Dickinson Law News

November 24, 2020 — Peter G. Glenn, emeritus dean and professor of experiential learning at Penn State Dickinson Law, believes everyone encounters perhaps a dozen truly great people in life. H. Jesse Arnelle ’62 was one of those people.

November 16, 2020 — Penn State Dickinson Law received a Council on Legal Education Opportunity Inc. (CLEO) EDGE Award during a virtual reception hosted by CLEO on Thursday, Nov. 12, in recognition of its significant commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion in legal education. 

November 10, 2020 — Third-year Penn State Dickinson Law student Anthony Fanucci (class of 2021) was named the recipient of the 2020 Fink Family Scholarship by the American Society for Pharmacy Law (ASPL). He received the award on Friday, Nov. 6, during the ASPL fall virtual meeting.

November 5, 2020 — Rachel Wilcove and Michaela Zanis, second-year law students at Dickinson Law, were awarded the Christian R. Burne (class of 2017) Award for claiming the championship round of the Triston “Chase” O'Savio Moot Court Competition held on Friday, Oct. 30, inside the Apfelbaum Family Courtroom and Auditorium at Dickinson Law. Zanis also received the Francesca M. Kester (class of 2017) Most Valuable Oralist Award. Both awards were established by the 2018 Moot Court Board in recognition of the excellence in advocacy and leadership that Burne and Kester demonstrated during their time as law students at Dickinson Law.

October 29, 2020 — Penn State Dickinson Law Dean and Donald J. Farage Professor of Law Danielle M. Conway has been honored with the Association of American Law Schools (AALS) Inaugural Impact Award with four other law school deans for the creation of the Law Deans Antiracist Clearinghouse Project. Launched in June, the project is a webpage for law deans, faculty, and the public that contains resources and information related to addressing racism in law and legal education.  

October 28, 2020 — J. Rodman “Rod” Steele, a 1966 graduate of Dickinson Law, believes the law gives society the opportunity to improve. He has seen many improvements and advances in women’s and civil rights during his more than five decades of legal practice, which spans the swearing-in of the first African American Supreme Court justice and the recent prosecutions of powerful men for sexual assault.

September 29, 2020 — Tom L. VanKirk ‘70 and his wife, Bonnie, are endowing the VanKirk/Highmark Educational Equity Scholarship at Dickinson Law, with Highmark matching the couple’s $50,000 gift to honor VanKirk’s retirement. It marks Tom and Bonnie’s third major contribution to Dickinson Law, all of which have been matched 1:1 by the University. “We want to support getting more underrepresented students, in particular, involved in the educational process and in law,” VanKirk said.

September 24, 2020 — As the second woman and first Jewish woman to serve on the Supreme Court, Justice Ginsburg broke barriers and opened doors. Her effective advocacy created opportunities for women in the legal academy and profession. We are beneficiaries of her leadership—with women heading both of its independent law schools, Penn State advances her legacy.

September 21, 2020 — A team of Penn State professors will collaborate to deliver a virtual CLE course, “Local Law for Solar Project Development in Pennsylvania,” hosted by Penn State Dickinson Law on Friday, September 25 at noon EST. The program is part of Penn State’s outreach across the Commonwealth to increase understanding of energy sector development options for local policymakers, communities and investors. The program is free to attend; advance registration is required.

September 2020 — Following the launch of the Association of American Law Schools Law Deans Antiracist Clearinghouse Project, Dean Danielle Conway and Boston University School of Law Dean Angela Onwuachi-Willig talk with Law.com legal education editor Karen Sloan about the initiative, the change they want to see in the legal academy, and the work ahead on this Legal Speak podcast. Full story