Why I like Santa Clara University

The U.S. Navy JAG would like to invite our students to join them for an information session at noon on Friday, September 25th in Bannan 135. If you are planning on attending, please bring your own lunch.

Despite the fact, that a number of our students and alumni have valued their JAG experience, this opportunity is not available to all of our students or graduates—students and graduates who would also like to serve in the US Armed Forces. The members of our lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community have been precluded from considering JAG service as a career option because of the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell policy.” Santa Clara Law values the diversity of its student body and does not support employers who openly discriminate against any of its students or graduates.

Because the military’s recruitment policy violates the Santa Clara Law’s anti-discrimination policy, we would normally not provide the military any access to our students. However, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously held in Fair v. Rumsfeld that law schools are obligated to allow military recruiters on their campuses in the same manner as any other employer or risk losing federal funding--including money allocated to federal Stafford loans. Although the military's policy banning openly gay and lesbian individuals from serving the Armed Forces is a clear violation of Santa Clara Law's anti-discrimination policy, the School of Law has determined that it has no choice but to allow military recruiters to participate in our fall recruitment program and to offer information sessions.

During the fall recruitment period, some employers have requested the opportunity to hold special one hour information sessions designed to encourage students to apply to their organization. For instance, such a program was held on Tuesday, September 15 at the request of HUD to inform and recruit students for their Legal Honors Program.

Representatives from the Navy JAG have requested that the Law Career Services Office provide them with the opportunity to hold a lunch hour information session and to promote this session to our students as the office has for other employers. No other employer who would choose to discriminate against members of our student body would be granted the right to engage in on-campus recruiting in any form. That we are required to permit such requests should be of great concern to every member of our law school community. The Law School does not support the military's policy against the gay and lesbian community and is only providing this forum because it is obligated to do so under the Solomon Amendment.

Santa Clara Law makes attempts to ameliorate military recruitment through a variety of methods. Law Career Services has organized or is looking forward to co-sponsoring events which are designed to address diversity in the legal community, including events targeted specifically to the LGBT community. Please watch your e-mail for further announcements.

I regret that we must open our doors to employers who would refuse to hire any one of our students on the basis of sexual orientation alone and look forward to the day when the armed forces are open to all those who wish to serve.