Every semester around exam time we all get a little messy. We also sometimes neglect to extend to our fellow students the common courtesies that society recognizes as reasonable. As a little pre-exam reminder, I’ve put together some things that I hope we can all keep in mind while we cram for exams.

Library. This is an area of the law school where tensions are probably highest. Please do your best to accommodate your fellow law students. Along those lines, please do not leave your belongings on tables when you are going to be gone more than an hour. This includes leaving your stuff in the library overnight—just don’t do it. You shouldn’t have any problem finding a place to study when you get back in the morning, but even if you do, WB152 has been reserved for law student use during the entire exam period. Additionally, there are power and extension cords available at the circulation desk that should allow you to work at tables that don’t have electrical outlets nearby. Finally, if you have problems with undergrads or other non-law students in the library, please bring it to the attention of the librarians rather than approaching them yourselves. While we may encourage vigilante justice in other situations, confronting people in the library should be done by seasoned professionals.

Scott Commons. Leading up to and during exams, students tend to treat this area of the Law School with less and less respect. They leave food and trash all over the place assuming somebody else will clean up after them. Let’s try to do a better job of cleaning up after ourselves this year so that everybody can enjoy this area at all times.

Bathrooms. I’m assuming all of us have been potty trained. However, this may be a big assumption considering the state of some of the bathrooms during finals. Please flush the toilets—twice, three times, whatever it takes. It’s simple, easy, and eliminates odor.

Parking. Remember that parking restrictions remain in place throughout the exam period. You will not be able to get out of tickets for parking in D3 because there were no spots in the Blue lot. Overflow parking is available at U-Hall (with bus service to the law school) and other places around campus. For your reference, there is a map outside the SBA office showing additional lots in which Blue permit holders may park. Additionally, as the e-mail sent by Dean Ballenger on Wednesday said, there will be an event at the Park from 12pm to 4pm on Wednesday, April 30, that will take up some blue parking spots, so be sure to plan accordingly.

Outlines. This isn’t a common courtesy issue, but I wanted to let everybody know that the SBA Outline Bank is now bigger, faster, and stronger. Check it out at the E-Services link on the SBA website (www.virginiasba.com) or use this direct link: http://www.virginiasba.com/Eservices_ol.aspx. In addition to downloading outlines to help you prepare for finals, please upload your outlines after finals are over so future law students can have the aid of your wisdom.

If you have any additional complaints/suggestions/questions during finals, feel free to e-mail me (quillian@virginia.edu) or stop by the SBA office (196e). I spend a lot of time in that office.

Lastly, SBA wants to help you all stay connected over the summer. If you have yet to fill out an employment survey, you can find it in the Career Services section of LawWeb. We are using these results to compile lists of who will be in each city. Over the summer, the SBA Student-Alumni Relations Committee will be planning UVA-related events in cities all over the country. If you have any questions about these events or want to plan one in your city, please get in touch with the committee’s co-chairs, Minoo Sobhani (mms9w@virginia.edu) and Corey Neal (cnn4m@virginia.edu).

That’s all I’ve got. Good luck on exams and have a great summer everybody.

Go ahead, admit it. You’ve probably never heard of the SBA Academic Concerns Committee. It’s okay; you won’t hurt our feelings. So allow us to introduce ourselves in an unavoidably cheesy Law Weekly column.

So what does this Academic Concerns Committee do, you ask? In broad terms, the committee exists to connect students with the faculty and administrators who make the many policies and decisions that affect our academic environment. But what does that really mean? In short, our job is to find out what the student body feels about current policies and rules—what you like, what you want changed, what you feel is unfair or inefficient or could be done better—and communicate your concerns, suggestions, ideas, and opinions to the decision-makers. The law school exists to serve the students—you are its primary and most important constituents—so ensuring that the faculty and administration are aware of (and give due weight to) student opinion is key in making the UVA Law academic experience as close to perfect as it can be.

To give students more opportunities to voice concerns, opinions, and suggestions, as well as ask questions about existing policies, this year we began holding a Town Hall Meeting every semester, open to the whole student body. Our most recent meeting was this past week. These events have been well attended and have provided a forum for lively discussion on such issues as the new course schedule; grading policies for clinics, Trial Advocacy, and seminars; course evaluations; study abroad; and much more. We thank everyone who came and shared their thoughts.

