Contact Brandi Palmer
Manager of Media Relations
727-562-7381 [email protected]
L-R: Anna Liu, Sandra Harrell, Sarah Cohen and Luis Santos practice at Stetson Law for Hong Kong. Click for high-resolution image.
A team of four Stetson University College of Law students competed with students from 75 law schools in 20 countries to win the Best Respondent’s Memorandum Award at a moot court competition in Hong Kong.
Students Sarah Cohen, Sandra Harrell, Anna Liu, and Luis Santos won the award at the 2010 Willem C. Vis East International Commercial Arbitration Moot on March 21.
Santos, a third-year student, also received an Honorable Mention Best Oralist Award for his outstanding performance in the preliminary rounds.
Team member Luis Santos (shown here practicing at Stetson Law) received an Honorable Mention Best Oralist Award in preliminary rounds of competition. Click for high-resolution image.
The first Vis Moot began 17 years ago in Vienna, Austria, to promote international commercial arbitration. The Vis East Moot Competition began seven years ago to encourage participation from more schools around the globe. Another team of Stetson students will compete in the Willem C. Vis International Commercial Arbitration Moot in Vienna, Austria, starting this weekend.
Stetson Law graduate Thomas Yaegers, a member of Stetson’s 2005 world champion Vis team, coached the team along with professors Joseph Morrissey, Stephanie Vaughan, Marco Jimenez and Robert Batey, and student coach Erik Detlefsen.
L-R: Erik Detlefsen, Sarah Cohen, Luis Santos, Anna Liu, Sandra Harrell and Thomas Yaegers at the Vis East in Hong Kong. Click for high-resolution image.
Wendy B. Libby, Ph.D., receives university charter. Click for high-resolution image.
Stetson University’s ninth president, Dr. Wendy B. Libby, was inaugurated Saturday, March 20, in a ceremony marked by the colorful traditions of academia and the promise of a bright future for Stetson as “a university of significance.”
In her Inaugural Address, Libby celebrated Stetson’s 126-year-old commitment to integrating the pursuit of education and truth with the search for meaning in one’s personal faith quest and spiritual life. She vowed that Stetson would not rest on its laurels in challenging times, but would embrace a broad vision to assure the university emerges stronger and well-positioned for the future.
President Libby, left, walking in processional through Woodland Blvd. Click for high-resolution image.
Libby issued a challenge to a “greater purpose” to the hundreds of alumni, students, faculty, staff and supporters at the Inauguration in the university’s Edmunds Center. Faculty represented each of the university’s colleges and schools – the College of Arts & Sciences, the School of Business Administration, the College of Law and the School of Music – and each of the university’s four locations: the historic campus in DeLand, the law campus in Gulfport/St. Petersburg, the Tampa Law Center, and the Stetson University Center at Celebration in the metropolitan Orlando area.
“I challenge and invite each of you to join me in embracing this vision for Stetson University that is enriched and informed by history and tradition, but requires our courage and determination to always seek the higher good, the deeper commitment, the brighter future – to be a university of significance,” she said.
More than 170 professors and delegates marched in the processional. Click for high-resolution image.
Inauguration morning started with a procession of about 130 Stetson faculty members, administrators and trustees and about 40 delegates representing colleges and universities across the United States, led by a bagpiper, from Stetson’s main gates north on Woodland Boulevard (U.S. 17-92) to the Edmunds Center. Students and members of the community lined the roadway, some with congratulatory banners.
Libby became Stetson’s ninth president in July 2009, succeeding Dr. H. Douglas Lee, who has since passed away. Libby has had a broad career in higher education and private industry, most recently serving as president of Stephens College in Columbia, Mo., from 2003 to 2009. A native of Brooklyn, N.Y., she earned her doctorate in Educational Administration from the University of Connecticut.
Contact Brandi Palmer
Manager of Media Relations
727-562-7381 [email protected]
L-R): Professor Royal Gardner in background, University of Maryland Law students William Tilburg, April Morton, Best Oralist Molly Knoll, and Stetson Law Dean Darby Dickerson. Click for high-resolution image.
A team of students from the University of Maryland’s School of Law won the 14th Annual International Environmental Moot Court Competition at Stetson University College of Law in Gulfport, Fla., on March 14. The other finalist was from the Law Society of Ireland, Cork.
