Building Relationships with Professors: Easier Advised than Done

Fall is the time of year for Tips - hundreds of helpful lists of "Tips for Surviving-and-Thirving in Law School" are published across the internet, indoctrinating hopeful 1Ls into the rigors of outlining, the socratic method and "not getting too stressed out." 

One of the most common tips, along with "Don't be a Gunner!" is "Get to know your Professors." These tips generally recommend seeking out time with faculty during office hours, volunteering to be a teaching assistant, or writing a note with a favorite faculty member. As a 3L Student who has done all of these things, I can tell you - building relationships with professors is great advice - but like "don't get too stressed out," extremely difficult to accomplish.

Preventing Violence Against Law Profs

Tracy McGaugh at Feminist Law Profs reviews a piece coauthored by Carol Parker, U. Tennessee-Knoxville College of Law: "Anger and Violence on Campus: Recommendations for Legal Educators." In the wake of the latest university shooting--at Northern Illinois U last week--Parker's recommendations feel especially timely. The article, which is publicly available on the Social Science Research Network (SSRN), outlines predictors of violent behavior and policies for violence prevention. Most of the policies require enactment by school administrations--these aren't risks that profs can manage entirely on their own. The article, McGaugh explains,

touches on the almost-taboo topic of junior faculty members who have to choose whether they will press administration to take measures to keep professors safe or whether they will keep quiet so they don’t get labeled as a trouble-maker and hurt their chances of promotion. Choosing between livelihood and life is probably not a choice any of us thought we’d have to make.

[More after the jump]