Thanks to everyone for the fabulous retirement party this week! It was a great celebration of the retiring faculty. Roy was kind enough to invite me to say a few words about my mentor, Nancy Johnson, whom I had the pleasure of working with at GSU for 14 years. Here are the remarks I planned to share if we had not run out of time:

Most of you know that Nancy has had a impact on the College of Law. But for those of you who are relatively new, let me take you back in time to illustrate how far the law library has come under her direction.

I first met Nancy in the mid-1980s not long after she was named Library Director. Later in 1990, she hired me as the first Reference Librarian/ "Computer Coordinator." This was just after the law faculty had moved to the 4^th floor and the library had not yet expanded into the entire first floor of the University Center building. To further describe those dark ages, we had dedicated Westlaw and Lexis terminals and very few people had any clue about the Internet. We started to talk about how we needed our own computer network for the College of Law. We created the first student computer lab in the library.

The challenge in the early years was to stay connected to the more physically remote law faculty and expand library services to meet the needs of a new, increasingly computer-savy, generation of law students. Under Nancy leadership, both challenges were met. I think we can all agree that the law library has come a LONG way on Nancy’s watch.

The thing I appreciated most about working with Nancy was her ability to foster teamwork and collaboration among her librarians. Under her direction, librarians participate in all aspects of library management. We became a close group of friends who share all aspects of our professional and personal lives. I have so many fond memories of celebrations at the library, parties at Nancy’s house, and yes, even those thousands of committee meetings!

Nancy, it has been a marvelous privilege to learn from you and work with you. On behalf of myself and your hundreds of mentees across the country who cannot be here today:  Thank you for being a wonderful mentor...inspiration...and dear friend.  Congratulations on your distinguish career and your retirement!

The retirement party last night was a wonderful event!  Here is the story I would have shared had we not run out of time:

I have known Nancy Johnson for more than 35 years, ever since she was a rookie law librarian and I a law student at the University of Illinois.  I like to think I helped her get her director job at GSU.  When a member of the search committee called to ask me about qualified candidates, I asked why they were doing an outside search, since they had one of the best law librarians in the country right there already.  Now, I don't know for sure that helped her get her job, but I do know she helped me get my job as director of the law library at UGA.  How?  They offered it to her first and she turned it down!  UGA had to settle for second best, ME.  Nancy, I owe you....  I hope you enjoy your retirement as much s I'm enjoying mine.

I met Chuck Marvin in 1985, the year he first came to the newly formed and provisionally accredited GSU College of Law.  He taught me administrative law.  Or, at least I tried to learn it from him, because none of it seems to remain with me now.  Both of us are getting older and, probably, more forgetful, but I suspect Chuck remembers administrative law pretty well.  However, I do recall that he was a great teacher, even if I can’t remember exactly what it was he taught me.

            It turned out that Chuck and I have a lot in common.

            I’m Canadian and used to be able to work in French.  He’s American, but lived and taught in Canada for more than a decade and is actually fluent in French.  He must be, because among other things, he taught at Laval University in Quebec City.  They don’t speak English there.  He even spent some time in Newfoundland.  I wonder more that Memorial University in St. John’s had a philosophy department than that Chuck Marvin was a professor of it.

            We also both went to the University of Kansas.  Thus, we are both Jayhawks.   He got his BA there in the early/mid-60s, just about the time I was getting a similar degree at McGill.  I went to KU for a masters in journalism in the early 70s, about the time he was teaching in Quebec City and Newfoundland.  I didn’t know it at the time, but there was a Marvin legacy at the KU J-School.  His father, Burton Marvin, was the first dean of the University of Kansas William Allen White School of Journalism after it gained accreditation in 1948, and soon made it one of the nation’s top journalism programs. 

            Chuck Marvin comes by his teaching acumen honestly.  He also inherited his father’s penchant for moving from one challenging post to another.  He’s lived in more places in Canada than I have . . . and I’m Canadian.  In addition to Quebec City and St. John’s, Newfoundland, he’s worked and taught in my home town of Ottawa, as well as in Winnipeg, Manitoba.  Add to that Tehran and Brussels, as well as posts in the United States and a brief stint in Bulgaria, and you have a bona fide academic traveler. 

            What most people don’t realize is that Chuck Marvin has a very dry wit.  Perhaps because it’s so dry.  I get it, I think, because I’m Canadian and also because my mother was a person of similar wit . . . so dry that it evaded most of her listeners.  Chuck Marvin’s wit is like that . . . subtle but entertaining in a thoughtful way.

            Chuck and I are of the same generation, so I know what he’s thinking:  “What do I do now?”  I hope he finds something good to do, because I’m close behind him on the same retirement path and can use some guidance.

            Happy retirement, Chuck.  Have fun!

