Visiting Tempe, Arizona

Late last week I flew to Phoenix to visit the Sandra Day O' Connor College of Law at Arizona State University. They recently named the school after the former Supreme Court Justice, and she will actually be teaching a course at the school once a year!

Anyhoo, I'd never been to Phoenix or Tempe (where the school is located), so everything was new to me and I wasn't sure what to expect. My first full day was spent visiting the law school for the "Welcome Day for Admitted Students" they organized. I met a lot of friendly students and they had great things to say about the school.

First off, we met several students who represented the various Law Student Organizations. I was most interested in the Sports and Entertainment Law Students Association - not for the Sports (obviously) but for the Entertainment. The president of the group also mentioned that he too wasn't interested in sports but was drawn to the group due to his interest in filmmaking. They organize presentations and symposiums on the entertainment industry, hosting discussions by local filmmakers, producers, and screenwriters in the community. It's not a large community, but it exists.

Here are some pics of the law school buildings:


My first view of the law school. This is the east side of the building.


Around the corner and to the right, I come across The Sidebar Cafe, the cafe attached to the law school.


Continuing past the cafe, I get to the south side entrance of the law school.


This is the law library, which is across a small courtyard from the south side entrance to the law school.


And here is the main, north side entrance to the law school.

My visit to the school was very productive. I got to meet several professors, including Charles Calleros. Professor Calleros hosted a mock class wherein all of the visiting students discussed a Supreme Court case as if we were in a real law class. I was really impressed with this professor's ability to keep the discussion moving and developing, and for his ability to synthesize lengthy diatribes by some of the students into digestable summaries that added to the conversation.

I had lunch with an admitted student named Simona and Legal Writing professor, "Zig" Popko and got some good advice about how best to succeed in his course (I want to try and get on law journal and you need to hone the writing skills to get there).

Throughout the day, I met a ton of students who (except for one) praised ASU up and down and talked about how collaborative and friendly their fellow students are, how great the professors are, and how much they loved law school. Music to my ears!

At the end-of-the-day soiree that Professor Calleros hosted at his home, I was able to chat with more current and admitted students, including Professor Michael Berch whose wife is a Chief Justice of the Arizona Supreme Court and shares my name. That helped him remember me! Ha.

I also met an admitted student named Angela who invited me out with her friends that evening! What a doll! We had a lovely dinner at Caffe Boa, on Mill Avenue near campus. Mill is like a cross between Telegraph Ave. and 4th Street in Berkeley, with no street kids or panhandlers (that I saw!). The food at Caffe Boa was delish and the wine list was amazing. Dinner was fun and I met some more law students and a gal who was finishing up her undergrad degree. And random note: she had family in Ventura! Small world.

Another lovely thing about the people there: they think I'm much younger than I am. Angela even asked if I was 21! God bless that girl.

My brief report about Phoenix to follow!