This year P.A.D hosted its annual boat cruise on September 27th, and except for a few minor sna­fus, the evening went off without a hitch. Fine, fine, the busses were a tad late and the line to get on the boat moved a bit slow, and a jacket seemed to disappear. Thankfully, the festive spirit in the air seemed to indicate that these small set­backs didn’t put a damper the evening.

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What is professionalism? Well, truthfully, you’ll know it when you see it and you’ll know it if you expect it and it’s not there. I personally like Candice Solie’s definition:”Professionalism is not defined by the position held. It is defined by who you are (inner character), what you do (behavior exhibited) and how others perceive you (image projected).”

Evaluations, Inc. E-professionalism, then, is a natural extension of professionalism to all things electronic. In fact, according to Tracy Evans, Director of Career Services at Louisiana State University Law Center, and Amy Gerwitz, Associate Director, Alumni Counseling and Relations, at Pace University School of Law, “Electronic professionalism encompasses so many different areas it is almost overwhelming at first.”

In today’s economy, you need all the help you can get to land a legal position. Don’t let your lack of e- professionalism ruin your chances. You must be diligent in making sure your professionalism is evident in what you do, what you say, and who you are in person, in print and online. According to Ms. Evans and Ms. Gerwitz (along with a few tips from yours truly!) here’s how you can accomplish your e-professionalism due diligence:

1. Do a regular online search of your name. If necessary, consider hiring a company to “clean up” your online image.

itor what is being said or posted about you.

3. Do record a professional voicemail message at home and on your cell phone. This includes a professional sounding ringtone on your cell phone.

A simple “Dear Mr./Ms. [last name]” if it’s an employer, alumni or other professional or “Hello [name] ,” will suffice if it’s someone with whom you are more familiar!

5. Do use professional online networks such as LinkedIn as a way to market yourself professionally.

6. Do make sure personal web pages are cleaned up.

7. Do use the internet to research potential employers, professionals or alumni so that you know something about them before you meet them.

8. Do follow up on electronic communications. They are not always reliable.

9. Do check your e-mail and voicemail on a regular basis. Have your valpo.edu mail forwarded to your gmail, yahoo, or other account so that you can receive important information concerning the law school.

10. Do use your work computer for professional uses only.

YouTube, etc. Also, make sure friends/family/co-workers/fellow students are

not posting inappropriate content that includes your name or picture.

profile settings are private that employers and others may not see them.

3. Don’t assume that employers are not conducting electronic background checks on you – they are.

4. Don’t over blog – make sure content is professional and DON’T blog about your employer.

5. Don’t put inappropriate content in your home or business e-mail.

6. Don’t have an inappropriate e-mail address and don’t use the same e-mail for your resume that you use for your online presence unless your online presence is completely appropriate and positive. Also, don’t give documents inappropriate names, especially those you may be sending to employers.

7. Don’t click send on an e-mail without double-checking to make sure you’re sending it to the correct recipient and without reading the content, especially for the “reply all” messages.

8. Don’t use capital letters (it means you’re shouting) in e-mail correspondence and don’t send multi-colored e-mails.

9. Don’t include quotes in your e-mail signature box. Or, if you do, have separate signature lines depending on who’s receiving the e-mail. If you keep your signature line basic, with just your name, title, employer, address, phone, fax and e-mail address, you won’t inadvertantly offend potential employers!

10. Don’t wear a Bluetooth accessory in a meeting, at a lunch, or in other business settings. Also, don’t set your cell phone on a desk, table, etc. when you’re meeting with an employer, alumni or other professional.

11. Don’t text in the middle of meetings, lunches, etc.

12. Don’t wear your iPod while working.

Should you have any questions about these tips or general questions about e-professionalism, please visit the Career Planning Center (Room 125) or contact our staff to make an appointment at (219) 465-7814 or careerplaning.law@valpo.edu

On November 5, 2008 the Valparaiso University School of Law Moot Court Society will host the 20th annual Judge Luther M. Swygert Memorial Moot Court Competition. Every year members of the Moot Court Society delve into areas of First Amendment law in this competition. This year’s topic involves academic freedom for professors, which is timely and of great interest to many.

Smith and Katie Staab). The field will be narrowed to the top four competitors who will perform in the final round on November 5th.

Judge John Tinder of the 7th Circuit, Justice Elizabeth Lacy of the Virginia Supreme Court, and Justice Debra Todd of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court.