As a private law librarian, I am grateful to Nancy for her helpfulness and professionalism throughout her career.  She turned the GSU law library into a premier facility and did it with her love of research and her wonderful sense of humor.  Remembering many AALL and ALLA meetings and the stories we shared.  It has been rumored that she is the only law librarian to actually use an umbrella in Seattle!

Oh the sweet memories of the impromptu Civil Procedure refreshers at the Limerick Junction for the price of a pint.

And who can forget the gracious host of the summer BBQ at the incredible historic home in Monticello.

Thank you for being one of the best and most personable professors at GSU Law.

"No brickie, no laundry ..."  Remember Professor Hogue?  Con law, San Francisco ordinance requiring laundries to be constructed of brick.   We did get a good giggle out of that one.

Ahhh, the fun years when you were advising the Law Review!  Thanks for your leadership and for being a great asset to the college of law and for your dedication. 

Best wishes on the occasion of your retirement. I want to offer my sincere thanks for your attempting to school me/us in the finer points of law. Surprisingly, I actually learned and retained some of it, although my grades may not have been the best indicator of what I learned. I'm sorry I cannot attend the reception but I will be there in spirit.

All the best in your future endeavors!

Whit

Best wishes on the occasion of your retirement. I want to offer my sincere thanks for your attempting to school me/us in the finer points of law. Surprisingly, I actually learned and retained some of it, althoughh my grades may not have been the best indicator of what I learned. I'm sorry I cannot attend the reception but I will be there in spirit.

All the best in your future endeavors!

Whit

Best wishes on the occasion of your retirement. I want to offer my sincere thanks for your attempting to school me/us in the finer points of law. Surprisingly, I actually learned and retained some of it, although my grades may not have been the best indicator of what I learned. I'm sorry I cannot attend the reception but I will be there in spirit.

All the best in your future endeavors!

Whit

Professor E. Ray Lanier was not particularly happy about me transferring into his civil procedure class.  My situation became much worse upon delivery of balloons for my 30th birthday to his class.  He called on me for 27 consecutive classes. It became a sport. I was determined that I would not be intimidated, that I would not be discouraged and that I would know civil procedure better than any other first year student. 

I survived. I thrived. Professor Lanier invited me back to teach classes in civil procedure for a number of years. Thanks for  great education in more than just civil procedure.  You prepared me for litigation. I knew how to handle pressure, be confident and stand my ground. 

I have not had the chance to visit the college of law since I graduated nearly 21 years ago.  It is hard to see so many professors who were there when I was a student retiring, where did the time go?  I do remember and enjoyed Professor Hogue's Con Law class much more than I thought. I wish you well. Al Henry

I got my first and my last grades in law school from Nancy Johnson.  Her professionalism and enthusiasm for legal research made a lasting impression on me, in Legal Bib and in Advanced Legal Research - which I practically begged to be let in my last semester at GSU CoL.  Thank you, Prof. Johnson, for giving me one of the coveted seats in that class and for giving all your students such great preparation for the practice of law. 

I'm traveling on May 9, so unfortunately I cannot attend the Retirement Celebration.  I would feel even more regret if I did not comment on the inspiring encouragement that Professor Hartfield gave me when I was a student in her Family Law course, and thereafter.  Professor Hartfield recommended me as a pupil to the Charles Longstreet Weltner Family Law American Inn of Court. 

Although I did not pursue a practice in family law, that experience introduced me to the precepts of civility, professionalism and collegiality in the law, and led me to serve as a Guardian ad Litem in pro bono child custody matters.  I now practice intellectual property law and serve as a barrister in the Atlanta IP American Inn of Court.  Every time that I see Professor Hartfield, she continues to show her dedication to the success of GSU Law students past and present.  Congratulations on an impactful career, Professor Hartfield!!  And I send you very sincere gratitude for all that you have done for me.

I had Professor Hogue for the “dreaded” Constitutional Law class, but his dry sense of humor and clever wit made it not only bearable, but actually fun.  In one very interesting day in class, one of my fellow students gave a somewhat rambling and obtuse response to Professor Hogue’s oft repeated “do you think that this is the right outcome?” question following a student’s brief of the case.  In response, our revered professor enthusiastically pronounces “That’s bulls**t!” which was quickly followed by nervous laughter from the class.

 A year later, in Hogue’s Conflict of Laws class, I was on the hot seat for a particular case, and I received the “do you think that this was the right outcome?” question.  I quickly responded “no, it’s bulls**t!”  Professor Hogue, looking irritated, replied annoyingly “is that a legal term, Mr. Hurt?”  And I yes, “Yes sir. I was taught that term in Constitutional Law.” 

After taking every course Professor Lanier would teach in my three years (Fed Civ Pro, Remedies, Georgia Legal History, and Georgia Practice and Procedure), he asked me to come back to the law school to “fill in” in his absence on a couple of occasions, which rapidly turned into Lanier recruiting me to teach a second section of his famed Georgia Practice class.  “Uncle Ray,” realizing my palpable nervousness about ACTUALLY teaching an entire law school class, looked at me and said:  “Jimmuh, you will be fine.  You are the one-eyed prince in the land of the blind.”  I remember that at the beginning of every semester that I teach.

