Below is the OCR text representation for this newspapers page.

November 30, 1984/The Maroon Tiger/Page 13A Pre-Law Program At Morehouse By Jerry Drayton, Jr. So you are thinking about going to law school. Let me share some thoughts about your un dergraduate preparation for law school. Recognition of some of the special needs of the many pre law students at Morehouse College resulted in the develop ment of a pre-law program based in the Political Science Depart ment. This program is staffed by the Director of the Pre-Law Program. The Director works closely with pre-law students to help them plan a pre-law educa tion and reach decisions about law school. The Pre-Law Program has attempted to make as many resources as possible available for your use, but the ultimate responsibility for your professional school plans rests with you. Your undergraduate years will be a time to explore many academic fields, to perfect your learning abilities, and to demonstrate expertise and ex perience in a particular field, usually your major. It has been said for years that a solid general liberal education and a study of western society and culture are the best preparation for the study of law, and this advice remains valid. The Director hopes to explain what law school is about, suggest additional readings, and provide you with statistical data and information about your probability of admis sion at selected law schools. We cannot tell you whether you will enjoy law, or whether you will be a good lawyer, or whether you will be able to find a job when you graduate from law school. The answers to these questions depend, to a large extent, on you. This article is designed to be used in conjunction with the Prelaw Handbook published by the Association of American Law Schools (AALS) and the Law School Admission Council (LSAC). The AALS/LSAC Prelaw Handbook is revised annually and is the official guide to all ABA-approved law schools in the country. In addition to individual school profiles, the book has excellent and essential discussions of law as a career, preparation for law school, the admission process, the law school experience, and a list of suggested pre-law readings. Students who are just beginning to think of the possibility of attending law school, as well as those who are actually applying, are strongly urged to review the AALS/LSAC Prelaw Handbook. The introductory pages of the Handbook are available as a handout; we also have reference copies of the entire book or you may purchase your own at the Atlanta University Center Bookstore. ADVISING SERVICES The list below highlights some of the resources and services you may wish to use. Please remember that this is only a partial list. Pre-Law Director -The Pre-Law Director can answer your questions on a walk- in basis and can make arrangements for you to speak with representatives from local law schools. Miscellaneous -Statistical information on law school applicants. Each year the Pre-Law Director receives a report on Morehouse applicants to law school from the Law School Admission Services. Although the reports are con fidential, current applicants may want to discuss the summary results with the Director. -Readings. Available for reference are a binder of law- related newspaper and magazine clippings, copies of the American Bar Association’s Student Lawyer, and several good pre-law books. -Referral to pre-law groups at Morehouse. Each year a number of student groups such as the Atlanta University Center Prelaw Society host variouse pre-law activities. Check with the Direc tor for the names of current groups and their contact per sons. -Past LSAT’s (Law School Ad mission Test). Copies of past administrations of the exam, with answers, are available for reference in the office of the Director. -Registration packets for the LSAT and LSDAS (Law School Date Assembly Service). Information on Individual Law Schools -Referral to Morehouse graduates now attending law school (approximately 35 names at 17 different schools; updated every two years). -Survey of Morehouse Graduates in Law School. This survey, conducted every two years, is sent to Morehouse graduates currently enrolled in law school. The questionnaire is designed to solicit “insiders” perspectives on pre-law preparation and on their respec tive schools. Many applicants have found this an invaluable resources for help in choosing where to apply and ultimately where to go. FACE Provides Service By David Bishop News Editor, Panther People who suffer with Anorexia Nervosa, Bulimia, and Compulsive Overeating can now go to a new outpatient clinic in a residential neighborhood near Northside Hospital. Freedom From Addictive and Compulsive Emotions (FACE) is a clinic designed to treat patients with these eating disorders through the use of a twelve step approach originated by Alcoholics Anonymous. FACE treats Anorexia Nervosa, Bulimia, the consuming of large quantities of food and throwing it up, and Compulsive Overeating as an addiction rather than a disease. Patients receive specialized attention to their psychological and social situations as well as their medical condition. FACE sees outpatient treat ment as being relatively new and that it has evolved only after years of treatment experience. "We propose that the treat ment of eating disorders is currently in the beginning stages of an evolutionary process which will pattern itself after the treat ment of alcoholism,” according to a press release from FACE. Although those with Aneroxia Nervosa, Bulimia, and Com pulsive Overeating disorders, are currently being treated as in patients for the medical side effects of their disease at high costs. FACE has developed an outpatient program that meets the needs of a large number of patients with eating disorders. “It is felt that rather than utilizing the more restrictive and costly forms of treatment... we can take a giant leap to the least restrictive, less costly... form of treatment for these patients,” says FACE. At FACE’S halfway house there is one fundamental