Students from afar like life in the States

When Sameep Vijayvergiya set foot in Philadelphia from India to study at the Beasley School of Law, he did what any practical person would do: began looking for a place to live. Vijayvergiya was thrilled to be in the United States. At Temple, he would finally be able to expand his horizons and hone his skills as a lawyer.

Before attending Temple, his friend warned him about crime in North Philadelphia.

“I was like, ‘what?’” Vijayvergiya said. “I actually land in a city in the U.S. and that city has the highest crime rate? Cool.”

Vijayvergiya now lives near Main Campus and said he thinks there is little to be worried about.
Philadelphia living has been a culture shock for many international students.

Second-year graduate student Wenjie Wang, who is from China, said she was surprised when people called her “baby” while she was walking down the streets even though she had no clue who they were.
Sisi Zhang, also from China, was overwhelmed by Philadelphians’ reactions to the Phillies’ winning the World Series.

“The Chinese get excited,” said Zhang, who is a first-year graduate student, “but never like that.”
Both Wang and Zhang said they were fortunate to be able to study in the States, considering Wang is from an area of China where a lot of illegal immigrants flock to the United States, and it is not easy for the Chinese to obtain visas.

It’s also not easy for foreign students to maintain their visas.

Bassem Yousri, a graduate student from Egypt, has been in the United States for two years but may not be able to stay much longer when he graduates from the Tyler School of Art this May, despite his accomplishments in this country.

Yousri left Egypt as a promising artist after he received his undergraduate degree and obtained a nine-month scholarship to study in the United States. The scholarship included six months at Drexel University and a three-month internship in New York for famed fashion designer Diane von Furstenberg.

At the end of his internship, Yousri chose between several arts programs to pursue his graduate degree in painting.

“Tyler School of Art was a priority for me,” Yousri said. “I wanted to stay in Philadelphia, and Tyler was simply the best program.”

Temple has drawn 1,528 international students from 118 countries this year, mostly due to the opportunities the American higher education system has to offer.

“Temple’s psychology program is of great quality,” said junior psychology major Gisella Hilliman, who grew up in St. Martin, a small island in the Caribbean. “[The program] has high standards, and it is challenging.”

Leaving for college is hard enough, but leaving one’s homeland is even more difficult, especially if newcomers are not used to American culture.

“The level of life here is much better, and the middle class here would be rich in Egypt,” said Yousri, who lived in a small apartment, a common living space for working-class families in Egypt.

While the United States has often been viewed as a richer land, there is no doubt that parts of Philadelphia do not match that standard.

The Chinese tend to have the misconception that the United States is rich, Zhang said. After walking a few blocks in Philadelphia, she realized this wasn’t always the case.

Like Philadelphia, there are many rich, but also many impoverished areas in India.

“India is so diverse,” Vijayvergiya said. “Within the same city you can find extremes.”

Coming to a city like Philadelphia wouldn’t be as extreme for a Chinese student from Shanghai since the city is so developed, but the States are not a clone of China, especially when it comes to the food.

Ecstatic at the sight of Chinese restaurants around Temple’s campus, Zhang thought she would still be able to enjoy the appetizing flavors of the food from her homeland. Instead, she tasted just one tang in her mouth: sweetness.

“American Chinese food has so many different names,” Zhang said, laughing. “But they are all the same.”

Ashley Nguyen can be reached at ashley.nguyen@temple.edu.

School of Law gets new dean

The search for a new dean of Temple’s James E. Beasley School of Law ended with President Ann Weaver Hart’s announcement that JoAnne A. Epps, currently associate dean for academic affairs of the law school, has been selected for the position.

“I am thrilled but humbled by this opportunity. Temple Law School is at a wonderful place in its history and it is exciting to be selected to help guide its future,” Epps said.

The former assistant United States attorney will take over July 1 of this year. She said she looks forward to her new position and the possibilities being the new law dean will offer.

“I am excited about continuing the scholarly achievements of our faculty, while at the same time retaining our commitment to outstanding teaching,” Epps said. “I also hope to increase the connections between Temple law school and the Philadelphia community by partnering on issues of mutual interest.”