Student teams from Brazil, China, Ghana, India, Ireland, the Philippines, Vietnam, Ukraine and the United States prepared written submissions and delivered oral arguments in a case involving the impact of ocean noise on marine mammals. This is the first year a team from Africa participated in the competition. Molly Knoll of the University of Maryland was named Best Oralist, and Ateneo de Manila University in the Philippines won the Best Memorial Award. Students from the Faculty of International Law at the Diplomatic Academy of Vietnam received this year’s Spirit of Stetson Award.
Final round judges included Dr. Wil Burns, editor in chief of the Journal of International Wildlife Law and Policy, and professors John Bonine and Svitlana Kravchenko of the University of Oregon School of Law.
“We are so proud to host this competition,” said Royal C. Gardner, professor and director of the Institute for Biodiversity Law and Policy at Stetson. “The moot gives students from all over the world an opportunity to hone their advocacy skills while learning about global environmental issues.”
This year’s competition coincided with the two-day 12th International Wildlife Law Conference on March 12-13. Distinguished international scholars from around the world discussed topics including marine animal welfare issues, wildlife as food, procedural mechanisms to protect wildlife, and international trade of endangered species.
Contact Brandi Palmer
Manager of Media Relations
727-562-7381 [email protected]
Click for high-resolution image.
Stetson University College of Law professor Peter Lake says most colleges and universities have a one-size-fits-all approach to a range of student discipline issues including sexual assault, violence, binge drinking, suicide, drug use and cheating. His latest book, Beyond Discipline – Managing the Modern Higher Education Environment, suggests an alternative.
Beyond Discipline argues for an education-based, student-centered process, which is not overly legalistic.
The book addresses several discipline-related topics including sexual assault and rape on college campuses. Lake argues that it is imperative to identify and remove sexual predators from campuses quickly.
“It is time to completely rethink our approaches to creating safe and responsible campuses,” said Lake, who is the director of the Center for Higher Education Law and Policy at Stetson Law. “What we are doing now does not work. There are too many lawyers and legalistic discipline systems; and not enough of what colleges do best –education. Sometimes we are so obsessed with being ‘fair’ with wrongdoers that we unintentionally cheat our good students.”
“Lake challenges those of us in higher education to ‘recognize an appropriate role for law and legalisms,’ developing a unique system that ensures the student’s education, development, and personal growth remain central,” said Gwendolyn Jordan Dungy, executive director of NASPA-Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education.
Professor Lake often writes for and is quoted in the Chronicle of Higher Education and was recently interviewed by National Public Radio on the campus rape issue.
This month, the 12th International Wildlife Law Conference will be held in conjunction with the international finals of the International Environmental Moot Court Competition on Stetson University College of Law’s Gulfport campus.
A diverse range of speakers from around the world will present on international law, international environmental law and animal issues at the conference March 12-13.
Speakers include:
Azrina Abdullah, Centre for Malaysian Indigenous Studies (Malaysia)
Professor Jerry L. Anderson, Drake University School of Law
Professor John Bonine, University of Oregon School of Law
Dr. Veronica Frank, International Fund for Animal Welfare (Belgium)
Professor Svitlana Kravchenko, University of Oregon School of Law
Dr. Naomi A. Rose, Humane Society International
Professor Tushar Kanti Saha, National University of Lesotho
Sessions will focus on marine animal welfare issues, wildlife as food, procedural mechanisms to protect wildlife, and the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species.
Conference attendees may also attend the international finals of the 14th Annual International Environmental Moot Court Competition at Stetson Law March 12-14. Teams of students are traveling from Brazil, China, Ghana, India, Ireland, the Philippines, Vietnam, Ukraine and across the United States to tackle problems involving ocean noise impact on marine mammals. This is the first year a team from Africa will be participating in the prestigious competition. Final rounds judges include Dr. Wil Burns, editor in chief of the Journal of International Wildlife Law and Policy, and professors John Bonine and Svitlana Kravchenko of the University of Oregon School of Law.
