Seven Principles: Increasing Access to Law School Among Students of Color

• Author: Catherine E. Smith
• Position: Associate Professor and Associate Dean for Institutional Diversity and Inclusiveness, University of Denver Sturm College of Law. J.D. and M.P.A., University of South Carolina; B.A. Wofford College
• Pages: 1677-1697

1677

Seven Principles: Increasing Access to Law

School Among Students of Color

Catherine E. Smith

ABSTRACT: In Fall 2010, I became one of the first tenured professors in

the nation to hold a deanship dedicated exclusively to diversity in a school of

law. As the Associate Dean of Institutional Diversity and Inclusiveness at

the University of Denver’s Sturm College of Law (“SCOL”), I am charged

with strengthening access to the legal academy, particularly among, but not

limited to, students and faculty of color. This Essay describes the evolution

of my role and the seven principles that currently guide student pipeline and

recruitment efforts at the SCOL. These principles help the SCOL focus those

efforts, work strategically, and increase the likelihood that desired outcomes

will be achieved. I conclude by offering three examples of efforts undertaken

by the SCOL in the first six months of my service as associate dean, each of

which reflects the principles in action.

I. A DEAN OF DIVERSITY AT SCOL: HOW THE ROLE EVOLVED (AND IS

EVOLVING) ........................................................................................... 1680

A. ABOUT THE STURM COLLEGE OF LAW ............................................. 1680

B. WHY EMBED DIVERSITY WITHIN AN ASSOCIATE DEANSHIP? .............. 1683

II. FOCUSING OUR EFFORTS: SEVEN PRINCIPLES ...................................... 1686

III. THE PRINCIPLES IN ACTION ................................................................. 1688

A. EXAMPLE ONE: BUILDING A PIPELINE WITH THE DENVER URBAN

DEBATE LEAGUE ............................................................................. 1689

B. EXAMPLE TWO: LEVERAGING A (VERY) SPECIAL EVENT AS A

“RELATIONSHIP STRENGTHENER” ................................................... 1692

C. EXAMPLE THREE: LOW-COST LSAT PREP AND ADMISSIONS

SUPPORT ........................................................................................ 1694

 Associate Professor and Associate Dean for Institutional Diversity and Inclusiveness,

University of Denver Sturm College of Law. J.D. and M.P.A., U niversity of South Carolina; B.A.

Wofford College. With thanks to Lecia Brooks, Roberto Corrada, Nancy Ehrenreich, Jennifer

Holladay, Martin J. Katz, Angela Onwauchi-Willig, and Patty Powell for their comments and

feedback on earlier drafts.

1678 IOWA LAW REVIEW [Vol. 96:1677

IV. PARTING THOUGHTS ........................................................................... 1696