Imagining the World Anew: The Course in State and Local Government Law and the Future of Legal Education

This Essay urges that faculty and students engaged in the study of state and local government seize the day as leaders who can, and should, envision the future of our field and the possible future of legal education writ large. The system of state and local government, including governing legal principles, reflect our society’s conception of how we can best function collectively to foster the public good. Those of us who teach and write in this field shape the understandings, expectations, and skills of future generations of leaders who will serve in public office, advise, or participate in this critical arena. We therefore bear a special responsibility to do so with as much vision and effectiveness as possible. We should also be sensitive to principles of constructive change and good governance, a potential source of leaders within legal education who could contribute to needed change within our academic communities