Participant Mentor, Culp Colloquium

The Culp Colloquium is a scholarship workshop for untenured minority faculty members from law schools around the country. Harvard Law faculty, joined by scholars from around the country, review and provide constructive feedback on participants’ papers, research agendas, overall quality of scholarship, and presentation. Alongside Harvard Law faculty, the participants then serve as mentors in the Emerging Scholars Program, which takes place over the next two days. Minority entry-level candidates, as well as those who recently secured academic jobs to start the following fall, receive advice and feedback on interviewing and other skills, how to balance research and teaching responsibilities, and other tools for success on the academic market and in academia generally. In addition to the substantive and practical value of sessions such as mock interviews and job talks, participants benefit from the relationships they form with Harvard Law faculty and other scholars of color. Moreover, the sustained nature of the program – entry-level candidates return the following year, after securing jobs, and then again to participate in the Culp Colloquium – increases the probability that participants will achieve long-term career success.