From Friend of Indisputably, Richard Reuben (the University of Missouri-Columbia):

The AALS Dispute Resolution Section this fall is starting a new a mentoring program for junior ADR scholars, and I want to invite you to participate as either a senior or junior scholar.

This program will of course offer mentoring on scholarship, opening the door for junior scholars to be able to tap into the experience, wisdom, and generosity of established scholars with substantive expertise that is especially relevant to their research. However, it will also offer other important mentoring services, including casebook consultation, syllabus review, ongoing coaching advice as junior scholars go through their courses for the first time, help getting visibility at conferences and other professional events appropriate to their scholarly and service interests, advice on what to do and not to do during the tenure and promotion process, and other unique services that individual junior faculty need to the extent that we can offer them.

As many of you know, senior scholars in this field have a long tradition of mentoring junior scholars informally on an individual basis. The reason for formalizing this process now is to make mentoring services available to those who have not been able to plug into an appropriate informal network, facilitate the possibility of particularly suitable mentoring relationships, uplift the level of junior scholarship, provide immediate mentoring resources for schools without other ADR colleagues for junior faculty to turn to, and provide a resource for law school tenure and promotion committees to turn to for possible outside reviewers.

For now, as we get started, I will serve as the point person for both junior and senior scholars. Senior scholars can simply let me know of your willingness to help, and I will send you a link to a Google Doc on which you can insert your name, contact information, and preferences. Junior scholars can participate by sending me an email letting me know of your interest, and setting up a time to talk for a few minutes so I can get a better sense of who might be most appropriate to direct you to for the particular needs you have. My email address is ReubenR@missouri.edu. Note that the availability of any particular senior scholar will inevitably vary, and senior scholars can always decline a specific invitation to mentor for any reason.

I am excited about the potential for the program to enhance the professional experience of all participants, junior and senior, and I look forward to working with you on it as moves forwards. Naturally questions and comments are always welcome and for now should be directed to me.