California Western School of Law November 2013 THE COMMENTARY BOR and SBA UPCOMING MAYORAL ELECTION NOVEMBER 19th Tenure Budget Hearing Tenure is the ultimate Over $10,000 allocated to the form of job security a student organizations. professor can have. by Sami Haddad by Patti Wilson Editor-in-Chief Board of Representatives Professors at California West- Chairwoman ern School of Law are put through a series of reviews in order to be This trimester, the Student Bar designated as tenured faculty. In Association (SBA) Board of Repre- order to acquire tenure, professors sentatives (BOR) held two budget must first be hired as a tenure tract hearings. Budget Hearings were tra- faulty member. This means that fac- ditionally done only for the Student ulty hired as legal skills professors or Organization SBA Budget. This tri- institute faculty are not eligible for mester we conducted two: one for tenure. (They can however receive a the SBA Board and the other for the long term contract for job security). Student Organization. Like student The process for a tenure track pro- organizations, SBA board members fessor to acquire tenure takes about were asked to submit budget pro- 6-7 years. There are two separate posals to the BOR and SBA Treasur- reviews during this time, one after er. With those proposals, the Chair- The four major San Diego mayoral candidates (from left to right): Nathan Fletcher, second year and another at the con- man of the Board of Representatives David Alvarez, Kevin Faulconer, and Mike Aguirre. clusion of the fourth year. The final and the SBA Treasurer came up with vote on tenure occurs at the end of a preliminary SBA budget, that was the sixth year. then approved by the BOR. Tenure is determined by the ten- For the past few semesters, stu- And other San Diego Scandals. ure review committee, a group of dent organizations have been allot- San Diego California Western professors who ted approximately $8,000- $9,000. by Allan Acevedo have already acquired tenure. There This semester we decided to try Mayoral Race Staff Writer are three or four professors assigned something different. Thanks in to review each professor on the large part to the efforts of the ladies For many 1Ls who just moved to San Diego concerned about the gaping hole in the retire- tenure track. The review commit- of Race Judicata, we were able to and those who have been here a while and are ment fund, sued the city demanding payments tee considers four categories when save a little extra money. This tri- thinking about staying in San Diego or in Cali- into the fund to ensure they would not lose their determining whether a professor mester, we were able to allocate over fornia, it’s important to acclimate yourself to the benefits because of gross mismanagement. qualifies for tenure: scholarship; $10,000.00 to the student organiza- political climate you’re coming in to. There was even speculation San Diego would teaching; service to community; and tions. There is an upcoming special election on No- need to declare bankruptcy. Securities and Ex- service to the law school. Every trimester the SBA Board vember 19 to replace former San Diego Mayor change Commission investigations ensued into The scholarship category of the of Representatives holds a Budget Bob Filner, a formerly long-term congressman possible fraud and political corruption. review committee is both an inter- Hearing to determine the amount with an affinity for chocolates and blondes. nal and external review. The internal of SBA funds that will be allotted Filner’s resignation after his historic election, Duke Cunningham Bribery Scandal: portion is a review of the scholarship to organizations that request SBA the first for a Democrat in 20 years, came after Duke Cunningham is a former Navy veteran by fellow professors at California funding. SBA funding is money a series of accusations of sexual harassment and and Republican member of the United States Western. The external review takes that is given from the SBA budget to inappropriate comments made by the mayor House of Representatives who was the center place outside of California West- each individual organization to help to female members of his staff and community of a political scandal when it was discovered ern, as the material is sent across the supplement the respective organiza- members. that defense contractors gave bribes to congress country to the experts in that topic. tion’s dues account and help fund For those of you new to America’s Finest City, members as well as officials from the Defense The teaching category of tenure the various activities that the orga- here are some of the most notable recent scan- Department in return for favors and political is especially critical to students. This nization puts on. dals to plague the city: contracts. is where our evaluations are critical The way it works, in a