The conference program is approved for 9.5 hours of general CLE credits with the Florida Bar. Registration is available online at www.law.stetson.edu/conferences/wildlife2010. The registration rate is $200. The non-Stetson student rate is $35. Stetson students, faculty and staff may attend for free.
For more information, please contact Stetson Law professor Royal Gardner at [email protected].
Contact Brandi Palmer
Manager of Media Relations
727-562-7381 [email protected]
Students Meg Martin and Joseph Herbert won awards for best oralists Feb. 27 in Miami. Click for high-resolution image.
Advocacy teams from Stetson University College of Law won competitions Feb. 27 in Miami, Fla., and Feb. 28 in Kansas City, Mo. Another team took home best individual awards on Feb. 27 in Albany, N.Y.
On Feb. 27 in Miami, a Stetson team won the 2010 Florida pre-competition for the Willem C. Vis International Commercial Arbitration Moot. Stetson won the competition for the fifth consecutive year. Students Amanda Adams, Joseph Herbert, Jenna Jordan, Jackson Martin and Meg Martin won best overall team. Herbert also won best overall oralist in addition to best oralist in rounds three and four; Meg Martin won best oralist in the first round. For the first time, the competition included a European university, the University of Versailles. Professors Joseph Morrissey, Marco Jimenez, professor and Moot Court Advisor Stephanie Vaughan, and student Joseph Etter coached the winning Stetson team, which next heads to Vienna, Austria, to compete in the prestigious Willem C. Vis International Commercial Arbitration Moot.
On Feb. 28 in Kansas City, Stetson won the regional competition of the American Association for Justice National Student Trial Advocacy Competition. The team included Olesea Collins, Cornelius Demps, Renee Faired and Colby Hearn. Demps also received the award for best advocate. Stetson Law professor Lee Coppock, Assistant Director of Student Life Callie Cowan JD ’08 and Nathan Hatcher JD ’08 coached the winning team. The team’s next stop will be New Orleans, La., where students will compete in the national AAJ competition.
On Feb. 27 in Albany, Stetson students took home high individual honors from the 22nd Annual Domenick L. Gabrielli National Family Law Moot Court Competition. Students Amy Burns and Ryan Schmidt won the best brief award at the competition, and Burns was also named best oralist. Professor Linda Anderson coached the team.
Contact Brandi Palmer
Manager of Media Relations
727-562-7381 [email protected]
Legal writing scholar Bryan A. Garner. Click for high-resolution image.
Bryan A. Garner, a nationally known legal writing expert, will address Stetson University College of Law graduates May 15 in Gulfport.
Garner serves as editor in chief of Black’s Law Dictionary and has authored many leading works on legal style, including A Dictionary of Modern Legal Usage, The Elements of Legal Style, The Redbook: A Manual on Legal Style, The Winning Brief, and The Winning Oral Argument. His latest books are Making Your Case: The Art of Persuading Judges, co-written with U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, and Garner on Language and Writing, an anthology published by the American Bar Association.
The 284 graduates include 23 students who are candidates for the J.D./ M.B.A. dual degree. Seven students are candidates for the LL.M. degree in Elder Law, and 13 are candidates for the LL.M. degree in International Law.
Among the outstanding graduates are:
• Stephanie Broad, who interned with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and was honored by NOAA for bringing together attorneys, scientists and policymakers to enforce construction of a fish passage at a dam in the southeastern U.S. She also recently received the Florida Bar City, County and Local Government Section Law Student Award for her work as recent developments editor on the Stetson Law Review.
• Sarah Alexandra Cohen, who interned with Ugandan Supreme Court Justice John Tsekooko and represented Stetson in the 2010 Willem Vis Moot in Hong Kong, where the team won the Fali Nariman Award for the Best Respondent’s Memorandum.
• Erik Detlefsen, editor in chief of the Stetson Law Review who also served on the College of Law’s award-winning Willem Vis team in Hong Kong and who will be joining the Minneapolis law firm of Dorsey & Whitney in January 2011.
• Rickisha Hightower-Singletary, Stetson’s first Public Service Scholarship recipient, who was also a Florida Bar Foundation Fellowship recipient, Guardian Ad Litem, and Public Service Fellow.
• Katelyn Knaak, an outstanding advocate who helped her team win the National Trial Competition in March, beating Stanford in the final round; she was also on the winning team at the 2009 National Civil Trial Competition in Los Angeles.
