Dean Greene Kicks Off Foundations Week; Welcomes Incoming 1L Students
August 16, 2023
MSU College of Law Class of 2026
Dean Linda Sheryl Greene welcomed the most inclusive and highly credentialed class entering Michigan State University College of Law in opening remarks launching Foundations Week. In kicking off the week-long orientation to law school, Dean Greene reflected on her journey to law school and how the legal profession piqued her interest at a young age.
“I remember my first day of law school and seeing lawyers on television and thinking to myself, what can I do to make a difference,” she said. “I decided I wanted to play a role in changing society, righting wrongs, and fighting racial injustice even though I didn’t know how to do that; but I knew lawyers played a role.”
Dean Greene went on to highlight the roles and opportunities she experienced throughout her career, emphasizing that “the icing on my career cake is the opportunity to be your Dean at this law school.” She turned the spotlight on audience, describing the incoming class of law students as the most inclusive and highly credentialed class, with a vast collection of experiences to enter MSU College of Law.
Sharing some unique characteristics of the Class of 2026, she said, “26 percent of you represent the first generation of college students in your families and come from 33 states, five countries, and four tribal nations. You come to us from 17 of the great public universities in the U.S., two Historically Black College and Universities, and one Hispanic-Serving Institution. Your studies covered 55 different undergraduate majors, from philosophy to physics, you speak 27 different languages, and some of you have been engineers, teachers, and community activists.”
The students expressed enjoyment in hearing the Dean’s story, and many said they were eager to being developing their own law school journey. Dean Greene stated that when she recruited students, she was recruiting them to a legal community.
Dean Greene Welcoming the Incoming Class
“I like Dean Greene. She puts a huge emphasis on diversity and inclusion which is super important to me,” said Esmeralda Rios, ’26. “I feel really good about starting law school. I’m excited to start looking into internships.”
In addition to pursuing summer employment opportunities, students expressed interest in getting involved various student activities, while others said they were more excited to be in a classroom learning from the professors. Incoming first-year student, Tony Mayotte, expressed his excitement for simply being able to study law and becoming familiar with his cohort. “I’m probably more excited to start classes, start learning, and getting to know my classmates,” he said. “I’ve wanted to go to law school for a while. Most people that I look up to have a law degree and are doing something in the legal field like advocacy or policy and that is something I would like to get into.”