by Marisa S. Cianciarulo

I joined Western State College of Law at Westcliff University as its dean in July 2023, taking over from the beloved Allen Easley who served as Western State’s dean for nine years until his retirement. I’ve been in legal education for twenty years, as a clinical teaching fellow, professor, associate dean, and interim dean, and I’ve observed legal education and the legal profession go through many changes. As access to legal education has broadened, the legal community has become more diverse, more compassionate, and more responsive to the needs of the community. We’ve also become more attuned to the challenges faced by students. Western State is particularly sensitive to the needs of today’s generation of law students. Where there are problems, Western State has found solutions. The challenges faced by Western State students are the same as those faced by students throughout California and around the country. And all of us in the legal profession have a responsibility to help the profession succeed.

Here is what I can tell you about Western State and what it has taught me about how every lawyer can be part of the solution, and give a hand to law students and new lawyers who are just starting out.

Diversity Is More Than Just Numbers; It Is Respect for Unique Lived Experiences.
Western State students come from a variety of groups that have a significant presence in our community and yet remain underrepresented in the legal profession, including Black, First Generation, Latino, LGBTQ+, Middle Eastern/Northern African, and Military Veteran students. Many of our students come from families and communities in which a career in the law often seems out-of-reach, something reserved for people with very few responsibilities outside of school. Their unique lived experiences and the strength they have drawn from them enrich our school and the legal profession.

While the legal academy and the bar have made tremendous strides in promoting and respecting diversity, we haven’t done enough. California has seen several law schools serving highly diverse communities close down or lose ABA accreditation. It’s time for the legal community to explore creative, less rigid alternatives to measuring law schools’ success, and to provide support to law schools. Similarly, we know that new lawyers from backgrounds underrepresented in law face unconscious bias challenges and climates of homogeneity in some workplaces. We in the legal profession owe it to our communities to acknowledge this and work to change it. We need to be part of the solution.

Students Thrive When Barriers to Success Are Removed.
The option of being a “professional student” is not a viable one for many prospective and current law students. Family responsibilities, high costs of living, and the unwillingness to take on increasingly burdensome debt prevent many potential lawyers from enrolling in law school. To address that, and to encourage academically strong students to follow their dream to be a lawyer, Western State offers evening and daytime part-time programs in addition to a traditional full-time program. This gives working parents, people caring for family members, and others who might otherwise not have access to a legal education a clear pathway to a career in the law. We are re-launching our Masters in Legal Compliance in Health Law, a fully online program designed for working professionals who want to advance their careers. We are expanding our clinical programs and designing them to accommodate a variety of student schedules, in addition to our ongoing focus of making a legal education more affordable.

Access to justice begins with access to a legal education and access to a legal career. Providing that access requires law schools to work with our communities to identify the obstacles and find ways around them. For example, law firms must support rather than hold back new parents, to encourage fathers as well as mothers to dedicate time to family so that our young children never hear the term “mommy track” by the time they’re adults. We can have high expectations of lawyers while also realizing that life is rarely lived alone, but in partnership with family and friends. We need to be part of the solution.

Community Is Everything.
Today’s young people face many challenges—exorbitant cost-of-living expenses and burgeoning student loan debt being among the most significant—and it is crucial for them to have a network of support to help them persevere and excel. The Western State law students whom I encounter daily are resilient, creative, and hard-working. They also know they’re not alone. Our faculty and staff are here every day, coaching moot court, mock trial, and negotiation teams; providing one-on-one academic success support; advising student groups; and helping students navigate the complexities of starting out in the legal field. Western State’s incredible network of 12,000-plus alumni, 150 of whom have been elevated to the bench, are shining examples of how to support the next generation of lawyers. From the newest graduates to those who have been successful lawyers for decades, they give back to the Western State community in profound ways: engaging with prospective and admitted students, mentoring current students, teaching courses, and hiring our graduates.

This generation of lawyers is diverse in many ways; it will thrive with creative approaches to making education and careers more accessible; and it is heavily dependent on a strong and supportive community. As practicing lawyers and legal educators, we are an important part of helping today’s students and new lawyers succeed in a complex, interdependent, ever-changing world. While our experiences as law students and new lawyers may have been in some cases dramatically different from those of our younger colleagues, we have much in common with them, we have much to learn from them, and we have much to offer them in the form of guidance, trust, and opportunity. We can be part of the solution.

All of us here at Western State are proud and grateful to be part of this wonderful, thriving community of Southern California legal professionals. To our alumni – we thank you. If you’ve hired or mentored one of our graduates – thank you. If you have never had anything to do with Western State but you have helped a law student or new attorney in some way – thank you. You are part of the solution.

Marisa S. Cianciarulo is Dean and Professor of Law at Western State College of Law at Westcliff University. She can be reached at mcianciarulo@wsulaw.edu.