Contact Brandi Palmer
Manager of Media Relations
727-562-7381 [email protected]
Dean Darby Dickerson with Beverly Ledbetter and Professor Peter Lake. Click for high-resolution image.
Beverly Ledbetter and Barbara A. Lee, Ph.D., both received prestigious awards from Stetson University College of Law’s Center for Excellence in Higher Education Law and Policy at the 31st Annual National Conference on Law and Higher Education.
Ledbetter, vice president and general counsel of Brown University, received this year’s Facilitator Award, and Lee, a professor and former dean of Rutgers School of Management and Labor Relations, received the William A. Kaplin Award at the conference on Feb. 21 in Orlando, Fla.
In addition to her role at Brown University, Ledbetter lectures frequently on higher education issues including employment, civil rights, sexual and racial harassment, and federal regulatory compliance, and is regarded as an expert in the field of higher education law. She is on the faculty of the management development program at Harvard University and has been an adjunct professor at Harvard.
Professor William A. Kaplin with Professor Barbara A. Lee, Professor Peter Lake and Dean Darby Dickerson. Click for high-resolution image.
Lee is a professor of human resource management at Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey. She has previously directed the Center for Women and Work and chaired the department of Human Resource Management at Rutgers. Lee has made numerous presentations on topics including faculty with disabilities, educational freedom and faculty rights, and comparative higher education law in the U.S. and in the U.K. She has also co-authored books on higher education law with Professor William A. Kaplin, the Kaplin Award’s namesake.
Stetson created the Facilitator Award to honor educators who embody the values and principles articulated in The Rights and Responsibilities of the Modern University, co-authored by professors Robert Bickel and Peter Lake. The Kaplin Award honors outstanding scholarly work related to higher education law and policy, and is named for William A. Kaplin, award-winning education and constitutional law professor, leading book author in the field, and distinguished professorial lecturer and senior fellow in the Center for Excellence in Higher Education Law and Policy at Stetson.
To learn more about upcoming higher education programs at Stetson, please visit the Center for Excellence in Higher Education Law and Policy’s Web site at http://www.law.stetson.edu/excellence/HigherEd/ or call 727-562-7392.
Contact Stetson University
Special Events
386-822-7453 [email protected]
Inauguration/Homecoming 2010 weekend to include many public events
Wendy B. Libby, Ph.D. Click for high-resolution image.
The public is invited to join the Stetson University community for the Inauguration of the university’s ninth president, Dr. Wendy B. Libby, during Homecoming 2010 weekend, March 18 to 21.
The formal installation of the new president will be at 11 a.m. Saturday, March 20, in the Edmunds Center, 143 E. Pennsylvania Ave. Beginning at 10:40 a.m., Stetson faculty members, administrators and trustees will join with delegates representing dozens of colleges and universities throughout the United States for a procession from Stetson’s main gates north on Woodland Boulevard to Pennsylvania Avenue. The section of Woodland Boulevard (U.S. 17-92) that runs through Stetson’s campus will be closed to automobile traffic briefly.
The public is also invited to the Mainstreet Block Party – An Inauguration Celebration from 7:30 to 11 p.m. Saturday, March 20, along West Indiana Avenue in downtown DeLand. Other public events during the weekend are listed below.
Libby became Stetson’s ninth president in July 2009. It is customary for college presidents to be inaugurated some months after they take the helm, and Libby requested that her inauguration be scheduled during Homecoming so that alumni could attend.
Libby has a broad career in higher education and private industry, most recently serving as president of Stephens College in Columbia, Mo., from 2003 to 2009. A native of Brooklyn, N.Y., she earned her doctorate in Educational Administration from the University of Connecticut. She has already embarked on a mission to build on Stetson’s long tradition of academic excellence and commitments to values and service and to unite Stetson’s four locations as “one university.”
“I’ve had the privilege of getting to know Dr. Wendy Libby over the past few months. Needless to say, I’ve been impressed with her in many ways. Wendy will be a dynamic and innovative leader for the university, and she will develop new, mutually beneficial partnerships with our community,” said DeLand Mayor Bob Apgar. “The city is excited to welcome alumni and friends to DeLand for her Inauguration and Homecoming. This will be a historic event as Stetson installs its first woman president, and I encourage everyone in our community to show their support for Wendy and Stetson by joining in the celebration.”
