Waynesburg University students taking the Jurisprudence course this semester met with University of Oxford Associate Professor of Law Dr. Paul Yowell via Microsoft Teams Thursday, April 25, to discuss his book on constitutionalism.
Dr. Stratton is doing impressive work in his classes and through the Stover Center to challenge students to go beyond surface treatments of constitutional law and to learn at a deeper theoretical level.”
Over the course of the semester, students studied Dr. Yowell’s book, “Constitutional Rights and Constitutional Design: Moral and Empirical Reasoning in Judicial Review,” line by line as part of their coursework review.
“In a course which began by thoroughly exploring past jurisprudential thinkers, such as Blackstone, Austin, Aquinas, Hart, and Dworkin, among others, ending the course with a discussion with Dr. Yowell, a contemporary cutting-edge legal theorist, was a grand climax,” said Dr. Lawrence M. Stratton, professor of Ethics and Constitutional Law and Director of the Stover Center for Constitutional Studies and Moral Leadership at Waynesburg University. “As we engaged Dr. Yowell’s book over the past month, it was wonderful to be able to say to students, ‘remember to ask him that question when we have our session with him,’ and they did.”
During their discussion with Dr. Yowell, students were given the opportunity to ask questions for discussion, to which he thoughtfully responded and expanded on, giving each student his individualized attention.
“Dr. Stratton is doing impressive work in his classes and through the Stover Center to challenge students to go beyond surface treatments of constitutional law and to learn at a deeper theoretical level,” said Dr. Yowell. “I enjoyed talking to the students and responding to their thoughtful and probing questions and discussing prospects for further study in law.”
For students, being able to ask direct questions to the author was a great way to gain a deeper understanding of the topics contained within the book.
“The benefit I had in reading the book was seeing how the law is constantly evolving,” said Dheaven Kelley, a junior pre-law major. “During the semester we read theories of law from many different theorists and civilizations. Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes posited the importance of history in law. In reading Paul Yowell’s book, it brought theories of what the law could look like from a contemporary perspective. Being able to ask him questions directly gave me a better understanding of his rationale and cultivated the beginnings of an idea that could bear fruit in the future.”
As described in the University’s Academic Catalog, the Jurisprudence course covers “an analysis of the concept of law, its historical development and its relation to political society; includes consideration of philosophies of law—such as natural law and positivism—and the valuation of law in terms of justice, liberty and the good society.” Though the course is recommended for students studying Pre-Law, it is open to all students with an interest in the topic.
Many courses taught within the Pre-Law program, such as Jurisprudence, contain content often not touched upon until law school. This early exposure to advanced curriculum allows students to be better prepared for their post-graduate credentialing exams and studies. It also helps them to better decide what path they might want to take after graduation.
In addition to his role as Associate Professor and Faculty of Law at Oxford University, Dr. Yowell is Fellow of Oriel College. He specializes in comparative constitutional law, constitutional theory and human rights, and is the author of “Constitutional Rights and Constitutional Design: Moral and Empirical Reasoning in Judicial Review” and co-author of “Legislated Rights: Securing Human Rights Through Legislation.”
Pre-Law at Waynesburg University
Learn more about the Pre-Law program at Waynesburg University and see where our graduates have attended Law School at the link below.