Members of the Moot Court Society include:

Gilfillan, Kirsten Haalboom, Brandon Hall, Sean Hatfield, Allison Horton, Milo Johnson, Jesse Lanshe, Joanna Lekkas, Elizabeth Madlem, Anthony Mayerhofer, Kathryn McEnery, Ashley Mills, Brett Mock, Amy Molloy, Erika Nelson, Steve Olsen, Nicholas Poteres, Abigail Rom, Heather Schaefer, Sameer Siddiqui, Jeff Speights, Arriel Stevens, Moses Suarez, Jessica Warren

Dear Faculty, Staff, and of course Students,

Welcome back for another year within the halls of Valparaiso University School of Law. To begin, I would like to welcome our new faculty and staff who have joined us this summer. I am confident that they, as all of our faculty and staff do, will contribute greatly to strengthening our education and experience, along with promoting the open door policy.

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By: Matthew Skilling, Mock Trial Secretary and Alumni Relations Chairperson

More than ten new members joined the Mock Trial team for the 2008-2009 season. Tamara Bershok, chairperson, is excited about the team’s prospect. “This is a really strong team and I think we can get back to national competitions,” said Bershok. Joining the 9 returning 3Ls were 10 new 2Ls. Read the rest of this entry »

By Brianna Schroeder, Executive Editor of Student Writing

Welcome to another year of law school! The summer proved to be a very busy one for the members of the Valparaiso University Law Review.

Under the leadership of Editor in Chief Carrie Flores, the Law Review’s group of editors worked tirelessly over the past several months to admit a new class of Notewriters into the Law Review. We are very excited to announce the Notewriters for Volume 43 of the Valparaiso University Law Review.

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The Valpo Law Democrats (VLD) welcome in the class of 2011! Welcome to law school in what proves to be a very exciting political season. I hope everyone had a chance to watch the Democratic National Convention in Denver. The messages of hope, courage and promise resounded in our leaders as we look to this historic election. The VLD are here to help you hit the pavement, and work for the party of change. In Indiana that means we’ll be supporting the full Democratic slate of candidates including among others Obama & Biden for President and Vice-President, Jill Long Thompson for Governor, and Peter Visclosky for U.S. House of Representatives. Now is the time to make sure you have your information to vote in November, whether that be changing your registration to Indiana, or obtaining your absentee ballot. Read the rest of this entry »

By Laura Wishart, SBA President

As the hype of the Presidential Primaries takes hold of our law school and grips the attention of our nation, this is a perfect time to introduce the idea of campaigning on a local level – running for the 2008-2009 Student Bar Association. This past year the focus of SBA has revolved around internal improvements, namely in the areas of record keeping, fiscal responsibility, and charity. Giant leaps have been made to preserve records and timelines for future SBA members. Not only will this save time for other important matters, but it also helps future administrations to have a precedent upon which to rely.

This year the SBA has tried to do more with less money. We decided to give more money to student organizations instead of throwing frivolous events. Looking back, it definitely has allowed student groups to do more. Unfortunately, there is always something more that groups wish to do, but SBA cannot fund everything. However, we have found creative ways to raise money, which strengthens the bond between organizations. From the blood drive and book drive, to the current penny war battle between classes, our local community has been enriched by contributions from our law school.

The vast improvements of this year’s SBA can be attributed to the wonderful participation from the members and from students who have held SBA to a higher standard. I have full faith that this positive trend will continue, so long as motivated individuals run for positions. If you have an interest in seeing what SBA does, please drop by our office or attend our meetings each Sunday. What it comes down to is being involved. If you want to contribute to our school, run for the Student Bar Association. Help us leave our footprint on the school, community, and other law schools around the country. We have big plans for the future of the organization and welcome any feedback or assistance. I urge you all to think about running for next year’s SBA. Not only can you put this on your resume, but you also gain valuable leadership experience and build your professional network.

In closing, I would like to say that it has been a pleasure serving as both Vice President and President this year. Special thanks goes to the 3Ls who have played a role this past year: Bailey Cunningham, Gaby Guzman, Jordan Gwiazdon, Megan Krol, Ian Lucas, EB Newberry, Anthony Nwaneri, Sebastian Smelko, and Sherwin Tsai. I look forward to finding strong individuals to fill their valuable positions.

As the semester has come into full swing, so have a number of Phi Alpha Delta events. First, we would like to thank everyone for participating as well as encourage everyone to come out for our upcoming events. Recently Phi Alpha Delta volunteered at Family House for a second time this year, helping clean the organization, which supervises visitations between children and their non-custodial parents. Also, this last Wednesday was the Fourth Annual Judges’ Dinner, where we had nearly a dozen local judges in attendance as well as a number of 1, 2 and 3L’s. Phi Alpha Delta would like to extend a special thank you to Tamara Carnahan and Krista Blaisdell as well as the Professional Development Committee for all of their hard work on this event.

