Workshop I
Hearing Your Voice: Completing the 2025 ALDiP Survey & Exploring 2020 Findings on Law School Diversity Professionals
In this session, you will explore the ALDiP Survey of Law School Diversity Professionals (SLSDP) and its role in shaping the future of diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging (DEIB) in legal education. This workshop will provide an overview of the 2020 SLSDP findings and guide participants through the completion of the anonymous and confidential 2025 survey during the session. At a time when legal diversity professionals face increasing challenges, this session will examine the current state of DEIB in law schools while gathering critical, anonymous and confidential data from participants to inform future strategies. The ALDiP survey will collect key insights on anti-DEI challenges, strategic responses across institutions, and essential data to advance diversity in law schools, improve student outcomes, and integrate professional identity formation, cultural competency, race, and bias into legal education. Researchers from the Center for Strategic Diversity Leadership and Social Innovation will co-facilitate the anonymous and confidential data collection for this session, ensuring an engaging and meaningful discussion. These data will be used to inform the updated 2025 State of Law School Diversity Professionals Report, helping to shape the profession’s next steps.
Workshop II
Lift Every Voice and Sing: Combating Anti-DEIB Policies
It’s time to stand up, speak out, and take action to protect the values of diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging. This workshop will explore strategies for combating the rise of anti-DEI policies in higher education, focusing on the impact these policies have on campus communities. Participants will learn about efforts to resist anti-DEI measures and how to build solidarity to protect and promote diversity initiatives. Attendees will leave with practical tools and approaches for fostering a more inclusive environment despite political and legislative obstacles.
Workshop III
Latinx Voices: Understanding the Latinx Experience in the Legal Profession
According to the American Bar Association, Latinx attorneys make up just 5% of the legal profession, despite representing nearly 18% of the U.S. population. This panel will explore the distinct challenges faced by Latinx professionals in law, shedding light on the barriers they encounter and the strategies they employ to navigate them. Featuring diverse Latinx voices, the discussion will address crucial topics such as cultural identity, representation, and the enduring impact of systemic inequalities within the legal field. Panelists will share personal stories and professional insights, underscoring the importance of increasing Latinx representation and support in law schools, firms, and legal organizations, and providing attendees with actionable steps to foster greater inclusivity and equity in the profession.
Workshop IV
The Collective Voice: Representation via Demographic Data
As law schools strive to make data-driven decisions and build more inclusive communities, maintaining accurate and consistent demographic data is crucial. In practice though, evolving discourse and terminology, institutional systems, and an increasingly politicized landscape can make this a far more challenging endeavor. To best serve our law schools’ communities, we must do our best to understand who our students are beyond the numbers–but having and understanding the numbers is a vital starting place. In this session you will hear from two experts who will discuss tips and tricks for collecting and reporting various types of demographic data, offering insights and recommendations you can utilize to better support institutional goals and DEIB-related initiatives.
Workshop V
Amplifying Voices: Academic Freedom & Advocacy in our Current Climate
Amidst growing political threats to our academic institutions and a new generation of law students, preserving academic freedom and advocacy on our campuses is more important than ever. Panelists, whose work intersects with academic freedom and advocacy in a variety of ways, will discuss current threats to free expression in higher education and explore how faculty, students, and administrators can weather and combat these challenges. From the in-classroom experience and accreditation standards (like ABA Standard 208, which strengthens protections for academic freedom and expression), to increased reliance on changing technology, to global strategies, attendees will leave with practical strategies for safeguarding their law schools’ core values and identifying opportunities to collaborate and continue building diverse and inclusive communities of law students, staff, and faculty.
Hot Topics
Finding Your Voice: Hot Topics in DEIB
Join us for these popular small-group discussions on important topics relating to personal, student, and institutional experiences in DEIB. Nothing is off the table, including anti-DEIB rhetoric, workplace resistance to progress, political struggles, freedom of speech, need for personal support or advice, advocating for students, new language, and creative solutions.