Reality of a Law Career Presentation

Here's my recent presentation for the GSU Pre-Law Club, and some of the relevant questions to ask yourself before applying to law school...

Reality of a Law Career

- Why law school? My story - Punching my ticket, assessing, and reassessing the life of a litigator

- Does every attorney go to court? (various fields of law)

- How is law school different from the practice of law? Is being a "creative hustler of greater importance than grades and experience?" Interesting quotes from this article:

"Part of the problem is that students enroll in law school without really knowing what they will do," says White. She describes law school as "the great generalists graduate school" because the typical undergraduate has no real sense of what law is. "It is more common for undergraduates to have a popular culture sense about what the law is," she adds.

A dean who wanted enrollees to have an opportunity to reflect on whether to attend law school, "sent accepted applicants who had already paid their full non-refundable deposit a unique letter that generated national attention. In it, she asked, them to reconsider their choice of attending law school. The dean offered them the option to defer their admission for one year to further reflect on their chosen path. Of the 32 students who accepted her offer, only eight enrolled this year.

- Isn’t law school a very flexible degree? (It was for me)

- Does your graduate school decision require a cost benefit analysis? Is Law School a Winning Game or a Losing Game?

- Take Away Lesson #1 – If at all possible, the most important thing for you to do before applying to law school is to get a college internship - to see exactly what lawyers do.

- Take Away Lesson #2 – Start networking now -- In person opportunities (like the GSU Pre-Law Club which brought in an Immigration attorney to speak this week) and Social Media – which social media tool is the one you should focus on to reach attorneys? (LinkedIn)

Follow the Amanda Knox case on my Social Media Law site

Last summer, I taught a Social Media Law course in Northern Italy. In that class, we followed the Amanda Knox case from an open minded international perspective, and how social media tools shaped public opinion, both in the U.S. and abroad.

As you may know, the case is in the appeals stage, which is much different from a U.S. appeal. I will be posting updated articles on the case here:
http://www.perrybinder.com/socialmedialaw.htm

Italy's Court System - The Amanda Knox case started in the Court of Assize (2 Judges and 6 jurors). The presiding Judge must be a member of a Court of Appeals; beside him/her sits a lay judge. Decisions are made by the giudici togati (Judges) and giudici popolari (Jurors) together at a special meeting behind closed doors, named Camera di Consiglio, and the Corte d'Assise is required to publish written explanations of its decisions. The lay Judges are paid for every day of actual exercise of their duty; and, in these instances, are considered public officials. They continue in office for two years. Lay Judges wear a sash in the national colours and are not technically jurors, as the term is understood in Anglo-Saxon jurisprudence. In Italian, Giudice (Judge) refers both to the eight of them together as a collective body and to each of them considered separately as a member of that body. Since lay Judges are not jurors, they cannot be excused, unless there are grounds that would justify an objection to a Judge. Also, they are not sequestered.

Amanda Knox appealed her conviction to the Appeals Court of Assize (2 new judges and 6 new jurors) – Same composition of judges and lay judges as the Corte d'Assise, but the Giudici Togati are senior to the judges of the first court. The Corte d'Assise d'Appello must also publish written explanations of its decisions. This appeal includes a complete review of the evidence – in effect a retrial.

The Professional Association of Georgia Educators (PAGE)

Just joined a great group: The Professional Association of Georgia Educators (PAGE)

From PAGE:

PAGE believes in "walking the walk" and not just "talking the talk." Click on the hyperlinked words and phrases below to see examples of how everything that PAGE does is focused on our core business.

I. Core Business:

Our core business is to provide professional learning for educators that will enhance professional competence and confidence, build leadership qualities and lead to higher academic achievement for students.

II. PAGE Believes:

1. In providing a continuum of high quality, relevant professional learning for pre-service, novice and career educators.
2. Educators participating in our professional learning activities will lead their schools and school communities in systemic change through reflective and strategic thinking.
3. Educators are leaders to be valued and honored.
4. The quality of our professional learning activities makes Georgia a better place for teachers to teach and students to learn.
5. All professional learning activities must have a comprehensive evaluation process for continuous improvement.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION ON PAGE, VISIT: http://www.pageinc.org/

Your professor's inner thoughts (sounds creepy, but it's not my title!)

This article was reprinted in my college alma mater's newspaper ...

Op-Ed Feb. 4, 2011

Click here for The Huffington Post version

or Click image below for college newspaper version

Teach for America rises to the challenge to ‘Make History’

I am a huge fan of the Teach for America mission, and have a former student who just made the final round of interviews for a slot to teach. Here's a great article written by the TFA founder:

In low-income communities across the country, transformational teachers and leaders — and their hard-working students — are proving that America’s greatest injustice is a solvable problem. In “A Chance to Make History,” Teach for America founder Wendy Kopp explores what’s driving these inspiring success stories. Here’s an excerpt.

Continue reading
Teach for America rises to the challenge to ‘Make History’
By Wendy Kopp
http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/41376767/ns/today-books/

Is College an Industrial Degree Factory?

