To commemorate Colorado Law’s 130th birthday, we brought together a diverse group of alumni spanning seven generations to share memories and stories of their law school days. Two major themes that emerged were the connectivity of the alumni community and the collaborative nature of the student body. While the challenges facing classes over the decades have been very different, each class has found its own unique ways to make the world a better, more equitable place.
Thank you to our roundtable participants: John Purvis ’67, Natalie Ellwood ’69, Hon. Gary Jackson ’70, Betty Arkell ’75, Bill Buck ’83, Hon. Eric Elliff ’87, Rich Lopez ’91, Lucy Stark ’98, Franz Hardy ’00, Hon. Nikea Bland ’05, Jon Milgrom ’15, Adrian Untermyer ’20, and Lindsey Floyd ’21.
The transcript of the discussion below has been edited for clarity, length, and style.
What was the city of 鶹ӰԺ like when you were a law student?
Alumni living in 鶹ӰԺ in the 1960s and 1970s shared memories of grabbing a beer or bite to eat at the Lamp Post, Gondolier, or the Harvest House, and enjoying the natural beauty surrounding the law school through hiking, bicycling, and wading in 鶹ӰԺ Creek. Beyond its idyllic setting, however, alumni discussed 鶹ӰԺ’s troubled history, including the redlining practices that pushed Black residents into a neighborhood known as the Little Rectangle (now Goss-Grove) in the 20th century. Alumni also reflected on 鶹ӰԺ’s ongoing challenges with affordability and diversity.
“As a Black person in 鶹ӰԺ in the 1960s, I describe my experience using the movie Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner—that’s my 鶹ӰԺ experience; being the Black person, trying to be a professional entering into a completely white society and trying to make it as a student,” recalled Hon. Gary Jackson ’70.
He continued, “From the time I arrived in 1964 until 1970, 鶹ӰԺ never had a Black barbershop. So, to get a haircut, I would go to Denver because a white barber was not going to cut my hair. But 鶹ӰԺ, despite its failings during those periods of time, was also a place that I really embraced and enjoyed.”
Rich Lopez ’91 arrived in 鶹ӰԺ in 1974 to take a job as city planner.
“I was pretty excited to get this job in this beautiful city,” he said. “And it was even more exciting when I met the mayor, Penfield Tate II ’68. I remember meeting him for the first time and my mouth just kind of dropped open. I said, here’s this Black man with a handlebar mustache, love beads, his hair slicked back. He was so avant garde. Of course, then I remember looking back and thinking, well, I was dressed in a yellow paisley suit, hair down to my shoulders, wearing platform shoes. It was a very strange time,” he laughed.
Lindsey Floyd ’21 weighed in on the realities of living in 鶹ӰԺ today. “鶹ӰԺ is very cost prohibitive. So a lot of students in my class didn’t live in 鶹ӰԺ; we lived in Broomfield or Longmont or Louisville or Denver. I lived in 鶹ӰԺ my first year and then Denver for the second two years. 鶹ӰԺ still lacks diversity too. So that was something that the affinity groups at Colorado Law made up for—creating communities for ourselves that we didn’t see represented in 鶹ӰԺ.”
Living in different towns had some unexpected perks, though. “The one nice thing about everyone being so spread out is that when we wanted to go out together or do things together, there was constant bickering about whether we do it in Denver or if we’d have to take the bus up to 鶹ӰԺ,” she laughed. “It did require us to be really friendly because if we were to go out, there’s no way we could afford to get back to Denver or 鶹ӰԺ, so we’d sleep on people’s couches. So, I do think that we got closer because of the mandatory bonding required by expensive transportation.”
Notwithstanding some of the shortcomings, Adrian Untermyer ’20 stated, “I’m pretty confident the future generations coming out of Colorado Law, teaming up with all of us, are going to do their best to try and solve these issues over the ensuing decades.”
What did you and your classmates like to do for fun?
Jon Milgrom ’15 was the first, but certainly not the last, to mention the “world-famous” Dark Horse, a 鶹ӰԺ landmark since 1975, popularized by its Tuesday Trike Night (where participants ride a tricycle around the bar) and karaoke. Others mentioned outings at the Rayback Collective, skiing at Eldora Mountain, intramural sports teams, and tubing 鶹ӰԺ Creek.
“My class—and I don’t include myself among this at all—was pretty athletic,” said Hon. Eric Elliff ’87. He remembered receiving a phone call from a frazzled classmate through the landline in the law library while he was studying. “I believe it was Pat Carrigan ’87, and he said, ‘We’re at the softball field, we’re one short, and if we don’t get somebody here, we’re going to forfeit this game. So you need to come and play.’” Elliff agreed, under the condition that if the team won the championship, he wanted a T-shirt—which he later received.
Bill Buck ’83, who got married two weeks before law school started, recalls the thrifty nature of being a law student. “It seemed like that was a fairly common situation for my class. The Dark Horse was a treat, but we could only afford that maybe once a month,” he said. “But the class was very enthusiastic about getting together. I remember multiple times through my three years going to other classmates’ apartments, bringing your own six-pack, and that was how we entertained ourselves. We did a lot together as classmates throughout law school.”
