Announcements
Week of 30 January 2023
EVENTS
Grad and Law Student Faith Sharing
Every Tuesday, 5-6pm
Beginning on Tuesday, January 24th, Campus Ministry will offer a weekly virtual faith sharing opportunity for graduate and law students to gather and build community. We will use poetry, nature, art, and sacred texts to help us reflect upon and share our experiences, beliefs, and questions with one another. Students of all programs, religious backgrounds, and/or ethical traditions are most welcome and encouraged to join us. Use this link to join. Contact Brian McCabe to express interest or get more information.
Weekly Mass at the Law School
Thursdays at 12:30pm in the Chapel of Our Lady, Mirror of Justice, dedicated in memory of Helen A. O’Connor
Mass is held at the Law School when classes are in session. Further details and other opportunities for worship can be found on the Campus Ministry website. For other information, you may contact Fr. Aldo Potencio, OSA at aldo.potencio@villanova.edu.
Spring 2023 LCL Virtual Student Hours
PA Lawyers Concerned for Lawyers will again host OPEN virtual student hours for law students to provide additional for students experiencing problems with stress, anxiety, alcohol or other substance use, depression or mental health concerns. Spring student hours will be on the following dates:
Monday, January 30th
Thursday, February 23rd
Tuesday, March 14th
Monday, March 27th
Thursday, April 13th
LCL Student Hours meetings will be scheduled from 9:30 am until 6:00 pm. Interested students should email Laurie Besden, Executive Director of LCL directly at laurie@lclpa.org and she will send you a link for your confidential zoom meeting. All meetings are completely confidential (and free). You do not have to wait until these dedicated student hours. LCL resources are available 24/7/365, call their Helpline (1-888-999-1941, www.lclpa.org).
Engaging Refugees through Higher Education in Brazil
Tuesday, January 31, at Noon
Please join the Strategic Initiative for Migrants + Refugees for a webinar panel discussion with professors, scholars, and migrant students from Brazil about how they help to facilitate a path for migrants and refugees to start or continue pursuing their degree in higher education within Brazil. Moderated by Michele Pistone, Strategic Initiative for Migrants + Refugees, Villanova University. Click here to register.
[Un]Documents
Wednesday, February 8, at 6pm in the Communication Department Studio (Garey Hall 29A)
[Un]Documents is an award-winning solo play written and performed by actor and poet Jesús I. Valles. The show has toured the country and recently concluded a successful 6-week residency at the Latino Theatre Company in Los Angeles. Visit the event page for further information.
Villanova Environmental Law Journal Blank Rome LLP Symposium
Friday, February 10. 9am–1pm in the Laurence E. Hirsch ’71 Classroom (Room 101)
The 2023 Villanova Environmental Law Journal Blank Rome LLP Symposium will examine problems associated with different types of waste–trash, water pollution and medical waste–from an environmental justice perspective. Visit the event page for more information and to register.
The Villanova Law Review Norman J. Shachoy Symposium
Friday, February 24, 9am–1:30pm in the Laurence E. Hirsch ’71 Classroom (Room 101)
This year's symposium, “Military Justice Reform: The Next Twenty Years,” will bring together leading scholars, jurists and practitioners to discuss the most salient questions surrounding contemporary military justice. Visit the event page for more information and to register.
Baseball Negotiation Team Success
The Villanova Sports Law Negotiation Team sent two teams of students to compete in the 16th annual Tulane International Baseball Arbitration Competition (TIBAC) January 19-20. Both teams advanced to the playoff rounds and placed within the top-eight of 37 participating teams.
Matt Dacey ('23), Andrew Delzotto ('23), and Alex Shaff ('24) placed as a top-three team by total points following the competition's first day and finished as semifinalists.
David Brake ('24), Stella Pratt ('23), and Chris Roppolo ('23) finished as quarterfinalists and won the Written Advocacy Award for best competition brief.
This is the fourth straight year Villanova Law students have made the TIBAC playoffs and the third time in four years that a team has made the semifinals. Congratulations to our students for a job well done!
