Fall semester kicks off

JD, international and visiting students welcomed to USC Law

-By Lori Stuenkel

They come to USC Law from more than 80 universities around the world with an equal number of interests and backgrounds.

The Class of 2010 was welcomed recently during Orientation Day and noted as one of the brightest and most diverse. The 196 first-year USC Law students were selected from nearly 5,500 applicants, said Associate Dean Chloe Reid. The median LSAT score of incoming students was 166; women make up about half the class.

USC Law Dean Robert K. Rasmussen chats with new students at the Orientation Lunch.

“It is certainly the case that the law school is diverse in many other ways as well, and it is from this rich diversity that we derive our strength as a community,” Reid said during a brunch for the incoming students. “Over 42 percent of you identified yourselves as members of an ethnic minority. Quite a number of you are openly gay or lesbian. Others of you are raising children. Many of you grew up in single-parent households and some of you were adopted.”

The new crop of students come from disparate professional backgrounds, as well: teachers, coaches, interpreters, congressional interns, members of the military, radio station disk jockeys and financial consultants.

Among the incoming J.D. students are a(n): U.S. Marine White House intern English teacher in Korea Archaeologist Federal Trade Commission intern Aerospace engineer Auction administrator for Christies News reporter TV production assistant

Some 87 international students enrolled in the 2007-08 Graduate and International Programs. Hailing from 16 countries, their backgrounds include successful careers in law, business and government. The participants include 84 Master of Laws (LL.M.) students, two Master of Comparative Law (M.C.L.) students and one Visiting International Program for Lawyers (V.I.P.) student.

More than half of this year’s LL.M. students recently completed the 2007 Summer Law & English Program. Now in its fourth year, the month-long program prepares students for their USC Law coursework by providing an introduction to the basics of the U.S. legal system. Students also receive instruction in English, with a focus on legal terms, from USC’s Roissier School of Education Language Academy. Throughout the program, students explore the Los Angeles area through field trips to a courthouse, law firm, and even a Dodgers baseball game.

Professor Scott Bice

New students mingled with law school faculty and staff during an orientation lunch in Town and Gown. Professor Scott Bice, who was dean of the law school from 1980 to 2000, greeted the students and offered a bit of USC Law history.

The law school was founded by students: In 1896, a group of law apprentices who wanted a more standardized legal education organized a series of lectures by lawyers and judges. Four years later, the Los Angeles Law Students Association became affiliated with USC.

“Student initiatives led to this school’s founding and they continue today to be an important aspect of the school,” Bice said.

Professor Jody Armour and a new student at the Orientation Lunch.

Another important aspect of the school is its sense of community, built on a strong foundation of tolerance of political and cultural differences, he said.

“Students, staff, faculty and alumni all make important contributions to the sense of community,” Bice said. “All of us have a responsibility to nurture that sense of community. It makes this school a good place to be.”

Student Body President and 3L Marc Berman also welcomed the first-years to the Trojan Family.

“Law school will be one of the most challenging experiences of your life, but as part of our community, it will also be one of the most memorable and rewarding,” Berman said. “You will all go to class together, study together, and struggle together. But you will all graduate together. You will all achieve together.”