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title: Benchmark Column Quarterly Newsletter - January 2022
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 Benchmark Column is a seasonal publication from the WMU-Cooley Offices of Communications and Alumni Relations.

| Not rendering correctly? View this email as a web page here. JANUARY 2022 I hope your 2022 is off to a strong start and you are looking forward to a prosperous and fulfilling year. Looking ahead, this year will be filled with a variety of events, celebrations, and other alumni related opportunities at both the Lansing and Tampa Bay campuses as well as online and at locations across the country. We are especially excited about celebrating the WMU-Cooley Innocence Project’s 20-year anniversary, the 10-year anniversary of the Tampa Bay campus, and the kickoff of the school’s 50-year anniversary commemoration series. Along the way, I look forward to sharing progress being made on the school's new strategic plan featured in the most recent issue of the Benchmark. For now, enjoy this edition of The Benchmark Column including the new WMU-Cooley promotional video featuring several of our outstanding graduates! As always, please don’t hesitate to reach out if you have questions, need/want more information, or if you are interested in hosting an alumni event in your area. Sincerely, Bill Arnold, Director of Advancement and Alumni Relations WATCH WMU-COOLEY'S VIDEO STORY We are pleased to share with you our new promotional branding videos. These were designed to use for our marketing and branding opportunities that we will implement broadly. A special thank you to our features, especially 2013 graduate Takura Nyamfukudza, partner and litigator with Chartier & Nyamfukudza, P.L.C., and Professor Michael C.H. McDaniel, Ret. Brig. General and Director of WMU-Cooley's Homeland and National Security Law LL.M. Program, and Professor Mable Martin-Scott.   BLACK hISTORY mONTH DISCUSSION Join social historian, Dr. David Ponton, assistant professor at the University of South Florida's School for Interdisciplinary and Global Studies, for February's Black History Month WMU-Cooley Community Conversations virtual event. Mark your calendar for Friday, February 18, 2022 from 1:00-2:00 p.m. (EST).   The conversation, called Race and Society: Yesterday and Today, will focus on African American history, gender and society, and the sociology of race.   Click on the link below on Friday, Feb. 18 @ 1:00 p.m. to join the event.    CHECK OUT OUR ll.m. MERIT SCHOLARSHIPS LL.M. students entering in January 2022 or beyond may be considered for the LL.M. Merit Scholarship. To be eligible, a student must be admitted into a WMU-Cooley Law LL.M. program as a degree-seeking student after January 1, 2022. Scholarships are awarded based on merit, with factors considered such as J.D. GPA, bar admission, community or military service, employment, and anticipated contribution to the legal community. ALUMNI FEATURE: PATRICK o'sULLIVAN  WMU-Cooley graduate Patrick O'Sullivan was sworn in as a New York State Supreme Court Justice. O’Sullivan added that he is proud of his blue-collar background and that he strives to live by three rules when it comes to his professional life: be the first in and the last out, always work hard, and have gratitude for every job you do. GRADUATE FEATURE: MINA WOODARD 4.0 The Justice Horace Gray Class celebrated their graduation in December 2021 with ceremonies in Lansing and Tampa. Mina Woodard ranked first among the 92 Juris Doctor graduates with a perfect 4.0 cumulative grade point average, earning her the status of Summa Cum Laude graduate. Since the first graduating class in 1976, only 16 individuals have graduated with a perfect 4.0 GPA. CAREER REFLECTIONS Join us on on Monday, February 28 at 5:30 p.m. (EST) to celebrate Professor Kimberly O'Leary on the occasion of her retirement from WMU-Cooley. This online event is an opportunity for Professor O'Leary to offer "Reflections on a Career: 5 Lessons Learned" as her final "lecture" and also provide alumni with the chance to express their gratitude for the contributions she made to their legal education and their careers. Sign up for this event and other alumni networking events scheduled over the next months.  ADDITIONAL UPCOMING ALUMNI & FRIENDS EVENTS There is much WMU-Cooley Law School has to celebrate in 2022. February 17 and March 2 Stress Less Online Events (2) - featuring WMU-Cooley graduate Adam Ouellette (Fellows Class, 1997) March 12  Detroit Tigers vs. Toronto Blue Jays Spring Training Game Lakeland, FL March 13 Tampa Rays vs. Philadelphia Phillies Spring Training Game Port St. Lucie, FL March 28 Washington D.C. Area Alumni Reception Location TBD May 6 WMU-Cooley Innocence Project 20-Year Celebration Cooley Center, Lansing, MI AMANDA FISHER: NOTHING BETTER THAN TEACHING, READING, AND WRITING  According to WMU-Cooley Professor Amanda Fisher, the resources and attention that students can get at WMU-Cooley far surpass other law schools. In fact, she says the law school’s caring atmosphere and faculty accessibility translates into positive outcomes for students. Inclusive teaching requires an open line of communication with the student body, especially in a remote environment.  CONGRATS TO NEW ALUMNI EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE Here are our new Alumni Board Member and Officers. Be a part of WMU-Cooley's worldwide network of over 21,000 colleagues, experts, and friends.  PRESIDENT Susanne Harris (Carpenter Class, 1993) VICE PRESIDENT Bradley Merritt (Kavanagh Class, 2008) SECRETARY Robert Johnson (Boyle Class, 2018) PAST PRESIDENT Kirstyn Wildey (Hughes Class, 2016) BENCHMARK MAGAZINE Have you had an opportunity to read the latest issue of the Benchmark Magazine, either the print or online version? If not, read this special edition that celebrates the school’s new strategic plan and spotlights several alumni who exemplify the values at the core of the strategic plan. Do you have any good news you want to share in Class Notes? Send it to communications@cooley.edu no later than April 30 to make it in the June 2022 Benchmark Magazine. CONNECT WITH US       WMU-Cooley Law School 300 S. Capitol Avenue \| Lansing, MI 48933 USA You received this email because you subscribed to WMU-Cooley Alumni from WMU-Cooley Law School. 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