Welcome Class of 2022!
Welcome Class of 2022!
You are now part of the Memphis Law family and we are so excited to have you! It is a huge accomplishment to make it into law school, so congratulations. As a 3L serving as the 2019-2020 Student Bar Association President, I am excited for all the new ideas, energy and personality that your class will bring to our school.
I cannot believe that orientation is so close and you will soon be starting your first day of school. More than that, I cannot believe I am about to start my last first day of school as a law student. It will not seem like it at all, especially first semester of your 1L year, but your time as a law student will fly by. I cannot emphasize enough the importance of Orientation. Orientation is a week for you to get to know your classmates, familiarize yourself with the life of a law student, and learn almost everything you need to know for the first few weeks of school. Orientation may stress you out at first and a lot will be thrown at you, but I can promise you that in the long run, it will ease your stress about starting school. Utilize professors, peers and upper classmen if you have any questions, big or small. If you are wondering, then odds are the rest of your classmates are too. The day before I started orientation, I texted a girl I knew in law school and asked what to wear to Orientation because I had absolutely no idea. So, remember, no question is too small! I would be happy to help any of you adjust and feel more comfortable in the Memphis Law family.
The purpose of the Student Bar Association (“SBA”) is to bring all the students of the University of Memphis Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law into one body to foster the spirit, fellowship and cooperation and to advance the purposes of the Law School. As registered students, you are officially members of SBA. In the coming weeks, you will learn all about how SBA works, so make sure you look out for more information. We have weekly meetings and we host social events, student activities, guest speakers, community service projects, and more. Please follow SBA on Facebook for updates. It is also very important throughout the next three years that you keep an eye on the school’s blog, On Legal Grounds. This is one of the main methods of communication for all organizations. If you are reading this, you are doing good so far, so keep it up!
My last words of advice are to know yourself. People are going to give you all kinds of advice and tell you how you should do something or how you should study. You must remember that everyone is different and what works for the person sitting next to you, or an upperclassmen, may not work for you. Do not be afraid to ask questions and change up the way you are doing something if it does not seem to be working. It is going to be important that you find a way of doing things that works best for YOU. The workload of law school can be intense, and at times each one of you will become overwhelmed. Embrace those feelings and take the time to remember why you wanted to come to law school in the first place. The SBA Administrative Council members are always willing to give advice or offer friendship. I will have SBA President office hours during the fall semester and encourage you stop by or reach out to me at any time. I hope to see all of you at the SBA 1L Welcome Party on Friday, August 16, 2019!
Go Tigers!
Dakota Beasley
President, Student Bar Association
dakota.beasley@memphis.edu
