Growing forward.

• Date: 22 June 2013
• Author: Vera, Michael A.

The 2010-2011 St. Thomas Law Review Executive Board convened with a simple purpose in mind: What can we, as a group, do to further establish the St. Thomas Law Review as a serious academic publication, while also enhancing the Law Review's brand and venturing out beyond the traditional publication format by embracing new media. With these lofty goals in mind, the Executive Board, the membership, and our wonderful office manager, faculty advisor, and the entire faculty, embarked upon a truly exciting year in the St. Thomas Law Review's history.

From the beginning of our tenure, expanding the Law Review's reach by utilizing new media was a primary goal, especially when considering that print media, whether traditional newspapers or legal publications, was in steep decline. Though the Law Review did have a website, it was the equivalent of a beat up 1980s era Volkswagen Beetle: sure, you could drive it, but did you really want to? Realizing we needed a complete overhaul, I spoke with then Dean of the School of Law, Alfredo Garcia, about the idea. Dean Garcia has always been a champion of his students' pursuits, and this time was no different. Dean Garcia granted the Law Review the budgetary flexibility as the fiscal year was nearing its end, and, just like that, a professional first class website was being designed. This web design effort was spearheaded by Michael Skiscim, the Articles Selection...