TJSL Holds Admitted Students Open House
March 28, 2011
It was the first Admitted Students Open House since TJSL moved into its new downtown campus – a chance to show the law school’s new digs – and the students were really impressed with the facility.
“It’s awesome,” said Jacob Bloch. “It’s one of the reasons I wanted to come here.”
Bloch will be among the Fall 2011 entering class, as will Timothy Seeger. “The campus is gorgeous in every way,” Seeger said. The exterior is perfect and the interior has every conceivable thing you could need.”
That’s the reaction the Admissions Staff was hoping to get at the event on Saturday March 26 – that the new campus will be a major selling point for students trying to choose a law school, a category most of the visiting students fell into.
“Our new home is the preeminent legal campus in America,” said Associate Dean for Student Affairs Beth Kransberger, addressing the students, many of whom were accompanied by family members.
Dean Rudy Hasl, who through his long tenure as a law school dean and an ABA committee member, has seen just about every law school in the U.S., told the students that some schools are “so imposing, they seem to say ‘how dare you enter here – you the unqualified.’”
Here at TJSL, the dean said, “We have tried to create a welcoming and comfortable environment – our physical plant is designed to reduce the frustrations and stresses of a law school to allow you to concentrate your energies on your legal studies.”
“It’s an amazing location and it has great resources,” said Alison Hardgrove, one of the admitted students.
“Everyone is so personable,” said Morissa Handy, who was talking about the administration, faculty, current students and staff members she met during the weekend.
Dean Hasl said most law schools have the same basic JD curriculum, “but what varies is the internal culture that has been created,” he said. “So look at the cultures of the various law schools and determine which one is the best fit for you.”
An integral part of TJSL’s culture is diversity. At one point, Dean Kransberger gathered the leaders of her admissions team around her: Admissions Director Tim Spearman, Associate Admissions Director Michelle Allison and Assistant Admissions Director Justin Cruz together to show off the diversity of the office – which reflects the overall diversity of the law school.
“This is the beauty of diversity,“ Dean Kransberger said. “You will find somebody you’ll connect with.”
She also reflected on the highly supportive student culture at TJSL, saying, “We are here to take you as far as can go. What do we need to do to motivate you? That’s what we think about relentlessly.”