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Chicago-Kent Reaffirms its Commitment to Legal Research and Writing Program

Law school program's new leadership team brings more than 25 years of teaching experience

CHICAGO-May 24, 2001--Henry H. Perritt, Jr., dean of Chicago-Kent College of Law and vice president for the Downtown Campus of Illinois Institute of Technology, today released a statement reaffirming the law school's commitment to its Legal Research and Writing Program and announcing new leadership for the program:

"Lawyers must be able to communicate effectively to perform their professional responsibilities. Almost 20 years ago, Chicago-Kent led the law school community by developing an intensive Legal Research and Writing Program taught by full-time, specialized faculty. Concern is growing across America over deteriorating reading and writing skills of American students -- at all levels. Chicago-Kent recognizes that the need to pay close attention to the written and oral communication skills of law students is more important now than ever before.

I want to take advantage of the opportunity at a time of transition to new leadership of Chicago-Kent's Legal Research and Writing Program to reiterate the law school's--and my personal--commitment to continue to set the standard of excellence and effectiveness in skills education, including research and writing skills, as a centerpiece of our educational program.

I am delighted to announce the appointment of Professor Mary Rose Strubbe as director of our Legal Research and Writing Program, and of Professor Susan J. Adams as deputy director, effective immediately. The Chicago-Kent faculty has approved the new leadership team and reemphasized its commitment to the Legal Research and Writing Program in an overwhelming vote last week at its regular meeting. These appointments underscore Chicago-Kent's historic commitment to research and writing as an integral, vitally important part of our curriculum. Together, Professors Strubbe and Adams have more than 25 years of experience teaching research and writing, more than 15 of them at Chicago-Kent. They are committed to continuing and improving upon the tradition of excellence for which Chicago-Kent is so widely known.

In addition, we have hired an outstanding new group of visiting assistant professors to complement the talented writing faculty to teach in the program in the coming year. Professors Strubbe and Adams are implementing more intensive training and support programs for these entering faculty members. Over the next year, they will be working with the Chicago-Kent faculty and administrators of legal writing programs at law schools around the country. Our goal is to ensure that Chicago-Kent does not rest on the laurels associated with our past leadership, and that we continue to set the standard of quality, effectiveness, and innovation that is worthy of imitation by law schools everywhere, not just in America, but around the world."

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