The current dean, Robert J. Reinstein, will retire June 30, 2008.

Reinstein, the longest-serving dean among American law schools, served over expansive growth in the law school from 1989 to 2008. The law school’s endowment ballooned from $4 million to $57 million, and faculty increased by 20 percent. This fall’s entering class has the highest academic record in the law school’s history, according to the release. Some 4,800 applicants, double the number of applicants in 1989, compete for 300 positions.

In his role as vice president for international programs, Reinstein oversaw tremendous growth at Temple University Japan and further developed Temple Rome into one of the top American study abroad programs.

Reinstein, who joined Temple’s law faculty in 1969, served as a law professor and the university’s general counsel from 1982 to 1969. Prior to Temple, he was a contributing attorney for the NAACP and fought to integrate the Philadelphia Police and Fire departments, and other groups.

“It is humbling to follow Dean Reinstein. He has been an outstanding dean and has truly made the law school into an internationally recognized institution,” Epps said.

Serving as the associate dean for academic affairs at Temple Law since 1989, Epps’ responsibilities included serving as the principal liaison between the dean’s office and faculty, assisting the dean in all faculty and personnel decisions, overseeing student-centered administrative operations and assisting with fundraising efforts.

Epps has also taught since 1985 as a visiting assistant professor, before a promotion to full professor in 1994. She also served as I. Herman Stem Professor of Law – a rotating chaired professorship distinguishing teaching excellence – from 1997 to 2000.

Working as a deputy city attorney from 1976 to 1980 and an assistant U.S. attorney from 1980 to 1985, Epps gained the experience and authority needed to co-author her several articles and books used by law students and lawyers.

Epps is a member of the American Bar Association, the American Law Institute, the National Bar Association – Women Lawyers’ Division and the Barristers’ Association of Philadelphia. She also has bar memberships for California, Washington D.C. and Pennsylvania.

Epps received her bachelor’s degree from Trinity College in Hartford, Conn. in 1973 and earned her law degree from Yale Law School in 1976.

“I think Temple University is a wonderful place to receive an education, and I am delighted to continue to be a part of it,” Epps said.

Sarah Fry can be reached at sarahfry@temple.edu.
Staff Writer Christopher Wink contributed to this report.

New law school dean named: Epps to replace Reinstein

JoAnne A. Epps has been named the next dean of Temple’s Beasley School of Law, effective July 1.

The former associate dean will replace Robert J. Reinstein who will end his 19-year tenure when he steps down on Monday, June 30, hoping to return to teaching, according to a university release.

Epps, who specializes in trial advocacy and criminal procedure, will take over the law school, which boasts 64 faculty members, more than 1,200 students at Main Campus and more than 100 in the university’s law programs in Beijing and Tokyo.

She has been associate dean of academic affairs since 1989, primarily serving as a liason between Reinstein and the law faculty. She joined the law faculty in 1985, rising to full professor in 1994. Between 1980 and 1985, Epps was an assistant U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.

The first job for a 16-year-old Epps was as a cashier at Temple’s bookstore, and her mother was a Temple employee, according to the release.

Epps was the only law professor selected by the American Bar Association to travel to London to train Sudanese lawyers representing victims of the Darfur crisis. She has also taught in Temple’s law programs in Beijing.

Reinstein also served as vice president for international programs, but a replacement for that position has yet to be announced

Reinstein, the longest-serving dean among American law schools, served over expansive growth in the law school from 1989 to 2008. The law school’s endowment ballooned from $4 million to $57 million and faculty increased by 20 percent. This fall’s entering class has the highest academic record in the law school’s history, according to the release. Some 4,800 applicants, double what it was in 1989, compete for 300 roster spots.

In his role as vice president for international programs, Reinstein oversaw tremendous growth at Temple University-Japan and further developed Temple Rome into one of the top American study abroad programs. Reinstein, who joined Temple’s law faculty in 1969, served as a law professor and the university’s general counsel from 1982 to 1969. Prior to Temple, he was a contributing attorney for the NAACP and fought to integrate the Philadelphia Police and Fire departments, and other groups.