I found this Op-Ed in my alma mater's student newspaper (Pipe Dream, Binghamton University)

Two quotes caught my attention - perceived cynicism mixed with personal optimism:

Sadly, the fact that college is hardly about learning or getting an education is old news. Rather, it is widely accepted that college serves the primary purpose of qualifying students for professional positions.

College is, or at least should be, about personal development. As cliché as it sounds, it is important to remember that, more often than not, real growth takes place outside of the classroom.

So you tell me - what is/was college really all about for you?

Read Binghamton University: An industrial degree factory
By Michael Snow
http://www2.bupipedream.com/op-ed/binghamton-university-an-industrial-degree-factory-1.1922536

8 Things Your Prof Cares (or Doesn't Care) About in Class

With the recent huff over college students not learning a darn thing (45% Of Students Don't Learn Much In College), I figured it was time to offer what goes on in the mind of a college professor. This is what I care about and don't care about in class:

1. DON'T CARE if your cell phone goes off, as long as I get to answer it. These days, I'm having trouble distinguishing incoming calls from texts. Droid!

2. DO CARE when you distract other students. This coming from someone who as a college freshman once launched a mini toy helicopter which circled the classroom and soft crashed on his professor's head. I was surprised and relieved that the professor didn't get all Cornell prof on me.

3. DON'T CARE if you text or surf the web in class (except during exams). Show me that you are a multi-tasker, especially if I have nothing relevant or funny to offer.

4. DO CARE that you view writing as a craft (not as a "spell check" exercise). True story: In a legal document, an attorney asked the judge for a delay in his case because he was undergoing a delicate medical procedure on his back: Disk surgery. However, he mistakenly typed a different four letter word that looked like DISK, inserting an unfortunate "C" rather than the needed "S." Spell check won't catch that!

CONTINUE READING IN THE HUFFINGTON POST

8 Things Your Prof Cares (or Doesn't Care) About in Class

Lessons of Justice and Empathy - On Coal River

This weekend, I previewed On Coal River (tells the story of Marsh Fork Elementary and its fight for a new school), awesome documentary! I purchased a license for the film and will be showing it in my Introduction to Law class in a few weeks, as we discuss lessons of justice and empathy. On Coal River is receiving numerous awards, including the Gotham Award for the “Best Film Not Playing (yet?) at a Theater Near You.”

Variety Review: West Virginians "best a corporate Goliath… Keenly observed… Respectful, thorough, and relevant.”

For new Crazy Classroom blog readers, I have followed the plight of Marsh Fork for years. Here is my most recent post on the subject, re-published in The Huffington Post:

Lessons of Justice for College Students: Grandpa versus Big Coal

by Perry Binder

This is not an environmental issue. This is about a little human being. -- Ed Wiley (Grandpa) speaking to then West Virginia Governor Manchin (now U.S. Senator)

While the media insults and labels the youth of every generation like an X or Y or Z (oh you Slackers, Echoes, and Netters), I instead see college students bringing energy and a common message of hope to the table: to make a difference in their lives and those of others. And in an Introduction to Law class, it is my job to find them real world cases to teach lessons of justice and injustice. So let's meet Ed Wiley and the kids at Marsh Fork Elementary School.

Continue reading at Crazy Classroom and The Huffington Post:
http://yourrubberroom.blogspot.com/2010/10/lessons-of-justice-for-college-students.html

Teacher Training, Taught by Students

Interesting teacher training program in low performing NJ schools ...

Syidah O’Bryant scribbled notes in a composition book, trying to keep up with a lesson about why teenagers are so sleepy in the morning.

Usually Ms. O’Bryant, an eighth-grade social studies teacher, is the one talking. But on Tuesday, it was her student, Kare Spencer, 14.

“She’s the boss of me; she’s teaching me,” Ms. O’Bryant said.

In a role reversal, Ms. O’Bryant and other teachers at Brick Avon Academy are getting pointers from their students this year as part of an unusual teacher training program at 19 low-performing Newark schools.

The lesson learned by Ms. O’Bryant? “It makes you think about really hearing the kids,” she said. “You can learn from them. They have their own language.”

Continue Reading Teacher Training, Taught by Students

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/15/nyregion/15metjournal.html?hpw

Learning to Manage College Finances and Debt

A topic we don't discuss enough - managing debt in college and down the road. Here's a good article on why college students should take a personal finance course:
In College, Learning About Money
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/08/your-money/08money.html?_r=1

Every college student should consider enrolling in such a class. For example, here are Personal Finance courses offered by my department at Georgia State University:
http://www.rmi.gsu.edu/certificates/undergrad_pfp.shtml

As a side note, I am proud of my alma mata, Binghamton University - selected again by Kiplingers as "ranked among the nation’s top 10, according to Kiplinger’s Personal Finance on the magazine’s new list of 100 Best Values in Public Colleges."
http://www.binghamton.edu/inside/index.php/inside/story/binghamton-ranked-in-top-10-by-kiplingers-personal-finance