July 06, 2026
Legal Education Leadership 2026: Dean Conway's Monthly AALS Presidential Update for June
Presentations, a notable ADI milestone, and several domestic and international engagements
Penn State Dickinson Law and School of International Affairs Dean and Donald J. Farage Professor of Law Danielle M. Conway receives a commemorative photo of the Dickinson Law Curtilage from James "Jim" Gillotti ’79.
A monthly look at Penn State Dickinson Law and School of International Affairs Dean and Donald J. Farage Professor of Law Danielle M. Conway’s year of intellectual inquiry as president of the Association of American Law Schools (AALS).
CARLISLE AND UNIVERSITY PARK—During a busy June, AALS president Danielle M. Conway traveled to South Korea, spoke at more than a half-dozen events, and celebrated a critical milestone for the Antiracist Development Institute (ADI) at Penn State Dickinson Law. She ended the month at the Legacy Sites in Montgomery, AL, for an ADI event steeped in reflection and connection.
Several of her keynotes and presentations focused on legal education, giving Conway an opportunity to expand on her presidential theme of “Emancipate. Academic. Freedom.” Additionally, she began the month by receiving an invitation to membership in Scribes-The American Society of Legal Writers.
Big Ten Law Deans' Summer Meeting and Retreat
On June 2–3, Conway participated in the Big Ten Law Deans' Summer Meeting and Retreat, hosted by Rutgers Law School. She co-presented with Dean Todd Pettys from the University of Iowa College of Law on the topic of “Mental Health for Law Students.”
AALS Workshop for New Law Teachers
Conway delivered a welcome and speech at the Washington, D.C., event on June 4. Her keynote was titled “Emancipate. Academic. Freedom: In Context for the New(er) Law Teacher and Knowledge Worker.”
Penn State Dickinson Law Northeastern PA Alumni Reception
On June 5, Conway hosted a reception for Law School alumni at The Westmoreland Club in Wilkes-Barre, PA, a lovely evening of reconnection and celebration of the Penn State Dickinson Law community. Conway received a commemorative photo of the Dickinson Law Curtilage from James "Jim" Gillotti ’79 in honor of her commitment to the alumni community in Wilkes-Barre, PA.
Trip to South Korea
From June 7–12, Conway traveled to Seoul, Republic of Korea, at the invitation of the Yulchon Law Firm, the Association of Korean Law Schools (AKLS), and the Seoul National University Law School (SNU Law School). Her tour included events where she forged new connections with Penn State Dickinson Law and AALS partners abroad.
Yulchon Law Firm
On June 9, Conway delivered a keynote address titled “Legal Education: An Essential Rule of Law Pillar in Times of Peace, Progress, or Precarity” at the invitation-only meeting, addressing "The Future and Vision of Legal Education: A Perspective Based on Implementation of the Bar Exam System and the Experiences of Candidates Subject to Restrictions" at the Yulchon Law Firm.
Seoul National University Law School
On June 10, Conway was featured in a fireside chat at SNU Law School on the topic of “Legal Education Reform in the United States.”
Association of Korean Law Schools
June 10 was busy, with Conway also covering the topic “U.S. Law Schools: Practice Readiness and Access to Justice” at a forum titled “Reforming Law School Education for Future Legal Professionals.” The talk highlighted the expanding partnership between AALS and AKLS.
Pennsylvania Bar Institute (PBI)
Conway participated (from Korea) in one more event on June 10—PBI’s “America at 250: The Power of Words – Rethinking the Declaration of Independence and the Fourteenth Amendment in 2026.” The webcast, which Conway joined at 2 a.m. Korean time, explored the overlooked voices who shaped America’s founding ideals and constitutional development as the nation approaches the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence.
Conway was part of an interdisciplinary program featuring Penn State University and Widener University leaders and researchers as well as business and community leaders from Cumberland County and Centre County.
ADI Book Series Event
On June 15, Conway met with the contributors to the Building an Antiracist Law School, Legal Academy, and Legal Profession book series, being published by the University of California Press (UCP). Conway serves as executive director of the ADI, which is shepherding production of the book series. She is also the series editor.
All 10 volumes in the series are now under contract with UCP. UCP Executive Editor Maura Roessner announced that the first three volumes (Antiracist Gateways to the Legal Profession, Antiracist Curriculum Development, and Antiracist Teaching & Learning) can be pre-ordered in October, with copies available at the 2027 AALS Annual Meeting in New York City.
“I want to say thank you so much to all the chapter contributors, systems designers, and volume editors who have put so much time, care, and heart into every volume,” said Conway during the virtual event. “In each chapter, the writing is beautiful, and the research is fabulous. I am so thrilled by the work you have done.”
AALS Section on Clinical Legal Education, Externships Committee Anti-Racism Think Tank Working Group Three-Part Summer Series
On June 16, Conway keynoted the first segment of the AALS Externship Committee Anti-Racism Think Tank’s Three-Part Summer Series on ABA Council Standard 303(c). The title of the first segment, “Why This Matters and the Big Picture,” was meant to begin a deeper discussion about the intersection between antiracism and professional identity formation. The second segment, titled “Classroom Conversations and Dynamics,” featured Professor & Assistant Dean for Curricular Innovation Nicole Dyszlewski, Roger Williams University School of Law. The third segment, titled “Self-Care and Community Care," featured Susan Brooks, Drexel University Thomas R. Kline School of Law.
Lutie A. Lytle Black Women Law Faculty Workshop and Writing Retreat
Loyola University Chicago School of Law held the 20th Annual Lutie A. Lytle Black Women Law Faculty Workshop and Writing Retreat on June 17–18. Conway enjoyed connecting with friends and colleagues past and present at the event, which Penn State Dickinson Law hosted in 2023.
AALS Meeting and Retreat
On June 23–25, Conway traveled to Asheville, NC, for the AALS Meeting and Retreat, where she and AALS Executive Director and CEO Kellye Y. Testy led a strategic planning session focused in part on the role of the AALS now and into the future.
Antiracist Development Institute Mini Convening
On June 28–30, Conway traveled to Montgomery, AL, for the ADI’s Third Annual Mini Convening, which included visits to the Equal Justice Initiative's Legacy Sites. Conway participated in a fireside chat with longtime friend Bryan Fair, the Thomas E. Skinner Professor of Law at the University of Alabama School of Law who also serves as the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) interim president and chief executive officer.
Attendees were so engaged by their conversation that it was extended an hour past its originally scheduled runtime. Conway and Fair exchanged ideas and reminisced about shared experiences, emphasizing the critical importance of history to the future development of the rule of law. “It is so important in legal education to center conversations about memory, antiracism, anti-oppression, and anti-subordination,” said Conway.