nutshell, is A small-town defense contractor and lob- in determining whether teachers ac- that any organization that requests “Enron-by-the-Sea”: byist, Brent Wilkes, sought to game the system quire tenure. Student evaluations are funds submits a budget proposal A nickname given to the City in the wake through the use of Congressional earmarks to reviewed by the tenure review com- fund request to the Board of Repre- political scandal when a trustee of the city’s em- win Defense contracts. One of Wilkes’ compa- mittee and any low remarks or nega- sentatives (BOR). The BOR reviews ployee retirement system noted a prospectus on nies was awarded more than $80 million in Pen- tive comments by students work each organizations budget proposal a proposed sewer bond did not mention that the tagon contracts over a 10-year period. Much of against the professor in question. in anticipation of the Budget Hear- city had underfunded its public pension fund that money came from earmarks Cunningham In addition, the tenure review com- ing. On the evening of the Budget for years, which lead to an unfunded liability of tacked on to spending bills. mittee attends class sessions and lec- Hearing, representatives from the more than $1.15 billion. Cunningham pled guilty to $2.4 million in tures by the professor up for review. organizations present their budget Needless to say when this information broke, bribes and was charged with conspiracy to com- Once the tenure review commit- proposals to the BOR. During the the sewer bond was postponed. Bond-rating mit bribery, mail fraud, wire fraud and tax eva- tee determines that a professor has Budget Hearing, the BOR then agencies substantially downgraded the city’s sion. earned tenure, the final decision is takes notes on each club’s presen- credit rating, which had the effect of raising bor- It should be noted that former Republican As- made by the the Board of Trustees. tation. After the budget hearing, rowing costs for the city. The City in turn had semblymember and mayoral candidate Nathan I’d like to conclude by giving a each BOR member comes up with to admit it misrepresented its financial standing Fletcher once worked as the Duke’s District Di- special thank you to Dean William recommendations based on the fol- for years. There was a wave of senior city staff rector. Aceves for taking the time to sit lowing factors: resignations. And many retired city employees, down for an interview with me and See Budget Hearing on page 6... See Mayoral Race on page 3... provide the student body with this information. Student Persepctives.....................9 INSIDE The Artichoke Fallout from Letters from the Editors................2 Donna’s absence, Tips on landing 3 People, Places,Things.................3 How to Leave a Mistress..............10 The Club Corner CLP Philan- The Commentary meets a job at Networking Events and weekly on Mondays at Letter from the President..............4 Evaluations...................................10 thropic Data Entry Event Oct. 3, Being Professor Campbell Pg 12 Race Judicata Oct. 12, and ACS 12:15 PM on the third floor Introduction of Ombudsman......5 U.S. Suprem Court.......................11 SBA Happenings Meet your couches. You can reach us Speaker Events Oct. 7 & 16. Pg 7 Top 10 Law Movie Quotes.........11 1L reps, Allan, Megan and Jamal. via email at: SBA and Club Budget.................6 Evaluations What is really Letter from SBA President Lau- cwslcommentary@ Club Happenings..........................7 The Artichoke..............................12 being done with student’s end of Being Arthur Campbell ren Foley Pg 5 gmail.com How to ROCK an Interview..........8 year evaulations? Pg 10 How to Snag a Job Law School Fashion......................8 Donna’s absense Page 2 INSIDE COVER Letters from the Editors Dear Readers, For most law students, November is not known as “No shave November,” but rather “No-Sleep November.” As exams near, students begin to panic and feel unprepared for the finals season, antici- pating the inevitable impending doom. My message to my fellow students is simple; good luck, and even though things may seem tough, be sure to enjoy the ride. Over the last few years, as the legal market has been reduced to shambles and post-graduate jobs are as scarce as a non-pizza lunch on campus, many law students have become pessimistic about their time in law school. This is understandable, but I encourage my fellow law students, whether first years or those of us graduating next month, to enjoy whatever is left in your law school journey. Although we will always be expanding on our legal educations, there are few experiences as stimulat- ing as a law school classroom discussion. The gathering of such a diverse group of students, all with brilliant minds and unique backgrounds and experiences, provides an excellent forum to learn and grow was a person.