Editor’s note: The following message was shared by incoming interim dean Kristen E. Murray with the Temple Law community.

I am honored and excited to serve as interim dean at Temple University Beasley School of Law. Temple Law is a special place in which an extraordinary community of faculty, staff, and students work together to serve our city and shape the future of our profession. Grounded in our historic mission of access to excellence, we deliver a world-class legal education that integrates a rigorous doctrinal curriculum with powerful skill-building and experiential opportunities, professional development and mentorship, and the principles of ethical leadership. I am grateful to President John Fry for the opportunity to lead the law school through this transition, and grateful to Dean Rachel Rebouché for her transformational leadership, vision, and service.

Among Dean Rebouché’s marks on our institutional identity has been the development of three strategic priorities – student success, elevated reputation and impact, and sustaining a diverse, inclusive community – which have guided our growth as an institution. As we navigate this transition, we will continue to look to them as compass points to chart our way. I am deeply proud of the work we have done to advance each priority and confident that we will build on our successes so far.

As we commence the new academic year, I see those successes reflected in our entering class, whose exceptional academic caliber and diversity of backgrounds, experiences, and ambitions hold tremendous promise and potential. I see them in my faculty colleagues, whose scholarship and service shape our laws, uplift our democracy, and improve lives in the neighborhoods around us. And I see them in our recent graduates, who continue to set new benchmarks in bar passage and employment outcomes as they chart their own paths to success.

I am mindful that this transition comes at an inflection point in our national journey. Temple Law’s mission of access to excellence has never been more necessary, and we are committed to preparing the next generation of lawyers to serve as advocates for justice, innovative and ethical leaders, and defenders of the rule of law. I am grateful to all – faculty, staff, students, alumni, and friends – who support our mission and carry our work forward. Temple Law truly is a special place, made more so by each of you.

Warmly,

Kristen E. Murray

Interim Kean Family Dean and Professor of Law