Greetings from the University of Denver Sturm College of Law,

It's been an exciting year at the Sturm College of Law! We continue to move forward in implementing our strategic plan, with numerous initiatives in the works and more in the pipeline. Below you will find links to several of these developments, including a update on bar passage, a review of new chairs, new faculty and visitors, and a report on intellectual life at the Sturm College of Law. (click each title for additional information)

• BREAKING NEWS: U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor to visit DU Law. United States Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor will be visiting the University of Denver Sturm College of Law on Aug. 26, 2010, to speak with Colorado high school and college students about her life experiences. The event is co-hosted by the College of Law and the Colorado Campaign for Inclusive Excellence (CCIE).

• STRATEGIC PLAN: We completed and adopted a new strategic plan. The plan, which was based on significant outreach efforts, includes two initiatives: (1) The Modern Learning Initiative, which commits to produce more practice-ready lawyers by increasing experiential learning opportunities, and (2) The Specialization Initiative, which commits to excellence and engagement in five subject-matter areas (environmental and natural resources law, international law, workplace law, constitutional rights and remedies, and business and commercial law).

• BAR PASSAGE: DU first-time takers passed at a rate of 91% in July 2009, and our combined pass rate for July 2009 and February 2010 takers was 88%. This represents significant improvement, and indicates that the non-admissions portions of our bar pass initiative are bearing fruit. More importantly, it suggests that, beginning in 2011, when we begin to see the effects of our new admissions policy, our students should routinely pass the bar at an extremely high level.

• NEW HIRES: We hired seven new tenure track professors and one new lawyering process professor, all of them star quality. And we are now in the business of raiding top 50 schools for our faculty hires. We anticipate adding ten new tenure track professors and two new lawyering process professors in the next four years.

• NEW ASSOCIATE DEAN FOR DIVERSITY: Professor Catherine Smith was appointed to serve as the nation’s first Associate Dean for Institutional Diversity and Inclusiveness.

• NEW CHAIRS: Professor Roberto Corrada was appointed to serve as our Sturm College of Law Chair in Modern Learning. Additionally, Professor Eli Wald was appointed to the Charles W. Delaney, Jr. Chair. And new chairs were awarded to Christine Cimini (Ronald V. Yegge Clinical Director), Nancy Ehrenreich (William M. Beaney Memorial Research Chair), and Ed Zeigler (Robert B. Yegge Memorial Research Chair).

• INTELLECTUAL LIFE
  • Conferences and Lectures: We hosted several important national and international conferences, including the first ever conference on law school assessment. We also hosted several significant lectures featuring nationally prominent scholars, including our second annual Faculty Scholar in Residence, Stanford’s Pam Karlan (co-sponsored by the Chu Family Faculty Fellowship), New York University’s Samuel Estreicher, and the University of Iowa’s Angela Onwuachi-Willig.
  • Scholarship: Our faculty was highly productive, publishing 35 articles, nine books, and twelve book chapters or supplements. Of these, twelve appeared or will soon appear in the top ranked law reviews used in Michael Yelnosky’s national productivity survey. Many faculty members presented their work in prestigious academic venues and commented on their work in national news media.

• NEW PROGRAM DIRECTORS: In addition to developing curriculum in their area, the program directors will build bridges between the Sturm College of Law and the practicing bar, other law schools, and the community.

• FUNDRAISING: Despite the recession, we had our fourth best fundraising year ever. The commitments we received will improve all facets of our school, including our ability to offer scholarships to deserving students. Thank you to all of those who have contributed money – or time – to our mission.

• SMALLER CLASS: We just graduated our last large class – 375 students. Our future classes will be smaller, at 300 students. This combined with our increasing faculty size, will radically change our faculty/student ratio, thus improving the quality of our education.

• FINANCIAL AID: We have institutionalized the Yegge Scholarship program, which provides $1.5 Million per year for diverse students. And we initiated the Sturm Scholarship Program, which provides $300,000 per year to foster excellence. These two new programs supplement our ongoing financial aid programs, and allow us to recruit the best and brightest students.

Thank you very much for your interest in DU Law. I wish you a successful and productive academic year.

Martin J. Katz
Dean and Professor of Law