14
F E ATURE
NEW DEAN HAS STRONG VISION
FOR STETSON LAW’S FUTURE
IT INCLUDES A CALL TO ACTION FOR YOU, OUR ALUMNI
B Y A S H L E Y M C K N I G H T TAY LOR
Michèle Alexandre has a broad and ambitious vision as
the new Dean of Stetson University College of Law,
but she knows she cannot accomplish it alone. Her
biggest and most influential group of collaborators will be you:
our alumni.
You, better than anyone, know the value of the education you
received at Stetson Law, as well as any possible shortcomings. As
working lawyers and leaders in your chosen industry – be it law
firm, corporate counsel, nonprofit, government or something
different altogether – you understand what knowledge and skills
attorneys in the 21st century need to succeed.
And so, Dean Alexandre calls on you to join her in creating an
inclusive environment that provides a superior legal education,
and a law college with the most robust alumni engagement and
support and the national prominence it deserves. She believes in
starting on day one and has wasted no time implementing a
number of initiatives in her first six months at Stetson.
Community Partnerships
Dean Alexandre wants to continue to build on Stetson’s
strong history of social justice activism and further
cement the College of Law as an advocacy hub in the
community by expanding pro bono initiatives. To start, she
facilitated a new partnership with the large regional nonprofit
organization the Community Foundation of Tampa Bay. The
new initiative is called the Alliance for Advocacy and
Philanthropy, and its goal is to align the power of Stetson’s
advocacy with the heart of the CFTB’s philanthropic efforts.
“People tend to think of law schools as simply a place where you
go to learn how to be a lawyer, but the business of law saves
lives,” Dean Alexandre said. “From defending those wrongfully
convicted, to winning crucial medical benefits for veterans in
need, to protecting migrants fleeing persecution, lawyers
change lives.”
People tend to think of law schools as simply
a place where you go to learn how to be a
lawyer, but the business of law saves lives,”
Dean Alexandre said. “From defending those
wrongfully convicted, to winning crucial
medical benefits for veterans in need, to
protecting migrants fleeing persecution,
lawyers change lives.”
— Michèle Alexandre