Elon Law advisory board holds fall meeting

The Elon University School of Law Advisory Board held its fall meeting Dec. 3-4, providing input on a variety of key issues.

Elon Law Advisory Board chair David Gergen (r), CNN senior political analyst and director of the Center for Public Leadership at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, talks with Student Bar Association President Damon Duncan, a member of the Class of 2009.

The board, led by chairman David Gergen of the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, heard an update on the search for a new law school dean. Finalists for the position are being interviewed this month.

Interim Dean George Johnson gave the board an update on the admissions process as well as development efforts and recruitment for several staff positions at the school. He also detailed plans for the school’s first graduation ceremonies on May 24, 2009, and shared information about student successes in the establishment of the Elon Law Review and the inaugural Elon Law Intramural Moot Court Competition in early November.

Faith Rivers James, associate professor of law, and John Alexander, Isabella Cannon Distinguished Visiting Professor of Leadership, made a presentation on the development of the law school’s leadership program. Mital Patel, a member of the Class of 2009, detailed his leadership capstone project to raise funds for the Calcutta Children’s Permanent Fund, which is housed within the Community Foundation Fund of Greater Greensboro.

Gergen and other board members urged Elon Law administrators to develop plans to assist graduates who will be starting their legal careers during tough economic times. Following their meeting, advisory board members had lunch with students, sharing advice and learning more about the students’ experiences at Elon Law.