ABOUT LSSSE
As part of the Indiana University Center for Postsecondary Research, LSSSE has been a provider of research products and services centered on the study of the law student experience since 2004. Through our consulting services, we help law schools maximize the usefulness of their survey data and their assessment activities. Through our research functions, we are a source of macro-level, empirical information about the law student experience.
Since 2004, 203 law schools in the U.S. (184), Canada (17), and Australia (2) have administered the LSSSE Survey, eliciting over 380,000 student responses—the largest such dataset in existence.
LSSSE adheres to the following core values:
- Rigor in research practices
- Responsiveness in meeting the needs of law schools and clients
- Diligence in voicing the student perspective
- Vigilance in remaining abreast of salient trends in legal education
- Openness in fostering strategic partnerships
- Dedication in working for the betterment of legal education
DIRECTOR’S MESSAGE
Students are the heart of legal education. Whether we seek to improve teaching and learning, incorporate skills-based training, or develop assessment measures, we must begin with students. Too often, however, the student perspective is missing from discussions of the future of legal education. Law school reform efforts, premised on benefiting students, are rarely made with a holistic understanding of the student experience. Broadening this understanding is one of the primary goals of LSSSE.
LSSSE provides valid and reliable insights about legal education, from the viewpoint of students. Decades of data have shown that increasing student engagement in learning improves both their educational and professional outcomes. We specifically examine student perceptions of the effects and impacts of their law school experiences.
Our flagship service is the LSSSE Survey. Since 2004, over 350,000 students from 200 law schools in the U.S., Canada, and Australia have responded to the Survey, contributing to the largest dataset of its kind. The LSSSE Survey represents a wealth of valuable insights, with a focus on teaching, learning, and interactive methods linked to student performance.
For law schools, LSSSE provides an array of assessment tools. Through the LSSSE Survey, schools acquire critical information about the experiences of their students, including comparative analyses with peer schools. Our consulting services help law schools maximize the tangible usefulness of Survey results.
All of this is premised on bringing student voices to the fore. The past few years have yielded significant soul searching and reflection within legal education. Schools have been forced to consider their future in the context of new realities. Central to this process has been the consideration of how legal education can better serve students and prepare them for future practice.
At LSSSE, we remain committed to helping law schools understand their students and the effects of institutional programming on learning and practice-readiness. We are also dedicated to amplifying the student voice. As legal education moves into the future, compelling data from the student perspective must help inform the path forward.
Sincerely,
-Meera E. Deo, J.D., Ph.D.
MEET THE TEAM
Our Director
Meera E. Deo is Director of LSSSE and The Honorable Vaino Spencer Professor of Law at Southwestern Law School. She was previously the Neukom Chair in Diversity and Law at the American Bar Foundation. Her research merges jurisprudence with empirical methods to interrogate institutional diversity, affirmative action, and racial representation. Professor Deo’s book, Unequal Profession: Race and Gender in Legal Academia, examines how the intersection of raceXgender affects faculty experiences. She has received support from the National Science Foundation, Paul & Daisy Soros, AccessLex, and Wolters Kluwer. She is a member of the American Law Institute.
Contact Meera via email: mdeo@swlaw.edu
Our Project Manager
Chad Christensen is LSSSE’s Project Manager. In this role, he leads daily operations and works closely with law schools to encourage exploration and use of LSSSE results. Prior to joining LSSSE, Chad devoted more than a decade to student affairs working as a strategic manager for graduate and professional degree programs. During that time he focused on enrollment management, professional student engagement and success, and organizational strategy. Chad earned a Ph.D. in Higher Education and Student Affairs from Indiana University and a M.A. in English from the University of North Florida.
Contact Chad via email: chachris@indiana.edu
Our Research Analyst
Jacquelyn Petzold is the LSSSE Research Analyst. In this role, she creates reports for law schools, analyzes and publishes insights using LSSSE data, and works with outside partners who use LSSSE survey results for research purposes. She is passionate about providing law schools with useful, actionable data to increase equity and reduce barriers in order to allow law students to reach their full potential. Jacquelyn earned a master of library science and a Ph.D. in biology, both from Indiana University.
Contact Jak via email: jpetzold@indiana.edu
Contact Us
Phone: 812.856.5823
Email: lssse@indiana.edu
Advisory Board
Bryant Garth (Chair)
Interim Director, American Bar Foundation
Co-Director, Center for Empirical Research on the Legal Profession
University of California, Irvine School of Law
Richard A. Matasar
President
RAM Higher Education Consulting Group
Ajay K. Mehrotra
Professor of Law & History
Northwestern University, Pritzker School of Law
Rachel F. Moran
Distinguished and Chancellor’s Professor of Law
University of California, Irvine School of Law
Camille A. Nelson
Dean and Professor of Law
University of Hawai’i at Manoa, William S. Richardson School of Law
Lauren Robel
Val Nolan Professor Emerita
Indiana University, Bloomington
Kellye Y. Testy
President and CEO
Law School Admission Council