Stetson University College of Law

F ROM THE DEANHurricanes, heritageand new horizonsGreetings,Fall 2004 has been a semester to remember! TheCollege of Law, like much of Florida, was threatened byfour hurricanes in six months. We were fortunate andsuffered only minor damage on the two campuses.Between the hurricanes, we celebrated the College ofLaw’s Golden Anniversary in Tampa Bay. To mark thisimportant milestone, we created a Hall of Fame, secureda heritage marker from the state of Florida, held severalhistorical lectures, and threw a gala banquet inSeptember.In addition to celebrating our past, we continue tochart our future. As I reported in my last column, theCollege of Law has embarked on a strategic planningprocess. Phase 1, which involved setting our strategicdirectives and initiatives, is complete, and we are startingthe tactical and operational planning phases, whichwe expect to finish this spring.Below are the strategic directives and initiativesidentified in Phase 1.The College should seek to substantially enhance itsnational reputation.■■■■■■■The College should recruit, enroll and retain a higher caliber and morediverse student body.The College should take steps to ensure that strong teaching remainsa priority.The College should increase the quality and quantity of faculty scholarship,and should increase the exposure of that scholarship.The College should increase faculty engagement in the regional,national and international academic and bar communities.The College should use its strengths in certain academic areas toenhance its national reputation.The College should take steps to better utilize its alumni to increasethe College’s national reputation.The College should increase its commitment to the profession and thecommunity, both locally and beyond, to increase its national reputationand fulfill its responsibility to make a difference in the world.2 STETSON LawyerThe College should be morefocused on its long-termgoals in all facets of its operations.■■■The College should be more focused on its long-term goals whenplanning the growth and development of its programs, makingdecisions concerning the expenditure of resources, hiring faculty andmaking student admissions decisions.The College should recognize how facilities issues may affect longtermgoals.The College should value its role as part of a university communityand strengthen its relationships with the other schools and collegesthat form Stetson University.The College should seek to substantially improve itsfinancial position.■■■The College should increase its endowment.The College should control its expenses.The College should seek to increase alumni giving.The College should strive to ensure that, as it growsand develops, the culture of respect between studentsand faculty continues to flourish.I appreciated the e-mails and letters I received frommany of you in response to my last request for input, andI also welcome your response to these goals. We willupdate you on the final plan in a future edition of theLawyer. Personally, I am excited about our direction andknow that with your support, we can become an evenstronger institution of higher education.I wish you all a wonderful holiday season, and hopeto see many of you in person as we travel the state inthe final phase of the Cornerstone Campaign.Sincerely,Darby Dickerson, Vice President and Dean