Implementing a Mandatory Course on Race & the Law in the Law School Curriculum

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Session Type: Workshop Programs

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Since the summer of 2020, many law schools have reckoned with their own shortcomings with respect to advancing racial justice in their school communities and in their curriculum. A number of law schools have introduced new centers for racial justice, new DEI programming, and new courses, sometimes mandatory, focusing on race and the law or critical perspectives on the law including critical race theory. Some institutions have implemented this as a single course required for all 1Ls or for upper-level students, while others have made it a graduation requirement with an array of courses to choose from that would fulfill the requirement. While there are many law schools interested in pursuing the former approach and implementing such a mandatory course at their institutions, the process of designing and executing this is daunting from a substantive, logistical, and resource perspective. The purpose of this workshop is to hear from four different law schools that have already incorporated a mandatory race and the law or critical perspectives on the law course in their curriculum – specifically, from the law professors who were instrumental in implementing and teaching such a course at their institutions. Participants will learn about the course design, logical considerations, student feedback, and lessons learned. Through this workshop, we hope to give tools and models to the participants for designing and implementing similar courses at their institutions.