SIU to reprise program on recruiting faculty members

In an effort to improve the gender and ethnic diversity of law school faculties, the Southern Illinois University School of Law plans to conduct a series of workshops titled “Who Me? A Law Professor?”

One will be presented at 6 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 11, during the ISBA Midyear Meeting at the Sheraton Chicago Hotel. A similar program at the ISBA Annual Meeting in St. Louis last June evoked considerable interest.

The goal is to tell lawyers why it’s good for the profession for them to consider becoming part of academia, and to explain what a law school looks for when recruiting faculty members and how the hiring process works.

In a 2007-08 self-reporting faculty survey by the Association of American Law Schools, 63 percent were men and only 39 percent women – at odds with current student enrolments that show nearly equal gender balance.

Of those reporting, 83 percent indicated being Caucasian and only 17 percent are minorities – again, an anomaly compared with student enrolments.

“Law students deserve to see professors who look like they do,” said SIU assistant professor Suzanne J. Schmitz, a former member of the ISBA Committee on Legal Education, Admission and Competence.

“The legal academy deserves to hear all the voices engaged in and affected by the law,” she added. “If you think there needs to be more diversity in the ranks of teachers, perhaps you should consider becoming a law professor.”

Schmitz invited interested members of the bench and bar to attend the December program, even if they are just thinking about future transitions and need to start planning.

There will be informative handouts and ample time for providing answers to questions.

Speakers include Schmitz and professors Alice M. Noble-Algire, past chair of the Committee on Minority and Women Participation, and Mark Schultz, formerly of the intellectual property practice at Baker & McKenzie.

For more information, contact Schmitz at (618) 453-8712 or sschmitz@siu.edu. To register for the program, e-mail Kristy@siu.edu.