September 22, 2010

Cooley Expands and Restructures Career and Professional Development Department to Benefit Students and Alumni

Career and Professional Development Principles are Being Infused in the Classroom So Students Are Practice-Ready

Thomas M. Cooley Law School students and alumni will now benefit from an expanded and restructured Career and Professional Development (CPD) office, all aimed at providing exceptional career services at every stage of an individual's law career.

Under the leadership of Charles Toy, associate dean of the CPD and president of the State Bar of Michigan, the CPD is adding six professional advisors to its staff – all of whom are attorneys with legal practice experience, career placement and development expertise. The advisors will offer the services of the CPD to students and alumni at each of Cooley's four campuses through on-campus staffing. The main CPD office will be headquartered at the Lansing campus.

The expansion reflects CPD’s efforts to bolster career development services to not only Cooley alumni, but students who are in the initial stages of their academic careers.
"The legal employment landscape is changing and the CPD has changed to keep pace with what legal employers require," said Toy. "Now, new associates must be practice-ready and have an entrepreneurial spirit to build the firm’s practice."

CPD has initiated projects with faculty, alumni, employers and students to meet the challenges and leverage the opportunities of the changing placement paradigm. A hallmark of Cooley has been its practical legal education, which includes its clinical and externship requirements, to ensure that students are practice-ready. CPD principles are being infused in the classroom so that students know the importance of relationship building, presentation skills, career tracks, analysis, technology use and effective communication in addition to the mastery of subject matter. In an effort to expand its networking reach, the CPD will soon develop alumni collegiality groups based on geography and practice type. A pilot program is already under way in Washington, D.C.

"We are thrilled to continue providing an exceptional level of service and career expertise," Toy said.

Thomas M. Cooley Law school students and alumni will now benefit from an expanded and restructured Career and Professional Development (CPD) office. Under the leadership of Charles Toy, the associate dean of the CPD and president of the State Bar of Michigan, the CPD has added six professional advisors to its staff - all of whom are attorneys - each representing a blend of legal practice experience, career placement and development expertise. Cooley's CPD staff, standing, left to right: Kaleena Kowalkowski, Sue Case, Shari F. Lesnick, Darla Bradford, Alana M. Glass, Jennifer Armstrong, Debi Phillips, and Dena Lorenz. Seated, left to right: Karen M. Poole, Danielle Hall, Bradley H. Merritt, Lisa L. Fadler (Director), Charles R. Toy (Associate Dean) and Dianne Herbin.

High-Res 300dpi Image © Thomas M. Cooley Law School 2010

Cooley Law School is the largest law school in the nation. Founded in 1972, the private, non-profit law school operates J.D. programs across Michigan in Lansing, Auburn Hills, Grand Rapids and Ann Arbor.Today, Cooley Law School has over 14,000 graduates across the nation and worldwide and also offers joint degree and master of laws programs. Cooley offers enrollment three times a year; in January, May and September.