I would give the sections the names of tier 2 schools - to remind Harvard students of how good they have it on the job market.

I didn't even know we had a student government until I got this survey e-mail this morning. I guess it's nice they're keeping busy.

What if your section winds up being named after someone you hate? And because of this subconscious resentment you wind up not doing as well?

In the list of reasons why naming the sections are a good idea is "Would be more reminiscent of Hogwarts".

Are you kidding me? Is this grade school? Where are the survey questions on when nap times for HLS students should be scheduled or whether they'd like apple juice at snack time?

I heard Dean Kagan is running around saying that her goal is to make the law school a kinder gentler place - even said she is taking NYU as her model. This is kinda silly. NYU has the prestigious but fun angle kinda cornered. Harvard will not beat them at that game. Harvard needs to stick to uber-prestige.

Also - if they are trying to make this Hogwarts style - Can Dershowitz be the sorting hat?

as to 11:45, Dean Kagan already has made HLS a much kinder gentler place. We love her so much we even had a huge party for her when she didn't get the Harvard Presidency!

(now if only we could keep the damn ugrads out of our gym)

Still, I wish I hadn't filled out the survey half asleep in class earlier today. Then I could have voted for some quality naming conventions... I would have loved to have been in the Bedtime Bear Section myself.

Seriously, AnotherHLS2L - getting the undergrads out of Hemenway is what the student government SHOULD be focusing their energy on.

It's been decades since this HLS76 grad has even been on campus at The School, but Student Government almost surely continues to be a joke -- ignored and irrelevant to virtually all students. It certainly can't be equated -- even by Yalies -- with the entire HLS for purposes of your blanket condemnation of the institution.

I'd prefer to think that this Survey represents a deft preventive trial balloon, meant to be shot down (perhaps after some prominent donors or inebriated returning alumni were overheard making the suggestion). On the other hand, ATL's reaction, and that of most Commentors, seems to demonstrate that young folk today have very little understanding of irony or satire -- at least, without visual cues like smilies and other emoticons. The Hogwarts option, for example, would seem to suggest a bit of whimsy at play.

There are a lot of good reasons for poking fun at HLS, but displaying a sense of humor shouldn't be one of them.

Prof. Yabut,

I always appreciate a little whimsy and humor, and maybe Hogwarts was included whisically. The proposal, however, to give the sections names and to solicit student opinion on names is a serious proposal, not a humorous or satirical one, as far as I understand. So this non-HLS grad will continue to poke fun at HLS and the silliness of HLS for even entertaining this proposal.

::snickers::

Oh Harvard.

Ida thunk that keeping the ugrads outta H'way would do vastly more to improve quality of life around here. They keep hogging the machines, and "resting" between sets.

Regarding Hemenway Gym -

(Another) HLS2L - We DO NOT own Hemenway gym. I am shocked that so few people know this. The Faculty of Arts & Sciences own it. It is their building, and they let us use it. Ask anyone in the Dean's office. They wouldn't sell it to us when Kagan offered to buy it, so she talked them into going 50-50 with us on renovations.

Michael Sevi is responsible for this.

The rumor I heard was that FAS (who yes, I am aware owns the building) didn't kick in at all for the renovations that were done?

Surely, if we did kick in all of the renovation money we ought to be able to do something... it is only going to get worse when they close down the ugrad gym on this side of the river.

I agree completely that the gym is overcrowded, but if it is their building what can we do? Yes, we paid for the renovations (I think only half) but perhaps that was just to stop them from turning it into another FAS building (which I heard they were going to do).

Look on the bright side - KSG folks don't even have access to any of the Harvard gyms!

I would kill -- not figuratively, just literally -- to be in the Judge Seidlin section.

I initially deleted the survey as one of the more ridiculous recent HLS spams. I just dug it out of my deleted file to include "celebrities with legal problems" as an option.

I also wish we owned Hemenway and would willingly trade in my free tampons for more gym time.

They should name the sections after Republican members of the faculty!

Of course, then they'd have to reduce the number of sections.

I thought the Hogwart's answer was the only thing worth reading in that ridiculous survey.

Seriously, they'd name them after groups of alumni? How pretentious. Not to mention, fun how they don't bother NAMING any women/black alumni, they just throw a referenc out there in a blatant homage to tokenism. I suppose, at least HLS folks admit they don't ACTUALLY give a shit about women and minorities.

Why doesn't HLS do something ACTUALLY cool? At least its undergrad sibling thought to have Ali G give its commencement address.

Harvard - best in Asia.

Here's a suggestion for new names for Sections 1-7:

1 - Assholes
2- Overachievers
3- Ugly Nerds
4- Underachieving Pretentious fuck ups
5- Poor people
6- Communists
7- Asskissers

This pretty much sums them up.

Why has no one suggested that Harvard do what every other school does and whore themselves out to firms? I'm sure that big firms would love to have the name recognition that comes with sponsoring a first-year section and maybe the money that comes in might be enough to justify a tuition freeze, if only for a year. Tuition freeze - I just made myself laugh.

I just think it's funny that Harvard students would need to have their answers to this thing "submit[ted] for error checking." But then, having visted there a few times while I was at Columbia, maybe not surprised.

Actually, the idea of naming the HLS sections has been around since at least 2001 (though I don't know its origin at that time). 2001 was the first year they went to 7 sections (up from 4), to make the groups smaller and more collegial.

The point of the names, as it was explained to me, was to foster a connection between students from one year to the next by having them share membership of the same "college" within the Law School. E.g., members of "Brennan College" would have a role in orientation, legal writing classes, TA-ing etc. with the new members joining in the 1L class.

It didn't sound like the worst idea in the world to me given the size of HLS (560 per JD class).

http://www.abovethelaw.com/2007/03/hls_sectiongate_is_this_better.php