ABA To Visit USC Law, Meet with Students

Open meeting for all students is April 8 (10 a.m. – 11 a.m.) in Room 3

—By Maria Iacobo

Every seven years the American Bar Association conducts a law school site visit as part of its reaccreditation process. For USC Law, that time has again come around and law school administrators have spent considerable time planning and organizing this visit for months. The site visit and materials are the law school’s opportunity to demonstrate compliance with the standards set for approved law schools.

The evaluation team is a very distinguished group. This seven-member team includes the former dean of Georgetown University Law Center and the law library director for the University of Virginia School of Law.

“We provide them with a copy of our self-study where we reflect on our challenges and the plan we have set to achieve our goals,” said Vice Dean Scott Altman.

The self-study was shared with the Student Bar Association as well. Students interested in the study is welcome to a copy.

The team will be at the law school for three days – April 6 to 8 – and has a full schedule. It includes visiting as many classes as possible, meeting with university president Steven B. Sample, trying to meet individually with every faculty member and meeting with members of the bar and judiciary familiar with the school.

The team also holds open meetings with the student body and student leaders from a variety of organizations.  The open meeting for students is Tuesday, April 8, from 10 to 11 a.m. in Room 3.  
 
“Students are welcome in this process and we encourage them to attend these meetings,” Altman said.

At the end of their visit, the team will meet with the dean and provide an oral report of the team’s findings. An extensive written evaluation covering all aspects of the school’s operation is provided to the ABA before being sent to the school.