Four days of Inauguration and Homecoming 2010 activities are planned for alumni and the public, including reunions for seven class years back to the Class of 1955. Events that are open to the public include:
Friday, March 19:
Art Exhibition, “Oscar Bluemner: Art and Identity Between the World Wars,” free, 11 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Friday, March 19, Hand Art Center, 139 E. Michigan Ave.
Alumni and Faculty Author Book-Signing, free, books will be available for sale, 3:30-4:30 p.m. Friday, March 19, duPont-Ball Library, 134 E. Minnesota Ave.
Men’s Hatter Baseball vs. Florida Gulf Coast University, preceded at 6:15 p.m. by announcement of the Homecoming Court, 6:30 p.m. Friday, March 19, Melching Field at Conrad Park, 555 S. Woodland Blvd. Tickets: $7 for general admission; $8 for chairback seating, www.gohatters.com.
School of Music Inauguration Concert, free, 8 p.m. Friday, March 19, Lee Chapel in Elizabeth Hall, 421 N. Woodland Blvd.
Saturday, March 20:
Run Around Stetson 5K, walk/run to raise money for Stetson alumni programs, 8 a.m. Saturday, March 20; register at 7:30 a.m. at the Edmunds Center, 143 E. Pennsylvania Ave. $10 to participate.
Inauguration ceremony, free, 11 a.m. Saturday, March 20, Edmunds Center, 143 E. Pennsylvania Ave. Procession along Woodland Boulevard to begin at 10:40 a.m.
Men’s Hatter Baseball vs. Florida Gulf Coast University, 1 p.m. Saturday, March 20, Melching Field at Conrad Park, 555 S. Woodland Blvd. Tickets: $7 for general admission; $8 for chairback seating, www.gohatters.com.
Art Exhibition, “Oscar Bluemner: Art and Identity Between the World Wars,” free, 1-4 p.m. Saturday, March 20, Hand Art Center, 139 E. Michigan Ave.
School of Music Showcase Concert, free, featuring performances by student chamber ensembles, 2-3:30 p.m. Saturday, March 20, Lee Chapel in Elizabeth Hall, 421 N. Woodland Blvd.
Family Day and Homecoming Open House at the Gillespie Museum, free, 2-4 p.m. Saturday, March 20, Gillespie Museum, 234 E. Michigan Ave.
Reptile Roundup, free, an open house featuring a biology showcase and activities centered around the Rinker Environmental Learning Center and adjacent community garden, 2-4 p.m. Saturday, March 20, Rinker Environmental Learning Center, 230 E. Michigan Ave.
Men’s Hatter Baseball vs. Florida Gulf Coast University, 4:30 p.m. Saturday, March 20, Melching Field at Conrad Park, 555 S. Woodland Blvd. Tickets: $7 for general admission; $8 for chairback seating, www.gohatters.com.
Mainstreet Block Party: An Inauguration Celebration, free, featuring live music by Motion City Soundtrack and Frontiers: The Journey Tribute Band, a Classic Car Show, children’s area, crowning of the Homecoming King and Queen, and trophy presentations to the winners of the Legacy Cup and Football Challenge, 7:30-11 p.m. on West Indiana Avenue in downtown DeLand.
Sunday, March 21:
Chapel Service, free, an interdenominational service led by Stetson Chaplain Michael Fronk, featuring a moment of “Golden Silence” to honor recently deceased alumni, students, faculty and staff, 9 a.m. Sunday, March 21, Lee Chapel in Elizabeth Hall, 421 N. Woodland Blvd.
Art Exhibition, “Oscar Bluemner: Art and Identity Between the World Wars,” free, 1-4 p.m. Sunday, March 21, Hand Art Center, 139 E. Michigan Ave.
Lawson Lecture by Ignat Solzhenitsyn, “One Life to Live: Choice and Free Will in One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich,” free, 2 p.m. Sunday, March 21, Lee Chapel in Elizabeth Hall, 421 N. Woodland Blvd.
