 5:15 p.m.
Biggest Triumphs and Mistakes: Junior Faculty Perspectives
Shahram Dana, The John Marshal Law School (1st year)
Cara H. Drinan, Catholic University
(2nd year))
Janai S. Nelson, St. John’s University
(3rd year))

This panel will include three “alumni” of past AALS New Law School Teachers Workshops. They will address the variety of issues and challenges new law teachers face and tell you what they wish they knew then that they know now.

5:15 - 6:00 p.m.
Small Group Discussions

6:00 - 7:00 p.m.
AALS Reception

6:00 - 6:30 p.m.
AALS Section on Clinical Legal Education Informal Gathering

6:00 - 6:30 p.m.
AALS Section on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Issues Informal Gathering

SATURDAY, JUNE 20, 2009
8:00 - 8:50 a.m.
AALS Section on Minority Groups Continental Breakfast with Questions and Answers

8:30 - 8:50 a.m.
Coffee and Tea

9:00 - 10:00 a.m.
Learning Theory
Paula Lustbader, Seattle University
Laurie B. Zimet, University of California, Hastings

Most new law professors model their teaching on how they were taught. While this is valuable and inevitable, it also helps to be aware of the research that has been done in recent years on how students best learn. Professors Lustbader and Zimet provide a basic introduction to these theories explain how they can practically be applied in the law school classroom.

10:00 - 11:00 a.m.
Challenging Conversations
William N. Eskridge, Jr., Yale Law School
Andrew E. Taslitz, Howard University
Additional speaker to be announced

Even traditional law school courses raise new and controversial issues that can seem like a mine field for the new professor. While some choose to shy away from these topics, Professors Eskridge and Taslitz offer their special insights on how to tackle these types of subjects with sensitivity and enhance one’s teaching by doing so.

10:15 - 10:30 a.m.
Refreshment Break

11:15 a.m. - 12:15 p.m.
Small Group Discussions

12:15 - 1:30 p.m.
AALS Luncheon - Blogging
Randy E. Barnett, Georgetown University
Douglas A. Berman, Ohio State University
Christopher J. Borgen, St. John’s University

Moderator: Lawrence B. Solum, University of
Illinois

The Internet provides law professors with alternative avenues for conveying their ideas to readers. Blogging has allowed many professors to become well known within their fields as well as to a broader audience. Yet blogging also can be a professionally hazardous. On this panel, moderated by Professor Solum (Legal Theory Blog), Professors Berman (Sentencing Law and Policy Blog), Borgen (Opinio Juris) and Barnett (The Volokh Conspiracy) offer their tips for success as well as caveats for the new professor who may be contemplating entering the world blogging.

1:45 - 2:45 p.m.
Exam Preparation, Reading, Grading, Review and Course Evaluation
Eric R. Claeys, George Mason University
Francisco X. Valdes, University of Miami

Writing and grading exams are an essential, if onerous, part of the law professor’s job. Professors Claeys and Valdes offer crucial advice for avoiding the most common pitfalls and achieving fairness in the evaluation of student performance. They will also address issues of reviewing course material with students as well as how to make the most of student course evaluations.

2:45 - 3:30 p.m.
Navigating Law School Politics
Randy E. Barnett, Georgetown University and Chair, Planning Committee for the 2009 AALS Workshop for New Law School Teachers, Workshop for Beginning Legal
Writing Teachers and Workshop for Pretenured Minority Law School Teachers

All new law professors immediately confront the challenge of faculty (small “p”) politics. Some must also deal with special problems associated with their (big “P”) Politics. In his concluding address, Professor Barnett offers his advice on how to mitigate these problems while staying true to one’s convictions.

_________________________________________________

Workshop for Pretenured Minority Law School Teachers
Program is supported in part by a grant from the Law School Admission Council.

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 17, 2009
5:30 - 7:00 p.m.
Registration

7:00 - 8:00 p.m.
AALS Reception

THURSDAY, JUNE 18, 2009
8:30 - 8:50 a.m.
Coffee and Tea

9:00 - 9:15 a.m.
Welcome
Susan Westerberg Prager, AALS Executive Vice President and Executive Director

9:15 - 10:30 a.m.
Promotion and Tenure: Getting to Yes
G. Marcus Cole, Stanford Law School
Joseph D. Harbaugh, Nova Southeastern University
Tanya Kateri Hernandez, George Washington University

A dance of courtship? Sink or swim? An arduous marathon? A minefield? How do, should and can pre-tenure faculty of color and their institutions actively own their tenure process? The tenureship process presents particular challenges for pre-tenure faculty of color and this panel will discuss best practices for pre-tenure faculty members with respect to scholarship, teaching and service.

