Dean O’Rourke Elected Vice Chair of American Bar Association Section
An ABA council member for the past five years, Dean O’Rourke will serve as vice chair of the ABA Council of the Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar.
Boston University School of Law Dean and Michaels Faculty Research Scholar Maureen A. O’Rourke has been elected vice chair of the Council of the American Bar Association’s Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar. Dean O’Rourke will serve as vice chair of the council for the 2015–2016 year.
The Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar was the first formal section created by the ABA, in 1893. The group’s goals include improving legal education and lawyer licensing by “fostering cooperation among legal educators, practitioners and judges through workshops, conferences and publications.”
Dean O’Rourke has been an ABA council member for the past five years, as it has overseen a comprehensive review of the Standards for Accreditation of American Law Schools. The council, on the recommendation of its Data Policy & Collection Committee, has also made major changes regarding the data that law schools are asked to submit to the ABA, particularly regarding the reporting of employment data.
Since becoming dean of BU Law in 2006, O’Rourke has focused on improving the student experience to keep pace with changes in the legal marketplace, leading National Jurist to name her among the 2014 Most Influential People in Legal Education.
Under her leadership, the faculty has adopted innovative Lawyering Lab and Business Fundamentals requirements for all JD students, and launched new graduate programs including a blended Executive LLM in International Business Law, the Legal English Certificate Program, and an online version of the LLM in Taxation. Starting in fall 2015, BU Law will begin offering an Accelerated 3-Year JD/MBA dual degree to enable students to earn both degrees in the same amount of time and for lower cost than if they pursued them separately.
Dean O’Rourke has also increased career development support for students through the Career Development & Public Service Office; expanded opportunities for students to obtain practical skills in clinics, externships, semester-in-practiceand the Transactional Law program, launched in 2011; and increased financial aid support for students.
She has raised the School’s public interest profile through adoption of the Pro Bono program, enhanced loan repayment assistance for young alumni pursuing public interest careers, and spring break service trips. This spring, she successfully led a $1 million fundraising campaign with BU President Brown in support of BU Law’s post-graduate Public Service Fellowships. BU Law also now participates in the Gideon’s Promise Fellowship for public defenders.
