April 2019 Dean’s Corner - Maintaining Momentum in a Changing Legal Landscape

by Matthew J. Parlow

It has been almost three years since I had the privilege of returning to Chapman University’s Fowler School of Law as its dean. In that time, while many law schools have experienced a broad range of challenges in the face of a changing landscape for the legal profession, I’m proud to say that the Fowler School of Law exceeded its goals, growing in terms of performance, resources, and visibility.

That type of progress does not happen in a vacuum, of course. The success the Fowler School of Law has experienced over the last several years has been a community effort. It is the result of the combined energies of faculty, staff, alumni, donors, and of course, the hard-working students who are the reason for everything we do.

Last year, the Fowler School of Law received a generous $1 million gift from Sherry and Parker Kennedy, focused on supporting the work of our nationally-recognized faculty. It established three professorships, supports key areas for students, and created the Kennedy Excellence Fund, dedicated to professional development. This was the second $1 million-plus gift made to the school in less than a year—the first was a $1.125 million gift from alumnus Sam Mirejovsky (JD ’14) and his law partner, James Bergener. This record total amount serves as a testament to the belief, support, and confidence that our donors have in the important and impactful work that we do here every day with our students.

Speaking of students, we welcomed one of the strongest classes in the Fowler School of Law’s history this past fall. The 155 incoming students had a median LSAT score of 157 and median GPA of 3.42. And it was also the most diverse ever—with 48% coming from traditionally underrepresented racial and ethnic groups, and 29% first-generation college students. For our diversity initiatives, we were recognized with a CLEO EDGE Award for Greater Equality, an honor that comes on top of six Diversity Matters Award wins from DiscoverLaw.org.

At the same time, we saw the $1 million renovation of the Wylie A. Aitken Trial Courtroom—these architectural and technological upgrades make it one of the best courtrooms of any law school in the country. This comes on the heels of renovations made the previous year in the Hugh & Hazel Darling Law Library and in numerous classrooms throughout our home at Kennedy Hall—all to provide the best possible experience for our students. And this was all done without impact to our budget—the funding for these renovations came from generous donors, rather than tuition dollars.

Practical training has been an essential part of the Fowler School of Law’s DNA from the start, and it shows in our students’ achievements. In 2018, the Fowler School of Law placed No. 7 in the country—among all participating law schools—in the inaugural ABA Competitions Championship. Our competition teams also took top honors at the 2018 Tulane Professional Football Negotiation Competition and 2018 Show Me (Voir Dire) Challenge at the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Law.

It is no surprise, then, that PreLaw Magazine ranked the Fowler School of Law in the top 25 law schools nationally for practice-ready education. Through clinics, internships, and our innovative curriculum, our students begin their life in the law with a head start while making important contributions to the local community.

An increasing number of Fowler alumni are finding employment in top law firms, and along with standouts such as Timothy Wiener (LL.M. ’10), who was recently appointed to the Los Angeles Superior Court, and Diana Day (J.D. ’07), who was named one of the “World’s Most Powerful Sports Agents” by Forbes, those graduates serve to both inspire our students and raise the profile of the school.

That profile has also been elevated by the range of speakers from a variety of industries both inside and outside of the legal profession—a selection in the last year that’s included Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals Judge Diarmuid F. O’Scannlain, Los Angeles Lakers General Manager Rob Pelinka, and Academy Award-winning producer Blye Pagon Faust—who offer students not just added educational value, but also an inside look at real-world applications of the skills they learn in the classroom.

These are exciting times at the Fowler School of Law. This is a law school on the move, and we have an even brighter future ahead of us. I could not be prouder to be a part of this institution and our community.

Matthew J. Parlow is Dean and the Donald P. Kennedy Chair in Law at Chapman University Dale E. Fowler School of Law. He may be reached at parlow@chapman.edu.