Christopher Wink can be reached at cwink@temple.edu

The heaviest course load with ease

 

Rasheedah Phillips found out she was pregnant when she was 14. She had always dreamed of being the first in her family to attend college, but as a single teen mother, the odds of achieving that goal seemed slim.

Many people would have written her off then and there, not believing that she would be able to graduate high school, let alone graduate from Temple with a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice in 2005.

“When I was a junior in high school, I decided I was going to go to college, finish my degree in two years and then go on to law school,” Phillips said. “And I did that, but I did it in three years instead.”

Phillips – now in her third and final year at Beasley School of Law – will graduate this May. Her daughter, Ayonna, is 9 years old.

While many students have trouble juggling the stress of  college life on its own, adding a child to the mix can make the task seem impossible. But extraordinary circumstances sometimes bring out the best in people – and Phillips is no exception.

“I was discouraged for awhile, but I knew I was intelligent and I knew I still had the drive and ambition to go to school,” Phillips said. “A lot of it was me wanting to have stability for my child and that I needed to provide for her, and knowing that I wasn’t going to be able to do that with simply a high school diploma.”

Not only does Phillips balance schoolwork, a part time job and time with Ayonna, she also works as a co-facilitator for a teen parent discussion group in her community. She puts her studies in law and personal experiences to good use in presentations she gives at Philadelphia high schools about teen parents’ legal rights regarding custody, child support, emancipation and child welfare.

“I do a lot of work with teen parents,” she said. “I feel obligated to give back and show other teens that it’s possible to achieve this regardless of the other difficulties and challenges in your life.”

Although her success as a student and a mother comes from within, Phillips knows that others have helped her along the way.

Family Care Solutions, a non-profit organization dedicated to helping low-income families with childcare support in Philadelphia, has had a huge impact on Phillips and other single parents in their quests to earn university degrees.

Sherrill Mosee, founder and president of FCS, said she is amazed on a daily basis by the determination and perseverance of these single parents – regardless of their circumstances or their pasts they still have the will to better themselves and their families.

“Shame on us when we complain,” she said. “Some of these girls have two or three kids, but they understand and value the importance of a college education.”

Mosee is writing a book compiled of stories of young single moms around the country who have successfully balanced being a parent and a student called Professor, May I Bring My Baby to Class? She said that society needs to start giving these women the benefit of the doubt instead of stereotyping them.

“We miss out on the brilliance of some of these young women,” she said. “We usually categorize when we see a young lady with a baby or a teen mom. We just kind of say ‘OK, this person is never going to make it in life.’ We don’t focus on their potential and say ‘How can I help you get to where you want despite your circumstances?’”

Talia Barrows, a sophomore dance major as well as a mother of two, knows all too well the stereotypes that go along with being a single mother.

“You definitely get looks,” Barrows said. “I went into the book store with my kids one day, and the staff came up to me immediately and asked if I needed any help. They had no idea I was a student, they thought I was lost,” she said with a chuckle. “The stigma is there. As are the ideas about what a student is, what a student should be and what a student’s life should be like.”

As a mother and a student, Barrows ignores the stereotypes and instead chooses to embrace her situation and the respect she gets from her fellow students. As a dance and gym teacher outside of Temple, she said being a mother has taught her more than a university ever could to prepare her for life after.

“I’m a very down-to-earth person and I know that anyone could be me at any point in time and they might not know how to handle it, but that’s what life is. It’s about working through those struggles, so I hope I can inspire them in some way.”

Although many may think the deck is stacked against these single parents at Temple, Barrows and Phillips are quick to point out that just because their situations may be different than the majority of their fellow students, they don’t see themselves in any other light.

When asked, after accomplishing so much in such a short period of time, if Phillips is bothered when she hears fellow classmates complain about the difficulties of college life, she selflessly downplayed her situation.

“I really feel that everyone has their own struggles,” she said. “I know college is harder for some people in ways that it isn’t for me, so I really don’t pay attention to that. I know personally what I’m going through.

“Everybody has their own personal stuff to deal with,” she said. “I know that my own experiences have made me stronger. I know that it’s not just me that is depending on my education, it’s also my child, so I think that pushes me harder than others.”

Matt Bell can be reached at matt.bell@temple.edu.