Upcoming events include 1L Appellate Brief Binding, February 18th – 29th, located on the second floor of the library. Watch for a sign-up sheet on the Phi Alpha Delta student organization board soon. Walk-ins will also be accommodated IF POSSIBLE. Other upcoming events include Bowl-A-Thon on March 24th at Inman’s, taking the place of the weekly bowling league that night, and a panel of speakers discussing how to succeed in the public sector on March 26th. Additionally in March, we will have officer elections for next year’s executive board; if you are interested in attaining great leadership skills and getting involved, please consider this opportunity. We also have a Q&A session to help 1Ls register for next years’ classes, as well as another Q&A session for second semester finals. Lastly, on April 11th will be our Annual Charity Auction. This event has been very successful in the past and we ask you to please come out and bid on some of the spectacular items (past items include cleaning services, car washes, tax filing, theater tickets, baseball tickets, and even Notre Dame football tickets!) and help us finish off what has been a great year with flying colors!

Welcome to December, Valparaiso Law. I sincerely cannot believe it is the end of 2007 already. As many of you know, this is my last writing to you as President of your Student Bar Association. It is bittersweet for me as I believe that there is still much to be done. However, I know you all are in very capable hands. I wanted to highlight some actions that your Student Bar Association is pursuing so that the Our School can continue to move forward. Great things are happening at Our School, some in plain sight and others behind the scenes.

The Student Bar Association has focused much of its time this semester working to attend to the ever growing problem of poor lightening, the lack of safety call boxes and finally the poor condition of our parking lots. Joe Baruffi (the Director of Student Services) and I have submitted a formal request to our Institution for action. Also, sitting in the SBA office is a petition that will be delivered to the leaders of Valparaiso University. I encourage you all to read and sign this petition—perhaps it will further our progress with this issue.

Also, the SBA has worked hard to improve our image and our pride. We expect to continue our very successful Student Advisor Program next year and we anticipate several first year law students to step up and take the lead. You are no longer new here, this is your school: improve it! Furthermore, other initiatives that the Student Bar Association is working towards are a Diversity Group, as well as Student Alumni Council. It is envisioned that in the future, these groups will increase the already robust sense of community within our Halls.

Finally, save your pennies over the Holiday as the penny wars between the classes will begin at shortly after next semester commences. The total monies collected will go to the Indiana Leukemia and Lymphoma Society’s Pennies for Patients program. This SBA is personally committed to not only dedicating its efforts for the betterment of our Law School community but giving back to others as well. There are always great opportunities to help others here at the law school from the VU Day of Caring, to the Book Drive, PDP’s pumpkin carving event for local children, PAD’s adopt a family program, and many more.

Next, I want to introduce you to the new President of your Student Bar Association, Laura Wishart. Laura is a second year law student and is thoroughly committed to continuing the mission of improving Our School for our students. I have worked with Laura the past two years and have witnessed her commitment first hand. Go to her and our other representatives with your concerns and problems just as many of you have approached me in the past. She and the rest of your Student Bar Association want to help. You can reach Laura at laura.wishart@valpo.edu

Finally, as I will make the transition from a student at Our School to an Alumnus, I will leave you with some final thoughts. Administration and Staff: thank you for your ever present commitment to improve Our School. Your dedication to progress is inspirational. Please continue to listen to the ways students believe this school can improve. Faculty: thank you for your open doors, minds, and hearts. Thank you for your devotion to our education and demanding the very best from us every day in class. You all are to be extremely commended for dedicating your life to educating others. Lastly, fellow colleagues: we all have an affirmative duty placed upon us the day we enter as first year law students at the Valparaiso University School of Law. I am not discussing the commitment we make to ourselves to be the best student we can be. Rather, this obligation is to commit a part of our journey into and out of here to improving Our School. Take Pride not only in yourself, but also this school—Our School. Pride stands for Personal Responsibility In Daily Excellence.In my assessment, the Valparaiso University School of Law will be much different in the future. The question is how it will be different. Sure, we could all forget about Valparaiso Law when we leave here and yes, it would probably be OK. However, OK is not and should not be good enough. We can improve Our School more, plans are coming in place to really move forward. Will you be a part of this progress? You each are an integral part. Ask how you can help, volunteer, respond, Act! Please join in our endeavor to improve Our School, not only while you are a student here, but also as a proud graduate.

In closing, thank you, Valparaiso University School of Law, for the wonderful memories, the life long friendships I have made, and, in my estimation, one of the best legal educations in America. It was an honor and privilege to serve you.Best Regards, God Bless, and Happy Holidays.

J. Sebastian Smelko

President, Student Bar Association

jsebastiansmelko@gmail.com