An aerial view of the lower quad. (Photo by Mike Ekern '02)

St. Thomas Issues Statements on Rescinding of ICE Guidelines

The Newsroom
For Faculty/Staff, For Students, Front Page, News, Notices, Our Community, President's Office, St. Thomas Responds
St. Thomas President Julie Sullivan released the following statement in response to Tuesday’s news that the U.S. government has agreed to rescind Department of Homeland Security and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) rules, which would have barred international students from remaining in the U.S. if their colleges and universities were forced to move classes completely online due to COVID-19.
George Floyd Art on University Avenue

St. Thomas Documents George Floyd and Anti-Racist Street Art from Across the Globe

Amy Carlson Gustafson
Academic News, Anti-Racism Efforts, Art History, College of Arts and Sciences, Homepage, News, Our Community, Research, Top News
The Urban Art Mapping Research Project operates a George Floyd and Anti-Racist Street Art database, which documents examples of street art from around the world that have emerged since Floyd’s killing as part of an ongoing movement demanding social justice and equality.

Dr. Yohuru Williams to Become the Founding Director of the New Racial Justice Initiative at St. Thomas

President Julie Sullivan and Provost Richard Plumb
Academic News, Anti-Racism Efforts, College of Arts and Sciences, Faculty, History, News, Our Community, President's Office, School of Law, School of Law News Feed, Top News
Today, we announce a new effort aimed at driving meaningful change in our community: the formation of the Racial Justice Initiative at the University of St. Thomas.

The Hard Work Ahead

President Julie Sullivan
Anti-Racism Efforts, News, Our Community, President's Office, Top News
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Our community and our nation are experiencing immense distress and pain over all that surrounds the murder of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis policemen. George Floyd – one more black man in generations of black people who have been victims of systemic and relentless racism. And while this time it is under our noses in the Twin Cities, it’s rampant and persistent across our nation, and yet again we resoundingly say, “Enough is enough!” How many times can we say this? Have we lost our credibility? Where is our humanity?
Archbishop Ireland Justice Fellow Jessica Melheim ’15, left, and Emily Ginsburg ’18, right, pose for a portrait with Central Minnesota Legal Services Executive Director Jean Lastine, middle.

School of Law Archbishop Ireland Justice Fellows Help Bridge the Justice Gap

Jordan Osterman '11
2020 Spring, Academic News, School of Law, School of Law News Feed, St. Thomas Lawyer
Hiring a lawyer is out of reach for more than 60 million Americans. Measured against any disease, environmental crisis or national emergency, the justice gap is an epidemic, according to Lisa Montpetit Brabbit, associate dean for external relations and programs at the University of St. Thomas School of Law. That’s why the School of Law is working hard to find ways to close the gap.
Dean Robert Vischer speaks during the University of St. Thomas School of Law Living the Mission Law Mission Award Ceremony in Schulze Atrium in the School of Law Building on April 11, 2017 in Minneapolis.

Our Mission at St. Thomas Law Compels Us to Tackle the Justice Gap

Dean and Mengler Chair in Law Robert Vischer
2020 Spring, Front Page, News, School of Law, School of Law News Feed, St. Thomas Lawyer
As a Catholic law school, what is our responsibility? Pope Francis has urged all of us to recognize our “duty to hear the voice of the poor.” As lawyers, we not only have the duty to hear the poor, we have the power to lift the voices of the poor, to ensure that they are heard by the legal system’s decision-makers.
The lower quad is seen against a purple and blue sky at sunset September 29, 2016. O'Shaughnessy-Frey Library is at left and the Harpole fountain is in the foreground.

Stay Home, Be Safe and Stand Together in Honoring the Memory of George Floyd

President Julie Sullivan
Anti-Racism Efforts, Front Page, News, Notices, Our Community, President's Office
George Floyd – a father and family member, a colleague and friend to many – should be alive today. We must encourage and protect the rights of all to grieve, unite in peaceful protests and publicly demand justice for his tragic death. However, we also must condemn damaging personal property, arson and looting in our commercial districts and neighborhoods.

Update on George Floyd Case Response and Curfew Information

President Julie Sullivan
Anti-Racism Efforts, Front Page, News, Notices, Our Community, President's Office
As we head into the weekend, we want each of you to know that our community is here for you as we collectively reel from and grieve the tragic death of George Floyd. Violence against black communities lives in our history, and racial injustices perpetuate today. This behavior is unacceptable and leaves us concerned for the emotional and physical well-being of our students, staff and faculty.
A prison yard.

School of Law Helps Develop, Support Minnesota Prisoners Medical Release Program

Jordan Osterman '11
Academic News, Common Good, COVID-19 Response, Current Students, News, Our Community, School of Law, School of Law Current Students, School of Law News Feed, St. Thomas Responds, Top News
On March 27, School of Law Professor Mark Osler wrote an editorial column in the Star Tribune calling on local, state and federal officials to “take action now if we are to avoid catastrophic illness and death in those [prison and jail] facilities as COVID-19 inexorably advances." The state listened.
A view of barbed wire in front of a prison

Tommie Experts: School of Law’s Mark Osler on Clemency and Prison Populations Amidst COVID-19

Jordan Osterman '11
Academic News, Changemaking for the Common Good, COVID-19 Response, News, School of Law, School of Law Current Students, School of Law News Feed, St. Thomas Responds, Tommie Experts, Top News
As COVID-19's potential impact on the country's prison system continues to be explored nationally and in Minnesota, the Newsroom spoke with School of Law professor and clemency expert Mark Osler.