From the Deans' Suite - 9/16/25 - Connect with Our Recent Graduates

Cleveland State University College of Law graduates are practice-ready and prepared to lead. Our Class of 2025 graduates bring grit, passion, and a strong work ethic, and they are ready to add value to your organization.

From the Deans' Suite - 9/9/25 - Faculty/Staff Focus Summer 2025 Edition

We are very fortunate to have outstanding full-time, adjunct, and emeritus faculty, leaders-in-residence, and staff. We are pleased to share regular updates on the work of this talented group. Below are highlights from Summer 2025.

From the Deans' Suite - 8/26/25 - Building Community

This past weekend, we welcomed our newest class of 1L online J.D. students to campus for their very first Residency. It was a weekend full of energy, connection, and inspiration, and it marked the beginning of a remarkable journey for this talented group.

CSU|LAW’s innovative Online J.D. program is designed to combine the flexibility of online learning with the powerful, hands-on engagement that defines great legal education. That’s why our students complete three in-person Residencies during their first year, and three more in the remainder of their course of study. Each Residency is intentionally crafted to include:

From the Deans' Suite - 8/19/25 - Welcoming Our New Students

Yesterday, 128 new J.D. students walked through our doors for in-person orientation—the first of three Orientation days together. This Friday, we'll extend that same warm welcome to our J.D. Online students as they begin their own orientation journey. We're also welcoming ten M.L.S. students and four LL.M. students this fall. Together, all of these students join a community united by our mission: Learn Law. Live Justice.

From the Deans' Suite - 8/12/25 - Not Everything that Counts

“Not everything that counts”

Next week, we will greet the largest first-year class at CSU|Law since at least 2009. Over 200 students—nearly one-third in our part-time, online JD—will start their first year of law school on August 20. The 2025 1L class represents a remarkable milestone: the largest number of out-of-state students ever admitted at CSU|Law. Nearly 40% of the class—15% full-time and 82% part-time, online—come from outside of Ohio, representing 29 different states, the District of Columbia, and Canada.

From the Deans' Suite - 8/5/25 - Opening Doors for 53 Years and Counting

This week, I want to spotlight a program that captures the heart of who we are and how we fulfill our mission: the Legal Career Opportunities Program (“LCOP”). Yesterday, we welcomed sixteen first-year students to the LCOP Class of 2025, making it the perfect time to celebrate this extraordinary legacy.

LCOP began in 1972 with a bold vision: to expand access to legal education for talented individuals who might otherwise be denied the opportunity to pursue a law degree. For 53 years, it has stayed true to that mission by identifying promise, providing early academic preparation, and building the skills and confidence that allow students to succeed.

From the Deans' Suite - 7/29/25 - The Bar Exam is Tough

As you read this, our 2025 graduates are deep into Day 1 of the bar exam—and we couldn’t be prouder of them.

Over the past three years, these remarkable students have shown resilience, grit, and determination. They’ve made it through three or more years of law school—many while juggling jobs, families, and other major responsibilities. And they’ve pushed through our demanding bar prep program. They are ready.

The bar exam is tough. But so are they.

They’ve done the work, and they carry with them the support of the entire CSU|Law community —faculty, staff, alumni, and friends—believing in them every step of the way.

From the Deans' Suite - 7/22/25 - One Week to the Bar Exam

It's almost time for the bar exam!

As I’ve walked through the law library and the Robert and Judy Rawson Learning Commons in recent days, all signs point to the bar exam, which is now just one week away. Study rooms have become bar study command centers—dry-erase boards and windows are covered in outlines; tables are piled with books, snacks, and coffee; and graduates are giving their all in this final stretch.

Every CSU Law bar taker had the opportunity to reserve a private study room from graduation through the weekend before the exam, and they’ve made the most of their spaces. Some rooms are used for quiet solo study; others are alive with collaboration and shared learning. 

From the Deans' Suite - 7/15/25 - Champions of Justice

“There’s never a wrong time to stand up for what’s right” 

That was the inspiring theme of American Bar Association President Bill Bay’s talk last week at the Cleveland City Club. At once a truism and a battle cry, President Bay was referring to the ABA’s response to the disturbing rise in attacks on the legal profession and personal threats to judges and their families. Threats against judges, once rare and unthinkable, have become alarmingly commonplace. U.S. District Court Judge Dan Polster joined President Bay decrying these unprecedented attacks and emphasized that judges need all of us to help defend against them:

We speak through our opinions. We need others, what I call “Champions of Justice,” to speak for us.

From the Deans' Suite - 7/8/25 - Strong Start with Jump Start

These last two weeks have marked exciting milestones for our incoming students as they began CSU Law’s Jump Start Program. Last night, Dean Brian Ray and I had the pleasure of welcoming more than 100 students for the first evening of the in-person Jump Start Program, and last week our new JD Online students began their own Jump Start sessions.  

Jump Start is a cornerstone of the academic support we provide for every incoming student. Jump Start has come a long way since it began back in 2016 as an optional program with just 15–20 students. The student feedback was so positive that we quickly decided to require every student to participate.