Siena’s excellent pre-law programming attracts high-performing students who go on to top law schools and successful legal careers. Three new developments of note in the discipline:
A new articulation agreement has been signed between Siena and Albany Law School for a combined bachelor of arts degree in political science and master of science in government affairs and advocacy. Effective for this fall semester, students enrolled in the College’s political science major who have completed at least two years of study at Siena can enroll in graduate coursework at Albany Law in this accelerated program.
The master’s degree program at Albany Law, which is completely online, will give students a core understanding of government affairs and procedures, as well as the advocacy and lobbying tools and strategies needed in order to have an impact on public policy. This program will help prepare students to begin a lobbying career on state and local government platforms or succeed in public service within any branch of government.
“The new articulation agreement for students who have interest in government advocacy and lobbying, but not necessarily in earning a law degree, provides the unique opportunity to earn a master’s degree from Albany Law School and capitalize on our proximity to the state Capitol. They will receive a twenty five percent discount per credit hour toward earning their degree from Albany Law,” said Cutler. “It’s a win-win for our students.”
Core Albany Law courses include Legislative Process and Statutory Interpretation, Government Ethics, Public Budgets and Finance, Lobbying Law and Practice and more.
In gratitude for their long-time support and mentoring of Siena’s pre-law students, The Dr. Len Cutler and Sheila Cutler Pre-Law Endowment was created by Eric A. Scalzo ’08 and Tim Hannigan ’08, to celebrate the upcoming 25th anniversary of the Summer Legal Fellows program. It was announced this month at the annual pre-law mentoring dinner.
“Sheila and I are deeply humbled and truly grateful to our alumni who have taken the initiative to permanently endow our unique Summer Legal Fellows program so that it becomes available to future generations of pre-law Siena Saints,” said Cutler. “That is a wonderful legacy.”
“The robust pre-law programming Dr. Cutler provides to Siena students gave us a competitive advantage in both the law school admissions process and in law school,” said Hannigan. “My hope is that this endowment grants Dr. Cutler the resources he needs to continue to deliver transformative opportunities for Siena students.”
Siena’s pre-law program provides students with the skills needed to navigate the law school application process and prepare for the academic rigors of law school.
Students from Dr. Cutler’s Civil Liberties 2 class took a field trip April 18 to the New York State Court of Appeals in downtown Albany to explore the workings of our state’s highest court. They observed legal proceedings with an eye toward their future careers in the law.
“One of the most important takeaways from the trip was the style and commentary of the judges and the lawyers,” said Nathan Mattison ’23. “The Court of Appeals has different proceedings than many trial courts and preliminary hearings, and it was really interesting to see how the judges interacted with the lawyers there. I was also impressed with the wide range of decisions on which the judges have to have expert knowledge.”
Mattison said seeing the Court of Appeals in action made the students “come to grips with how hard our future profession of being a lawyer will be.”
“Doing copious amounts of legal research and potentially arguing in front of the highest court in New York is both an exciting and nerve-wracking thought.”
Brenna Knibbs ’24 was also grateful for the “incredible” opportunity to see the court in action after learning about it in class.
“The intensity of the arguments and the whole atmosphere was mesmerizing,” said Knibbs. “The biggest takeaway for me from this trip was don't be afraid to try something different. The lawyers, clerks and workers at the court said they didn't expect to end up there but now they love it.”
Alli Tsamis ‘23 enjoyed the opportunity to sit in on oral arguments in a defamation case, a topic the class had previously discussed and debated.
“Seeing firsthand the arguments that lead to these decisions was an invaluable experience, and being able to understand the various arguments made the trip very interesting,” she said.
