Welcome to the 78th Annual Meeting of the Southeastern Association of Law Schools (SEALS)! We are delighted to gather this year at the beautiful Omni Amelia Island Resort, where we look forward to a week of scholarly exchange, professional development, and community connection.
SEALS has long been a place where legal educators come together to share ideas and build relationships. I have had the privilege of attending SEALS since moving to South Carolina nearly twenty years ago, and I can say without hesitation that I have benefitted tremendously from the collective wisdom of this community. Over the years, I have vetted scholarly works and ideas, learned to be a better teacher, and formed lasting friendships. It is an honor to now welcome you as this year’s president.
Our program this year continues SEALS’s tradition of excellence with a dynamic mix of panels, discussion groups, and workshops designed to engage a wide range of interests and experiences. We are especially proud to feature NextGen programming, presented in collaboration with the National Conference of Bar Examiners. These sessions will help faculty and administrators navigate the evolving landscape of legal education and licensure, and consider how best to prepare students for the future of legal practice.
We also highlight two timely and important workshops: the Dean’s Workshop, which offers a space for leadership dialogue and strategic planning, and the Distance Education Workshop, which explores innovations and challenges in online and hybrid legal education.
Of course, SEALS remains committed to its hallmark programming. The New Scholars Workshop, Works-in-Progress Series, Prospective Law Teachers Workshop, and Aspiring Law Teachers Workshop provide invaluable opportunities for mentorship, feedback, and professional growth. These programs reflect SEALS’s mission to support scholars at every stage of their academic journey.
In addition to these core offerings, this year’s schedule includes panels on pressing issues such as the role of artificial intelligence in legal education, the future of legal writing, and the impact of recent Supreme Court decisions. You’ll also find robust programming in areas like constitutional law, criminal law, health law, and pedagogy, as well as sessions focused on professional identity formation, clinical education, and law school leadership.
We are also pleased to welcome several new member schools—the University of Colorado School of Law, the University of Tulsa School of Law, and the Jacksonville University College of Law—to the SEALS community. Their presence enriches our conversations and strengthens our collective mission.
As always, we are grateful to our members, presenters, and volunteers who make this conference possible. On behalf of the SEALS Board, I welcome you to this year’s meeting and invite you to take full advantage of the programming, the setting, and—most importantly—the people who make SEALS such a special community.
Please don’t hesitate to reach out to me, Executive Director Russ Weaver, Deputy Executive Director Caprice Roberts, or any SEALS officer or board member if you have questions or suggestions. We are here to help.
Enjoy the conference!
Yours,
Susan S. Kuo
President, Southeastern Association of Law Schools (SEALS)
Associate Dean for Academic Affairs, Class of 1969 Chair for Teaching Excellence, and Professor of Law
University of South Carolina Joseph F. Rice School of Law, Columbia, South Carolina