As a part-time student, it was often difficult to become involved in activities outside the classroom and even harder to network with attorneys. Professor Hartfield helped me become involved in the Family Law Inn of Court where I was able to network with attorneys and judges in the area.  

She introduced me to so many people that year and helped boost my confidence in speaking to judges and attorneys. I feel honored to have been in the presence of Professor Hartfield both inside the classroom and with the Inn of Court.  She is truly a mentor to her students, and I will always admire her insight and grace.

I'll never forget my Constitutional Law class with Professor Hogue. I can't even remember the topic, but when a student began to recite an answer Professor Hogue interrupted saying "I don't want to know what the book says. I want to know what you THINK!"  

It was a lightbulb moment for me in law school - to begin not only reading and memorizing material, but to digest it and form opinions. I enjoyed that class so much, I took Conflicts of Law just so I could have Professor Hogue again. I'm so glad I did!

Congratulations, Professor Hogue, on your retirement. Thank you for teaching me to THINK again.

Nancy P. Johnson is the quintessential law librarian. She is an excellent researcher, writer, teacher, administrator, faculty member, mentor, and human being.  Nancy's impact on academic law librarianship spans beyond GSU because of the many librarians who were once under her wing who have gone on to leadership positions in other academic law libraries.

Nancy's disciples have been coined "Johnsonites" by her friend, Filippa Anzalone. I am proud, honored, and grateful to be a Johnsonite  because I have benefitted from her knowledge, generosity, and unparalleled professional insightfulness. 

Congratulations, Nancy, on an extraordinarily successful career. And thank you for not only your professional wisdom but also for being such a good friend for so many years.

Somehow I was fortunate enough to take Nancy Johnson's Advanced Legal Research class and thus enter a world of fascinating facts.  Through her efforts, I became an ardent researcher, pursuing legal questions with a vigor than remains with me still.  And, I had the further good fortune to obtain an assistantship with Prof. Johnson in the law library, which just added to my love for research.  Trite as it may sound, Nancy Johnson truly changed my life. 

Geez.  You're still alive?  Must be the pickling effect of all that Jaegermeister on multiple junkets to alt Deutscheland.  I was privileged to join you on two of those adventures - once in 1985, while still a student over whom you exerted much power and control, and again, in 1988, as a young lawyer, over whom you, oddly, still exerted much power and control.

You were never one to mince words. I recall coming to class directly from a full day of heavy manual labor in my cabinet shop, and, while exchanging pleasantries with you, you leaned over, wrinkled your nose and said: "Whew - You need to try a different deodorant!"  

I did, and it is no doubt to you, and your timely advice and life lessons (and the sense of humor I hope you still have), that I owe a debt of gratitude for the modicum of success I have had.

Ah, sweet memories of the blissful past.   Ein Prosit, E.Ray!

Professor Anne Emanuel was unquestionably one of the best professors I've ever had. I will never forget how she managed to maintain her cool while teaching Criminal Procedures as she watched my stomach grow increasingly big with my first child. I sat in the front row of class and, toward the end of the semester, my stomach was so big that I could bearly fit in the space between my seat and the desk. After I delivered my healthy son, Professor Emanuel confessed that she got very nervous every time I sat in front of her in class, because she thought that I was going to deliver my child during her class.

I took you for Civ. Pro. and GA Civ. Pro; but my greatest memories of you were during the International and Commercial Arbittration Summer Study Abroad in Austria, the summer of 2002.  It was the first time I had ever seen you in shorts without a bow-tie! LOL  Many happy regards; enjoy this next phase of your life. :-)

You inspired me to choose GA State for law school.

In response to some response I gave in class, Professor Lanier, after a long pause, said "Well, no, but at least you're thinking, and that's good.  You also appear to be breathing, and that's even better."

Bless his heart, I sure miss being in his class.

Nancy, you have not simply had a successful run in leading and developing the GSU Law Library, you singularly built the library from nothing, nurturing it from scratch as a fledgling library in 1985 and proceeding over the years to build a first-class law library in rapid fashion, one that today is highly regarded across the legal academy. Every facet of the GSU Law Library of today bears your deft touch and reflects the special strength of your leadership.

Can it be 28 years ago, Bernadette, that we met at the new teachers workshop in DC and joined with those already here to help build a new law school that was just in its third year?  What a time! What an adventure! What a journey!  Your work lives on through the generation of students you have touched and mentored, and who do you proud each and every day.

Anne - Every great law school needs an Anne Emanuel... someone who can do just about anything -teach and write, serve the community, take on projects big and small, easy or hard- with the gentlest touch.