Indiana Law Annotated Vol. 14 No.14 April 20, 1998
Table of Contents
From the Editor
Professor Rollock Takes VP Spot
Purdue University has appointed Professor Alysa Rollock to serve as interim vice president for human relations. The office oversees diversity issues at Purdue. Her appointment begins July 1.
Professor Rollock joined IU School of Law in 1992. Her research and teaching have focused on professional responsibilities, corporate and securities law. As a faculty member, she has made a valuable contribution to both the law school and the legal profession.
IU faculty and students will miss Professor Rollock, not only for the expertise she brought to the school, but also for the warmth and collegiality she brought to her interactions with others.
NEW FORM REQUIRES PENCIL
Course evaluations will be conducted April 20- 24. This semester, the law school is using a new form.
The questions on the evaluations are the same as they have been in the past. The only difference is that the questions are on a scan sheet. All of the questions, except the last two, are open-ended. As you have in the past, you may write comments as short or as lengthy as you wish. You may use pen or pencil.
The last two questions on course evaluations have always been forced choice or multiple choice (i.e., excellent, above average, average, below average, poor). Students will now bubble in their responses to these last two questions. You must use pencil. Outside of these two questions, you should not use any of the scan bubbles. Remember to bring a pencil.
STUDENT EVALUATIONS: HOW ARE THEY USED?
As you participate in course evaluations, you may be wondering how they are used. The school uses the evaluations in a variety of ways. First, and most obviously, many professors read the evaluations in order to assess their effectiveness as teachers. Second, the evaluations are used by the school in setting salaries, and are read during the promotion and tenure process as part of the information available to the school about a professor's teaching.
Professors may only see their evaluations after they have graded their exams and submitted the grades to the Recorder's Office.
ANONYMOUS GRADING: HOW DOES IT WORK?
As finals near, a refresher course on anonymous grading may be useful. Examinations at the law school are graded anonymously. Students are required to obtain an examination number each semester. During the exam period, professors are given a list of the exam numbers for students in each of their classes. The list contains no names and is used for two purposes. First, it allows professors to check the numbers on the exam booklets against the numbers on the list to ensure that all students have turned in their exam booklets. Second, by placing the grade next to the examination number on this list, professors report grades to the Recorder. Two copies of the examination grades are given to the Recorder, who initials and keeps one copy. The second copy, along with a key to identify students by name, is then returned to the professors who wish to adjust grades for class participation.
The requirement that initial grades be turned in before members of the class are identified by name ensures that the identities of the class members will not be known until professors have relinquished control over their initial grades. The Recorder keeps the initial grade sheet on file, as well as the sheet adjusting grades for class participation. If a question arises as to whether a change was made to a grade after a student's identity was revealed, the exact nature of the change can be obtained from the Recorder.
As noted earlier, professors cannot read their student evaluations until their final grades have been turned in.
News from the Faculty
Professor Rob Fischman delivered a talk on Endangered Species Act reforms at the University of Cincinnati College of Law on Friday, April 17. The talk was part of an environmental policy program organized in celebration of Earth Day.
Professors Jeff Stake and Eric Rasmusen presented their article on Reforming Divorce law at the University of Michigan's Law and Economics Seminar on April 16.
Marshall Leaffer delivered the inaugural Helen Wilson Nies Lecture in Intellectual Property at Marquette University School of Law, April 1, 1998. The Helen Nies Lecture is named after a widely respected judge who served on the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. Professor Leaffer's talk was entitled "Trademark Harmonization from an American Perspective."
Professor Cate was invited by the European-American Business Council to brief Ambassador Hugo Paemen, Head of the European Commission Delegation to the United States, on U.S. privacy law in Washington on April 15. On April 16, Professor Cate chaired a conference in Washington on Fair Information Practices.
News from Student Organizations
MOOT COURT AWARDS, BOARD ANNOUNCED AT BANQUET
The Sherman Minton Moot Court Competition officially ended with the year-end banquet last week where awards were announced and the new Board was inducted. The 1998-99 Board will be headed by Chief Justice Michael Puzio and Executive Competition Coordinator Rose Gallagher. Among the awards announced: Best Brief Winners: Justin Hazlett, Abby Clapp, Tricia Cobb and Jeff Nowak; Best Oralists Winners: Brad Bayliff and Adam Barnes; Best Oralists Runners-up: Azin Lotfi, Sarah Hogan and Brad Maurer.
In light of the fact that this was the largest Moot Court Competition in IU's history, these contests deserve to be congratulated.
1998-99 SHERMAN MINTON MOOT COURT COMPETITION
First years: Do not forget that the deadline to sign up for the 1998-99 competition is April 24 by 5:00. Forms can be placed in the envelope on the Moot Court bulletin board.
ELS NEWS - 1999 NAELS CONFERENCE WILL BE HOSTED BY IU SCHOOL OF LAW
The Environmental Law Society sent two members, Julie Wilson and Sasha Engle, to the 1998 National Association of Environmental Law Societies (NAELS) Conference in Houston, hosted by Thurgood Marshall School of Law, April 2-5. While attending the conference, Julie and Sasha put in a bid for IU-Bloomington School of Law to host the 1999 conference, and the bid was accepted. Tentatively the conference is scheduled for March 4-7, 1999. Hosting the 1999 NAELS Conference will be an honor and a great opportunity. Law students attend from all across the country, and panelists represent a wide variety of perspectives from private, public, non-profit, and academic settings. The conference is a good setting for making contacts, meeting students from other schools, and learning about current environmental law topics. IU Law and SPEA faculty and students will play a big part in planning and carrying out this big event. There will be lots of ways, both big and small, to get involved. If you are interested in helping or want to know more, please contact Rozy Park (rozpark or 323-1780), the 1999 NAELS Conference Coordinator.
ELS IN SEARCH OF WEB PAGE ASSISTANCE
Are you a computer-savvy individual? Have experience with web pages? The Environmental Law Society and IU-Bloomington School of Law will be hosting the 1999 National Association of Environmental Law Societies Conference, and ELS is hoping to set up a web page for the conference. An interest in environmental law is not necessarily needed; rather, ELS is looking someone who enjoys working on web pages and could do a bang-up job of putting together a page for the conference. Contact Rozy Park (rozpark or 323-1780) if you are interested.
Announcements
WESTLAW AND LEXIS PASSWORD EXTENSIONS
Students who are taking classes over the summer, working for a professor, or conducting research for a B706 paper law journal note, or moot court brief can have their Westlaw and Lexis passwords extended for the summer. The best, and fastest, method to do this is to go to the following web sites:
Westlaw: http://www.westgroup.com/password.htm
Lexis: http://www.lexis.com/lawschool
All passwords not extended for the summer will be deactivated or suspended May 9. Graduating students will be able to access only the Career databases on Westlaw and Lexis during the summer.
If you have any questions, see one of the student representatives or Juliet Smith.
Calendar
Friday, April 24
...Deadline to sign up for 1998-99 Moot Court Competition, 5:00 p.m.
Updated: 17 April 1998