Commencement Ceremony Held to Honor the Class of 2013
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Commencement Ceremony Held to Honor the Class of 2013
May 30, 2013Touro Law Center’s 2013 Commencement ceremony was held on Sunday, May 26, 2013 at The New York City Center and honored 238 new graduates of Touro Law including 228 JDs (including 1 Dual Degree JD/MBA and 1 Dual Degree JD/MPA), 8 LLMs in US Legal Studies, and 2 LL.M. candidates.
The ceremony included an address from Commencement Speaker the Honorable Victoria Graffeo, Associate Judge of the New York Court of Appeals who received an honorary degree along with Allen I. Fagin, Partner at Proskauer Rose. Graduates also heard from Valedictorians Tiffany Frigenti and Pepito Santos as well as The Ronni D. Cohen Class Orator Anthony Luckie.
Addressing students, Dean Salkin said, ”I can speak for the Touro Law faculty, staff and alumni in saying we are all very proud of you and are honored to welcome you to the profession. We expect that the world will be a better place because of how each of you chooses to use the skills and credentials you have acquired.”
Victoria A. Graffeo, Associate Judge of the Court of Appeals had this advice for Touro Law students, “Let the sense of accomplishment sink in as you prepare to join a wonderful profession with unlimited opportunity for improving the lives of others and ensuring we all have adequate rights.” She continued, “You can be proud that you have attended a high quality law center that strives to produce confident attorneys who respect the rule of law and have a firm understanding of the need to provide equal access to justice to all members of our society. We expect great things from you and I know you will deliver.”
Allen Fagin was awarded an honorary degree from Touro Law for his service to the profession and commitment and dedication to the law school and his leadership as Chair of the Dean Search Committee. Mr. Fagin is Senior Partner at Proskauer Rose LLP in New York. He served as Chairman of the firm from 2005-2011, and is a former co-Chair of the Labor & Employment Law Department. He has represented clients in such diverse fields as telecommunications, transportation, health care, insurance, legal services, utilities, financial services, entertainment and manufacturing.
At the ceremony, three awards were given to faculty members for their contributions to Touro Law: the Paul Marks Award for Public Service was awarded to Professor Eileen Kaufman; The Milton Handler Award for Excellence in Scholarship was awarded to Professor Jeffrey Morris; and the Inaugural Excellence in Teaching Award was presented to Professor Rena Seplowitz. In addition, the Outstanding Adjunct Professor of the Year award was presented to the Honorable Cheryl Joseph-Cherry and The Honorable Mark Cohen was presented with the Devoted Service to the Ideals and Purpose of Legal Education award.
Class speaker Anthony Luckie told his classmates, “We are all receiving today, a document, that combined with our wild optimism, is going to be the most powerful weapon in the world.” He continued, “From this day forward, you have a tool that has the capability to change lives, and we can use it every single day. Now it’s up to us what direction we want to move in, so…let’s set the world on fire.”
The ceremony included an address from Commencement Speaker the Honorable Victoria Graffeo, Associate Judge of the New York Court of Appeals who received an honorary degree along with Allen I. Fagin, Partner at Proskauer Rose. Graduates also heard from Valedictorians Tiffany Frigenti and Pepito Santos as well as The Ronni D. Cohen Class Orator Anthony Luckie.
Addressing students, Dean Salkin said, ”I can speak for the Touro Law faculty, staff and alumni in saying we are all very proud of you and are honored to welcome you to the profession. We expect that the world will be a better place because of how each of you chooses to use the skills and credentials you have acquired.”
Victoria A. Graffeo, Associate Judge of the Court of Appeals had this advice for Touro Law students, “Let the sense of accomplishment sink in as you prepare to join a wonderful profession with unlimited opportunity for improving the lives of others and ensuring we all have adequate rights.” She continued, “You can be proud that you have attended a high quality law center that strives to produce confident attorneys who respect the rule of law and have a firm understanding of the need to provide equal access to justice to all members of our society. We expect great things from you and I know you will deliver.”
Allen Fagin was awarded an honorary degree from Touro Law for his service to the profession and commitment and dedication to the law school and his leadership as Chair of the Dean Search Committee. Mr. Fagin is Senior Partner at Proskauer Rose LLP in New York. He served as Chairman of the firm from 2005-2011, and is a former co-Chair of the Labor & Employment Law Department. He has represented clients in such diverse fields as telecommunications, transportation, health care, insurance, legal services, utilities, financial services, entertainment and manufacturing.
At the ceremony, three awards were given to faculty members for their contributions to Touro Law: the Paul Marks Award for Public Service was awarded to Professor Eileen Kaufman; The Milton Handler Award for Excellence in Scholarship was awarded to Professor Jeffrey Morris; and the Inaugural Excellence in Teaching Award was presented to Professor Rena Seplowitz. In addition, the Outstanding Adjunct Professor of the Year award was presented to the Honorable Cheryl Joseph-Cherry and The Honorable Mark Cohen was presented with the Devoted Service to the Ideals and Purpose of Legal Education award.
Class speaker Anthony Luckie told his classmates, “We are all receiving today, a document, that combined with our wild optimism, is going to be the most powerful weapon in the world.” He continued, “From this day forward, you have a tool that has the capability to change lives, and we can use it every single day. Now it’s up to us what direction we want to move in, so…let’s set the world on fire.”
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Touro College Jacob D. Fuchsberg Law Center’s 185,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art facility is located adjacent to both a state and a federal courthouse in Central Islip, New York. Touro Law’s proximity to the courthouses, coupled with programming developed to integrate the courtroom into the classroom, provide a one-of-a kind learning model for law students, combining a rigorous curriculum taught by expert faculty with a practical courtroom experience. Touro Law, which has a student body of approximately 750 and an alumni base of more than 5,000, offers full- and part-time J.D. programs, several dual degree programs and graduate law programs for US and foreign law graduates. Touro Law Center is part of the Touro College system.
About the Touro College and University System
Touro is a system of non-profit institutions of higher and professional education. Touro College was chartered in 1970 primarily to enrich the Jewish heritage, and to serve the larger American and global community. Approximately 19,000 students are currently enrolled in its various schools and divisions. Touro College has branch campuses, locations and instructional sites in the New York area, as well as branch campuses and programs in Berlin, Jerusalem, Moscow, Paris and Florida. New York Medical College, Touro University California and its Nevada branch campus, as well as Touro University Worldwide and its Touro College Los Angeles division are separately accredited institutions within the Touro College and University System. For further information on Touro College, please go to: http://www.touro.edu/media/.
Patti Desrochers
Director of Communications
pattid@tourolaw.edu
(631) 761-7062