Performance/Talk by Ignat Solzhenitsyn, on the subject of a Schubert sonata, free, 4:30 p.m. Sunday, March 21, Feasel Rehearsal Hall in Mary B. McMahan Hall, 417 N. Woodland Blvd.
Media planning to cover the Inauguration should contact the Stetson Office of Public Relations and Communications at 386-822-8920 to arrange for media credentials. Anyone needing more information about the activities may call the Office of Public Relations and Communications at 386-822-8920.
Contact Brandi Palmer
Manager of Media Relations
727-562-7381 [email protected]
2006 Stetson Law graduate Marc L. Levine. Click for high-resolution image.
In May, the first Marc L. Levine Award will be presented to a Stetson University College of Law student who has demonstrated significant professional growth and leadership during his or her time at Stetson.
The award was established by Marc’s parents, Dr. and Mrs. Paul A. Levine, to honor a graduating student who, like Marc, emerged as a campus leader at Stetson.
“I am deeply honored that my parents decided to create an award in my name at Stetson Law,” said Levine, the award’s namesake. “However, I believe that the award is more of an acknowledgement of the amazing experience and education that Stetson Law provides its students than of my individual accomplishments while in law school.”
Levine, an Orlando attorney with GrayRobinson P.A., graduated cum laude in 2006 from Stetson Law; he received the Walter Mann Award for professional leadership and the William F. Blews Pro Bono Award for community service. While a student, he interned for Judge Elizabeth A. Kovachevich of the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida, and Judge Ralph C. Stoddard of Florida’s 13th Judicial Circuit. Levine is a member of the Stetson Lawyers Association Advisory Council.
Contact Brandi Palmer
Manager of Media Relations
727-562-7381 [email protected]
(L-R): Stetson HBA president David Fernandez accepts his award from 1985 Stetson Law graduate and former Clearwater Bar Association president Scott Schiltz. Photo courtesy Clearwater Bar. Click for high-resolution image.
Stetson University College of Law has again been listed among the top 25 law schools graduating Hispanics in The Hispanic Outlook in Higher Education. The December 2009 Hispanic Outlook listed Stetson Law 15th among law schools across the country graduating the most Hispanic students.
Stetson Law’s Hispanic students have established a strong tradition of community and public service. David Fernandez, president of Stetson’s Hispanic Bar Association and Law and Order, made history on Feb. 11 when he became the first law student to receive the Clearwater Bar Foundation Excellence in Pro Bono Award. Fernandez received the award for his work to provide Spanish-speakers with access to legal documents through a translation project.
Stetson’s HBA was also honored for extraordinary service by the Florida Supreme Court with the Chief Justice’s Voluntary Bar Association Pro Bono Service Award in 2006.
The Hispanic Outlook gathered statistics on the top 25 law schools from the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System. The magazine reports on the top U.S. law schools for Hispanics every year.
Contact Frank Klim
Executive Director of Communications
727-562-7889 [email protected]
Judge E.J. Salcines is this year's Tower Award recipient. Click for high-resolution image.
Judge E.J. Salcines has been selected to receive Stetson University College of Law’s Tower Award on May 1 at TPepin’s Hospitality Centre in Tampa.
Judge Salcines will be presented the award during Stetson’s Second Annual Scholarship Gala, which raises funds for law student scholarships. This year’s gala co-chairs are Stetson Law alumni Meredith Phipps Nutter ’04 and Rick Nutter ’03.
A Tampa native, Judge Salcines was appointed to Florida’s Second District Court of Appeal in 1998, where he served for a decade. Judge Salcines’ legal career spans work as an attorney, federal and state prosecutor, assistant U.S. attorney and judge. He received a J.D. degree from South Texas College of Law, as well as Honorary Doctors of Law Degrees from Stetson University College of Law and Florida Southern College. Judge Salcines has received numerous honors from civic groups and bar organizations for spearheading outstanding legal community service programs. He was awarded the University of South Florida’s President’s Distinguished Citizen Award in 1993 and Distinguished Service Award in 1996. The City of Tampa recognized him as Hispanic Man of the Year in 1993. Born to immigrants of Spain, Judge Salcines became the first Spanish-speaking assistant U.S. attorney in 1964.