The SBA student survey distributed each year is another opportunity for students to share their concerns and voice opinions, as it asks several questions about academic issues.

But perhaps most importantly, we, the committee’s co-chairs, are always available to listen to whatever concerns students wish to discuss. Students should feel free to email either of us with questions, concerns, ideas, suggestions, opinions, or even just to vent. Seriously—it’s what we’re here for.

So, once we figure out how students feel, how do we communicate your opinions to the faculty and administration? The co-chairs of the committee sit as student members on the Faculty Curriculum Committee. The FCC meets about once a semester to discuss and shape academic policies at the law school. As student members, we’re there to represent the student body as many decisions are made that impact us perhaps more than anyone else in the Law School community. Based on the information we gather from the town halls, the SBA survey, and informal conversations with students, we also submit a memo each semester to the Dean, faculty, and administration detailing and explaining student opinions on academic issues. But to be effective advocates for and representatives of the student body, we need to be informed about how you truly feel! That’s why it’s so important to send your opinions, ideas, complaints, and concerns our way.

If you’re still reading at this point, I’d say you’re a prime contender for membership on this committee. Which brings me to our concluding (and shameless) plug: email us if you’re interested in becoming a member!

And again, please don’t hesitate to email us with any questions, concerns, issues, suggestions, complaints, or ideas. If it’s important to you, it’s important to us.

Co-Chairs Rebecca Vallas and Adam Whitehouse love spam. Email them at rvallas@virginia.edu and adamwhitehouse@virginia.edu.

As a part of this effort, on Tuesday, ten law students met with Angela Richie, the marketing manager at James Madison University. The law students who volunteered to participate in the focus group represented an array of perspectives from student organization leaders to members of the SBA and students who had expressed their concern about our cafeteria. Although this meeting was part of a University-wide research program, Liz Thompson, the marketing manager for University Dining Services, indicated that Dining Services is interested in making changes for next year.

The meeting lasted for approximately 45 minutes and ran the gamut of food-related topics. Ms. Richie asked the students what they currently did for breakfast, lunch, afternoon snacks, dinner, late-night snacks, and weekend dining. Related to those topics, she asked about the students’ expected costs, menu, style of service, time of service, and what restaurant or food service provider the students would like the University’s cafeteria to emulate. Students had varied responses to particular questions, but several common concerns emerged.

In terms of breakfast options, students generally wanted hot breakfast—and specifically tater tots—back. Administrators have resisted this, mostly because of cost concerns, but students countered that Dining Services should not track their sales of breakfast items and adjust their production accordingly. One potential obstacle could be the high overhead cost of providing the hot breakfast at all. Nevertheless, this was unanimously a high priority for students.

Students also wanted the hours that coffee is available to be extended. Specific concerns related to the fact that coffee service does not start until 8 am and there is always a rush at that time. Students can either get coffee or be on time to their 8:15 a.m. and 8:30 a.m. classes, never both. One solution proposed by students to speed the morning rush was to have two separate lines—one for regular coffee and one for “fancy drinks.”

Students also said that 2 p.m. was too early to end coffee service and many students either went to Barracks Road or to MyLab to get coffee in the afternoon. The consensus among students was to have coffee available at the cafeteria from 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. rather than from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.

The most intense discussion surrounded lunch, probably because that is the meal that most students eat at the Law School. The primary concern surrounded the hours that lunch is available. With the new schedule implemented last semester, many students have class from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, and therefore cannot get lunch without going elsewhere. This problem is exacerbated when Dining Services decides to close the cafeteria early, which was a common occurrence according to the students.

Many students suggested that this could be remedied by simply shifting the hours of availability by fifteen minutes so that the cafeteria would be open from 11:15 a.m. to 2:15 p.m. Students also expressed a desire for healthier options (other than sandwiches) at lunch. Specifically, most students felt that the hot food options contained too much butter, oil, or both. (One student did not see this as a negative.) A salad bar was proposed as a remedy—even if students have to share it with the faculty to reduce costs. A salad bar, students said, would also address the desire for more vegetarian options.

