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Monday Morning Message 7.31.2017
“ I have been a door-opener, because some Americans did not believe fundamentally in the respect of the individual as our Constitution enunciates.” – Judge Jean Murrell Capers ’45
Cleveland Law School, the predecessor to Cleveland-Marshall College of Law, was the first law school in Ohio to admit women and celebrated Elizabeth Williams as its first female graduate in 1908. Ever since, we have been a “door-opener” law school not only for women but also for many women and men who have broken gender, race, ethnic, and generational barriers to achieve great success.
Monday Morning Message 7.24.2017
The Ohio Bar Exam is this week - July 25-27 in Columbus. Since 1738 when Delaware created the first bar exam, law graduates have gone through this rite of passage. Our graduates have worked very hard to get this far. I want them to know that we believe in them…… so with apologies to Reinhold Niebuhr, author of the Serenity Prayer, I’ve taken the liberty of writing the following:
Serenity Prayer for C|M|LAW Bar Takers
Monday Morning Message 7.17.2017
Pursuing your dreams is living a few years of your life like most people won’t, so that you can spend the rest of your life like most people can’t.” – Anonymous
Monday Morning Message 7.10.2017
“You can be a master, Don't wait for luck. Dedicate yourself and you goin' find yourself, Standing in the hall of fame…. Cause you burn with the brightest flame. And you'll be on the walls of the hall of fame.” - "Hall of Fame", The Script
Monday Morning Message 7.3.2017
"The greatest threat to freedom is the absence of criticism." --Wole Soyinka
“I never considered a difference of opinion in politics, in religion, in philosophy, as cause for withdrawing from a friend.” -Thomas Jefferson
I have just finished reading two of my “summer reads”- John Adams by David McCullough, andThomas Jefferson: The Art of Power by Jon Meacham. Adams and Jefferson were distinguished lawyers and two of the five Declaration of Independence authors. (Note: four of the five Declaration of Independence authors were lawyers.)
Monday Morning Message 6.26.2017
"Don't work for recognition, but do work worthy of recognition." -H. Jackson Brown, Jr.
One of the many rewarding parts of my job is receiving positive notes every week about our outstanding work. I love sharing them.
Hon. John J. Russo ’92, Administrative and Presiding Judge, Cuyahoga Court of Common Pleas; Adjunct Professor, C|M|Law
Monday Morning Message 6.19.2017
“America needs talent more than ever, but Americans aren’t yet fully grasping that college is the best way to ensure that supply of talent.” - Jamie Merisotis, America Needs Talent
Ohio’s near-term economic future is in the balance. Ohio faces a projected $1 billion deficit, and in these final days of the state legislative session, legislators must pass a balanced state budget by June 30.
After having worked on nine biennial state budgets over my public service career, I know that our state legislators do not have any easy choices. Their choices rarely are between the good guys and the bad guys. They face tough choices between the good guys and the good guys.
Monday Morning Message 6.12.2017
“The fact of being an underdog changes people in ways that we often fail to appreciate. It opens doors and creates opportunities and enlightens and permits things that might otherwise have seemed unthinkable.” - Malcolm Gladwell
"My whole career has been one of fighting for the underdog." – Congressman Louis Stokes ‘53
Tonight is Game 5 of the NBA Finals between our Cleveland Cavaliers and the heavily favored Golden State Warriors. Down 3-0, the CAVs avoided a sweep Friday night and handed Golden State their first loss of the postseason. Despite our epic 137-116 victory, we remain the clear underdog.
Monday Morning Message 6.5.2017
“As LeBron James stated, ‘nothing is given, everything is earned.’ And Class of 2017, we have earned this law degree.” - Tiffany Henderson ’17, President, Student Bar Association
This is my final set of words of inspiration from our recent Commencement speakers. Below are excerpted remarks from CSU President Ronald Berkman, CSU Board Chair Bernie Moreno, Tiffany Henderson ’17, President, Student Bar Association, Ben Beckman, ’10, Chair, C|M|Law Board of Visitors, and Chief Magistrate Greg Clifford, ’80, President, C|M|LAW Alumni Association.
Monday Morning Message 5.22.2017
“Defend The Land” – Cleveland Cavaliers Playoff Slogan
“Regardless of the path we choose, it is important for us to give back. We are agents of change and we must ‘defend the land’ for everyone.”–Elissa Schooler, Class of 2017
“We are not just attorneys, but defenders of justice. A voice for the voiceless. Advocates for fairness….We are advice-givers and role models. Creative minds yet logical thinkers. To merely label us ‘attorneys’ would do a disservice to this great profession…” – Brittany Lowe, Class of 2017