A Welcome Message from the Dean
Dear 1L Entering Student:
Welcome to Florida International University’s College of Law.
You have begun an ambitious and exciting journey, and we are delighted that you have chosen FIU for your legal education. We have created an exceptional public law school whose diversity reflects our community. The College of Law is extremely proud of the manner in which our students are engaged all aspects of our community, locally, nationally and globally. Our objective, simply put, is to produce highly trained, professional, and engaged attorneys. That training begins today as you read this letter and review the attached materials. Those first few days, “Orientation,” are designed to assist with the initial adjustment.
Some key dates for 2012:
- August 8th – WELCOME and First Year Academic, Ethics and Professional Training (“ADEPT”) Program Begins (Remember to have your first week’s reading and assignments done!)
- August 9th – Professionalism Workshop I (Meeting Academic and Ethical Requirements)
- August 10th – Engaging and Connecting with the Community
- August 11th - Student Bar Association Activities
You are joining the FIU Law family at a very exciting time. The College of Law’s profound commitment to support and engage our local community has led us to create the Center for Ethics and Professionalism. The Florida Bar and Florida Supreme Court have both raised concerns over trends that they fear result in a legal education that fails to sufficiently emphasize legal skills, values and ethics. In response, we have developed a First Year Academic, Ethics and Professional Training Program. This new, mandatory program will provide a variety of targeted workshops throughout the academic year. The ADEPT Program is a highly integrated, comprehensive and interdisciplinary training series intended to create a platform for students to gain immediate and sustained exposure to a number of critical subjects.
The objective of the ADEPT Program is to enable our students to perform at the highest levels of academics and professionalism, as well as to meet the demands and expectations of the practice. The workshop series will be spread out across your first year, and will be broken down into a number of distinct components. Part of the focus will be placed on educating students about the unique academic demands imposed by law school. Students will also be introduced to the myriad of ethical and professionalism issues encountered throughout one’s academic career and thereafter as a member of the bar. This August, the first part of the ethics discussion will be led by our distinguished faculty who will encourage students to inquire into ethical considerations relating to the law school experience. Later in the year, experienced members of the bench and bar will address the challenges of the current job market and how to most effectively migrate from law student to lawyer. This comprehensive approach is designed to give you the best tools to deal with any issues that may arise in your practice.
We are committed to graduating leaders in the legal profession in all dimensions — academics, practical competence, and ethical integrity.
Welcome to the FIU College of Law incoming class of Fall 2012. I look forward to seeing you at orientation!
Dean R. Alex Acosta.
2012 Orientation Schedule