The price of lunch was an issue raised by every student who attended the focus group. The most common concern related to price can be summarized by a comment made by one student, who stated, “We’re getting gouged. I think we’re all willing to pay extra for convenience, but the cafeteria is not providing us with convenience—the hours are terrible.” Students expected to spend about $5 for lunch, but a sandwich, chips, and a drink at the cafeteria cost somewhere between $8 and $10.

Finally, all of the students wanted to thank the cafeteria staff for the great job that they do and the manner in which they conduct themselves. The students recognized that they are not always in the best mood when they’re in the cafeteria, but the folks who work there are always happy and friendly. Even though we may not always show it, we are very appreciative of the job they do.

The SBA will continue to work with the administration to improve the dining services provided to students. If you would like any more information about how the focus group was conducted, what issues were raised, or if you have any concerns that you do not think were addressed, please feel free to e-mail me at quillian@virginia.edu.

After the SBA elections that were held last month, one position remained open—the Law School’s representative to the ABA. I know you have been holding your breath in anticipation, but you can relax because the day of the announcement is finally here. Your new ABA Rep is Dan Rosenthal. Last week, Steph Fier (your courageous Vice President) and I conducted interviews of several qualified candidates, and Dan really stood out as the applicant with the best ideas and clearest vision for the position. As your ABA Reps, Dan and Linda Otaigbe are not only voting members of the SBA and UVA’s liaisons to the ABA, but they are also in charge of keeping our student organizations apprised of upcoming ABA award opportunities. Feel free to get in touch with them if you think your organization is eligible for an ABA award.

Steph and I also interviewed a fantastic group of applicants for committee chair positions. Without further delay, your new committee chairs are: Academic Concerns: Becca Vallas (returning) & Adam Whitehouse; Admissions: Lance Brimhall & T.J. Parnham; Barristers: Jackie Choi, Aaron Friedman, & Erin Thompson; Career Services: Warren Allen & Casey Fitzmaurice; Diversity: Aaron Friedman & Crystal Shin; Fundraising: Patrick Mott & Kristen Poole; Graduation: Jackie Choi & Mia Morgan; Programming: Chad Logan & Miles Sasser; Public Service: Casey Fitzmaurice & Clare Wuerker; Staff Appreciation: Lindsey Bartlett & Liz Lim; Student-Alumni Relations: Corey Neal & Minoo Sobhani; Student-Faculty Relations: Eitan Goldstein & Emily Honig; Yearbook: Jackie Choi.

Steph and I are really excited to work with every single one of the committee chairs, each of whom has great and innovative ideas for their respective committees.

Over the course of the last week we also had the first Admitted Students Open House of the year, for which there was a turnout of over 160 admits. The high numbers were probably due to the musical stylings of DJ Andy George and the delicious Hank’s BBQ, and not because we started paying people to attend. Admitted students were able to socialize with current students both at the BBQ Thursday evening and later during The Restatements’ tremendous performance at Wild Wing Cafe. Friday was a mix of academia and introduction to student organizations. Overall, the admitted students appeared to have a good time. I heard one admitted student remark, “This is a very collegial place and the law school newspaper is in no way offensive . . . I think I’ll come here.”

Convincing 160 admits to accept their offers is no easy feat, but the unstoppable 1L tagteam of Jen Long and Lance Brimhall organized and executed the event to perfection. Also thanks to the 70-plus current students who volunteered last weekend. There is another open house a week from today. If you would like to get involved, send me an e-mail.

Last weekend was also Race Judicata, for which over 70 people woke up five hours before I did to support ABLE by running over three miles. The event raised over $1,000, but it wasn’t all about altruism—every runner came away with a T-shirt and a prize donated by a local business. As an anonymous 1L was overheard saying, “Between the T-shirt and the gift certificate, I feel like I won, even though I finished dead last.” The actual winner of the race was second-year Mike Dolan, while third-year Will Bushman took the over-30 division in a photo finish. Casey Fitzmaurice, Christy Weisner, Pamela McElroy, and the other volunteers deserve all of the credit for the sensation that was Race Judicata. Thank you all for your tremendous effort this weekend.

In the week ahead, keep an eye out for the next Admitted Students Open House (next Thursday and Friday, March 27-28), the finals of the Lile Moot Court Competition (next Saturday, March 29), and UVA’s inevitable victory in the prestigious College Basketball Invitational.