rule: NO FOOD OR DRINK IS ALLOWED ON THE PREMISES. “That helps them to recover,” said Barbara Chelton, wife of FACE'S founder, Guy Chelton. “It’s just like an alcohol or drug program that doesn’t allow drugs or liquor in the house,” she added. All of the patients meals are obtained from the St. Joseph's cafeteria or at the FACE clinic at the Perimeter Professional Plaza. The patients interact through rap sessions and communal meetings after returning from their regular days activities. Two patients have dropped out of the FACE clinic since it opened, and 16 have completed an initial month-long treatment. The treatment, done in phrases, lasts for a two-year period. Phase I, stabilization, lasts three to seven days and includes psychosocial history, nutritional assessment, three meals a day and orientation. Phases II through IV last three to four weeks and provides group therapy, educational seminars, physical conditioning and assertiveness training. Phase V lasts seven weeks and includes bi-weekly therapy designed to maintain changes realized during treatment. Phase VI, aftercare, entails weekly group sessions and lasts three months. Phase VII, follow-up, lasts 18 months. Here, patients are evaluated monthly. Quarterly retreats for reflection and growth are also scheduled. -Catalogs and sample applica tion materials. PRE LAW EDUCATION Curricular Choices Many students ask about suggestions for planning a pre law educational program. At Morehouse, there is no formal pre-law major, and a pre-law student, quite simply, isone who defines himself as such. Although you may have the intention of going on to law school imemdiately upon graduation, many students do not reach a decision to apply to law school until several years after graduation. Law Schools do not prefer students with any specific major. Beyond a disciplined study of western civilization, most schools recommend that students study and perfect their skills in English composition and communication. Words are the tools of the lawyer, and the student who can express himself with confidence and clarity will be at an advantage. Beginning with Morehouse’s freshman composition course, students should concentrate on develop ing their writing skills to the utmost. The importance of good verbal skills cannot be overestimated. In conversations with the Pre-Law Director, Morehouse students now in law schools have emphasized the development of writing as the number-one priority for pre-law students. Most law schools suggest exposure to other disciplines which might be useful in the practice or study of law. Of increasing importance is an understanding of basic economic principles. Other dis ciplines include statistics, com puter science, and accounting. In addition, if you are planning to practice law in a bilingual or ethnic community, you may want to do some university-level study of the culture and language of the community in which you hope to work. It is strongly suggested that early on in your Morehouse Psi Chi Comes To By Johnny Crawford Associate Editor The first day of November not only marked the first day of the month, but also the first day of the new chapter of Psi Chi National Honor Society on the campus of Morehouse College. Psi Chi is the name of the prestigious psycology honor society that is present on many of the big universities throughout the United States. This organiza tion represents psychology ma jors and students interested in studying psychology. "This accomplishment was welcomed, said Kimblin Nesmith, a psychology major at Morehouse. career you read the introductory chapters of the AALS/LSAC Prelaw Handbook. These chapters provide a very helpful discussion of undergraduate curricular options. In anticipa tion of the great deal of time they will spend doing legal research, pre-law students might also consider enrolling in a basic course on library resources and resources methods. In addition, pre-law students are advised to take classes in effective study skills and reading skills, as well as a course in critical and analytical reading and writing. The mastery of these techniques and ap proaches can be applied at the undergraduate level as well as in professional schools. Most law schools actively discourage students from taking too many law classes as un dergraduates. Law is based upon sets of fundamental principles which are reflected in such basic fields as contracts, torts, criminal law, constitutional law, property, and civil procedure. These courses are almost universally taught in the first year of law school. Most law students do not understand what law is all about until they get well into the study of these subjects. Other subjects in law school are often based upon varied combinations and applications of those basic prin ciples learned in the first year. The undergraduate student tak ing a variety of law courses cannot hope to achieve such an ordered understanding of the legal fundamentals. Upon enter ing law school, students who have taken such courses may mistakenly believe that they are simply relearning what they already know. In addition, those students will have less of the general liberal arts background which would serve them well in law school. These reasons, coupled with the fact that un necessary duplication of courses costs you time and money, indicate that you should be careful not to overdo the taking of law courses as an un- (Continued on Page 15) Chapter Morehouse The qualifications for becom ing a member of Psi Chi National Honor Society includes the following criteria. The student must have a 3.0 average in the area of psychology. The student also must have accumulated at least eight hours in the area of psychology, and must be atten ding an accredited institution. Morehouse’s Psi Chi officers are; Clyde Watkings, Jr., presi dent; Todd Stokes, vice- president; Ralph Smith, treasurer and secretary. Other members include Kimblin Eu gene Nesmith, President of the Morehouse Psychology Associa tion, Dwayne Reed, Adam Smith, Geary Smith and Michael Kim ble.