Sherri J. Berendt (JD ’99)
Friends:
The start of fall and the start of the academic year brought more than 380 excited new law students to the halls of John Marshall, the very crowded halls of John Marshall. The growing number of students brings the necessity for a larger faculty, more administrative staff, more classrooms and more amenities. We have not been caught off guard by this, though. The administration and the board of trustees has been planning the growth and expansion of our physical space for years. John Lee joined us as the president of The John Marshall Law School Foundation two years ago and Leonard Amari, president of the board of trustees, has been priming the board (and the budget) for several years as well, as we spend some savings and prepare for fundraising.
We are finally at the place where we are seeing some exciting changes happen. This fall the new Justice Goldberg Memorial Court Room opened. It is in a word – beautiful! It is equipped with top-of-the-line technology to give our faculty, students and guests the best that can be offered. The lease for Walgreen’s at the corner of Jackson and State Street will expire in the spring and will be transformed into the main entrance to the law school. This will give us a spectacular State Street presence and some great space for our students.
Internally, we are very excited about all the changes and accomplishments, including the first place wins at the National Moot Court Championship, the Buffalo- Niagara Mock Trial Competition and our third-straight win at the Animal Law Advocacy Closing Argument Competition at Harvard Law School and the law school’s first academic chair in constitutional law. I think that you, our alumni, are sensing all the great stuff that is happening here as well. Attendance at our alumni events is up, volunteer numbers are up and donations are up.
I am proud to say that you are giving of your time, talent or treasure in impressive numbers. We are not there yet, though. With all the great opportunities to give back to your alma mater… I want to ask: What will you do? What will you do to help a recent grad or a student find a job, to help us meet our fundraising goals for the new building space, or to provide a deserving student a scholarship? Will you volunteer to be a mentor or buy a ticket to an event? I hope that this year brings greater involvement, attendance and contributions. Every dollar, every moment of your time….it all matters.
Warmest Regards,
Sherri J. Berendt (JD ’99)
Director of Alumni Relations