DEI Research Assistant Program
The Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion of the Villanova University School of Law is accepting applications for its 2023 DEI Research Assistant Program. The program is open to law students. Compensation will be based on University research assistant guidelines.
Assistance is needed to work with affinity groups, research DEI topics, and related issues. If you have worked on a DEI-related project, please include a brief description in your letter of interest. Email your letter of interest and your interview availability to Kent Lollis, kent.lollis@law.villanova.edu.
World Mental Wellness Month
January is World Mental Wellness Month! Villanova’s Mental Health and Well-Being Committee would like to remind you to take some time to take care of yourself and your mental health. Here are a few tips and reminders as we dive in to the spring semester! For more information visit: https://www1.villanova.edu/university/student-life/health-services/well-being.html.
- Listen to music
- Spend time in nature
- Get your body moving
- Call a loved one
- Snuggle with a dog, cat, or bunny
- Turn off the TV and/or social media
New Student Absence Reporting Form
If you have missed or know you will miss a class session and believe the absence may be excused, you may use this form to record the absence and have it excused where applicable. Please note that individual faculty members DO NOT receive submitted forms, so you must still notify your professors independently of any absences.
Please Update Your Contact Information
Whether this is your first year at Villanova Law or you are a seasoned 2L or 3L, you are obligated to keep the Registrar’s office up to date on your current contact information.
If you did not submit an Address/Emergency Contact form last semester, please do so now. If you did submit a form but some of your information has changed, please fill it out again. You can find the form on the Registrar’s website under “Forms”. Please know your information is never released to an outside source without your permission.
Working Wednesdays
Do you want a quiet and regular space to study or work with other graduate students? How about some coffee and a donut? St. Mary’s Hall Room 110 is reserved every Wednesday, 9am-5pm, for graduate and law students, and breakfast goodies and snacks will be provided. No registration required.
Reporting DEI and Other Climate Concerns
Climate concerns may be reported anonymously via a central link run by the University diversity office at https://www1.villanova.edu/university/diversity-inclusion/report-climate-concern.html. Any reports involving people from the law school community are reported back to the law school administration.
The link also has details about the process and procedure. You must log in to submit your document, but your login remains anonymous and is not tied to your report.
If you need any assistance understanding the process, please contact Kent Lollis, Director for Diverisity, Equity, and Inclusion.
Wellness Resources for Students
Villanova University School of Law faculty and staff care about you. We remind all law students to prioritize your physical, emotional, and mental health. It is important to reach out if you are going through a challenge, feeling overwhelmed, need to talk or want to find ways to maintain balance in your life.
Lawyers Concerned for Lawyers: LCL is fully operational during this time of uncertainty. They have one staff rotating in the office each day to ensure every helpline call will be thoroughly handled. Their volunteer base of 295 law students, attorneys, and judges are ready, willing, and able to assist any student, staff or faculty member that may be struggling LCL’s 24/7 helpline is 888-999-1941 and their website is also a wealth of information www.lclpa.org
University Counseling Center: Please see the Counseling Center’s website regarding their message for continuity of care, scheduling an appointment, local referrals or prescription refill if you have been seeing the University psychiatrist. Law Students have full access to the University Counseling center M-F, 9-5 610 519- 4050.
Villanova’s Health and Well-Being website
Nancy Whalen, Director of Student Affairs and Wellbeing can help you if you need to connect to resources, want a wellness check-in or need to discuss a specific concern. Email her at whalen@law.villanova.edu or schedule a time to meet with Nancy.
In an emergency, call Villanova Public Safety at 610-519-4444.
The 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline is a United States-based suicide prevention network of over 160 crisis centers that provides 24/7 service via a toll-free hotline with the number 9-8-8. It is available to anyone in suicidal crisis or emotional distress.
Gazette Submissions
Please send items for next week’s Gavel Gazette to gavelgazette@law.villanova.edu by 3pm on Friday.