10:30 - 10:45 a.m.
Refreshment Break

10:45 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
Teaching: Strategies to Success
Larry Cata Backer, Pennsylvania State University
Adrienne D. Davis, Washington University
Serena Maria Williams, Widener University

There may be “born” teachers who are able to command the classroom and foster an environment that encourages student participation and trust without breaking a sweat. But for most of us, there are a variety of specific challenges to face in the classroom, particularly for minority and female colleagues. Often, minority teachers report more specialized challenges in the classroom stemming from classroom dynamics that are hard to spot and to know how to address. In this workshop, we identify and address particular issues that may be of concern for minority colleagues. How do I deal with difficult students? How do I ensure diverse participation in the classroom? How should I address the various differences among students-particularly racial or gender differences-and differences between students and myself? In this workshop, these teachers will offer some tips on how to plan and facilitate classroom teaching in both large and small venues, and to be a more effective teacher.

12:00 p.m. - 1:30 p.m.
Law School Admission Council Sponsored Luncheon

History of People of Color in the Academy
Rachel Moran, AALS President and University of California, Berkeley

1:45 - 2:45 p.m.
Service: Strategies to Success
Mark Niles, American University
Enid Trucios-Haynes, University of Louisville

Although the service requirement is usually the most pleasant piece of the tenure puzzle, the eager new faculty member can easily be overwhelmed by service assignments. Often, minority colleagues face this pressure most acutely, particularly given the interest in generating greater visibility of diverse faculty and students, as well as efforts to ensure that important committees have the benefit of minority input. In this session, experienced professors will take you through Law Faculty Basic Training, and discuss the ins and outs of collegiality; the importance of attendance (and when attendance is not so important); how to identify potential mentors and allies; choosing the best opportunities for University, Law School and Community Service; and finally, when to say yes and how to say no. Special attention will also be paid to different types of service obligations colleagues may face on appointments, public service, and scholarship committees (to name just a few), and how to become an institutional team player while balancing other scholarly and teaching obligations.

2:45 - 3:45 p.m.
Scholarship: Strategies to Success
A. Mechele Dickerson, University of Texas
Xuan-Thao Nguyen, Southern Methodist University

Clearly, scholarly production is crucial to one’s becoming a professor. This panel will discuss the ins and outs of scholarship, particularly for the minority legal scholar who may face issues that differ somewhat from the average entry level law professor. How do I pick a topic? What kind of research should I perform? At what point should I be thinking about a scholarly agenda (as opposed to an idea for a particular paper)? How should I hire and use research assistants? What should my writing process look like? What do I do if I am stuck? At what stage should I circulate a draft? To whom should I circulate a draft? How do I deal with feedback? How do I identify allies and colleagues at other schools who will share an interest in my work? What conferences, fellowships, and awards should I think about as I develop as a scholar? What about blogging and other opportunities for interaction with others? How much does placement in law reviews matter? How should I think about the desirability of publishing in a second- or third-journal published at one law school as compared to the primary journal at another? And what about negotiating with other law reviews after I’ve received an acceptance-how do I maneuver in that world? This panel will engage these, among other, questions and prepare you for both short and long term success as a legal scholar.

3:45 - 4:00 p.m.
Refreshment Break

4:00 - 4:45 p.m.
Small Group Discussions: Scholarship

4:55 - 5:25 p.m.
You Can Do This
Blake D. Morant, Wake Forest University

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Workshop for Beginning Legal Writing Teachers

SATURDAY, JUNE 20, 2009
4:30 - 7:00 p.m.
Registration

5:30 - 6:30 p.m.
The History and Mission of Legal Writing Programs
Mary Beth Beazley, Ohio State University

6:30 - 7:30 p.m.
AALS Reception

SUNDAY, June 21, 2009
8:30 - 8:50 a.m. Coffee and Tea

8:30 - 8:45 a.m. Welcome
Susan Westerberg Prager, AALS Executive Vice President and Executive Director

Randy E. Barnett, Georgetown University and Chair, Planning Committee for the 2009 AALS Workshop for New Law School Teachers, Workshop for Beginning Legal
Writing Teachers and Workshop for Pretenured Minority Law School Teachers

8:45 a.m. - 9:45 a.m.
Designing Assignments
Diana Donahoe, Georgetown University

9:45 - 10:45 a.m.
Critiquing
Craig T. Smith, Vanderbilt University

10:45 - 11:00 am
Refreshment Break

11:00 a.m. - 12:45 pm
Small Groups on Critiquing

12:45 - 2:00 p.m. AALS Sponsored Luncheon
Scholarship
Anne Enquist, Seattle University

2:00 - 3:00 p.m. Teaching Legal Research
Amy E. Sloan, University of Baltimore

3:00 - 3:15 p.m.
Refreshment Break

3:15 - 4:15 p.m.
Managing Your Student Conferences
Mary Beth Beazley, Ohio State University

4:15 - 5:15 pm
Putting It All Together: Constructing Your Course
Patricia Broussard, Florida A & M University
Nancy J. Soonpaa, Texas Tech University