Fordham Law School announced today that its Realizing Excellence and Access in the Law (REAL) program launched this week when program participants were welcomed to campus. The program aims to expand opportunities for first-year law students from historically underrepresented backgrounds including underrepresented racial, ethnic, geographic, socioeconomic, LGBTQ, and first-generation college backgrounds.
REAL is designed to orient participants to the study of law, and to help new first-year law students feel prepared, confident, and welcome in the Fordham Law community. Program participants participate in a pre-orientation program, which consists of classes that will introduce students to the foundation of law and as well as focus on the basics of legal reasoning and analysis and fundamental legal concepts. There is a wellness component to the program, which includes Peak Performance sessions to manage the personal aspects of navigating law school. Participants will also learn useful information from peer mentors during the program.
“The REAL program strives to do its part to make the legal profession more representative of the rich, cultural melting pot where we live. REAL program participants gain early exposure to the important intellectual, academic and social skills they will need to be successful at law school and beyond,” said Kimathi Gordon-Somers, Esq., assistant dean of student affairs and diversity at Fordham Law who co-led the launch of the program. “By providing an experience like this we can begin to build a more diverse legal profession.”
“The practice of law and our law school community benefit when students from all backgrounds are provided a real opportunity to succeed,” added Kamille Dean, Esq., director of diversity, equity, and inclusion at Fordham Law. “We find that prospective lawyers thrive when they learn the skills they need from individuals with shared experience, and that’s what drives our new program.”