How would you describe the student body at the time that you were a law student?
Most alumni agreed that their classes were extremely collegial, collaborative, and friendly—the opposite of the stereotypical law school experience. One of the ways that alumni recall helping out fellow classmates was by sharing outlines.
“My roommate and I were nerds. We did nothing but study,” said Lucy Stark ’98, laughing. “We had these really extensive outlines for every class, every semester. We would put them on loan in the library because I didn’t care who had them—the exercise was putting them together. Everybody wanted them! So I just put them in the library, and the library would loan them out for anybody to copy. I think that says a lot about what we were like here.”
Jon Milgrom described the surprising moment when he showed up for an exam not having received the memo that it had been designated open-note. When he arrived note-less, a classmate offered him theirs.
“You hear all these stories about law students ripping out pages from textbooks, and here we are in this tense moment, in a 2L year exam, and here’s somebody who’s willing to just give me their notes at the expense of themselves,” he said. While he ultimately declined to use his classmate’s notes, the gesture was nonetheless striking. “It was just such a cool moment that’s always stuck with me as something that’s very unique about CU—the collegiality and support structure that I felt we had from our classmates.”
With nearly 50 years to reflect on her law school experience, Betty Arkell ’75 described her class as especially collaborative. “I think other classes are that way, too, but I think ours is strongly that way. There’s a core of us that still gets together. Throughout our years of practice, we’ve been able to help one another and stay friends,” she said.
Bill Buck concurred. “Most of my classmates had seen the movie The Paper Chase. I think there was a conscious decision among us that we were not going to be that,” he said. “There was this desire to be helpful. The sharing of outlines, having just completely open study groups where you were not required to actually contribute—if you just wanted to come and sit through somebody else’s study group, that was absolutely permissible. It’s encouraging to hear that that seems to have been the culture in multiple generations of law students, and it was certainly true in my class.”
“I love to hear how collegiate the subsequent classes were,” said Natalie Ellwood ’69. “I would not say that our class was collegiate; it was very, very competitive. There were 12 women who started with my class. I know two that graduated besides myself. I wish we had been more collegial, but I didn’t see that in 1968.” She reflected, “We were going through the Vietnam War, and we had a lot of conflict about that because some of us were not supportive and we had a lot of retired ex-military young men who came
into our class.”
Which law school faculty had an impact on you?
Faculty members stood out to alumni for reasons ranging from their classroom demeanor to time spent outside of the classroom.
“Mimi Wesson, who has since retired, and taught criminal law, could break down how to analyze a statute (criminal or otherwise) better than anybody, and for years after law school I kept those notes,” Eric Elliff said. “The other faculty member that had an impact on me was Chris Mueller. You will never see somebody more enthusiastic about the rules of evidence than Chris Mueller. I liked him so much that, my third year, I took complex civil litigation, which I used constantly in private practice. Those two were great influences on me.”
“Mimi Wesson had us over to her house for barbecue, and she had alpacas,” said Hon. Nikea Bland ’05. “I really remember that because I took all these pictures and my parents were like, ‘Where are you at?’ And I was like, ‘We’re at my professor’s house.’ Like, we’re not at the zoo. It was so fun. She was really great.”
“And she had a Mazda Miata that she used to loan out for the student auction,” Lucy Stark added.
Natalie Ellwood recalled Frederic Storke (1917) as “the only professor’s name that I actually remembered from 1968 or 1969, when I took creditors’ rights.” “He was an unbelievable teacher. He had taught at the law school for a long time. To make creditors’ rights an interesting course is going some. But he did. And it was very challenging, but also a very kind of exciting course,” she said.
Betty Arkell noted a successor to Professor Storke, Cliff Calhoun, who also taught creditors’ rights and “could break down any statute.”
Gary Jackson and John Purvis both recalled administrators that made an impact on them.
“I started law school in 1967, and affirmative action basically hit CU law school in 1968,” he said. “Our dean was Don Sears, and our assistant dean was Russ Olin ’67. Together with faculty member J. Dennis Hynes ’60, I can remember going on recruitment trips where we would drive to Pueblo, Fort Collins, Greeley, trying to encourage diverse students, students of color, to come to Colorado. So, it was the administration and those three individuals that stood out for me. They really took the leap on affirmative action and diversity programs here in 鶹ӰԺ.”
John Purvis ’67 remembered former dean John Reed. “He was the first world-class legal academic that I was aware of, certainly in the administration. I think John elevated the platform for that position and really elevated our position as a law school.”
For Franz Hardy ’00, David Hill was "probably my favorite professor. He had two rules: ‘Show up on time, and be prepared,’ and that was radical. He would close the door on time every day. If that door was closed, he would not let you in to that classroom.”
“What I liked about David Hill’s class what that it really felt like a traditional law school class, like what you see in a movie, because that was the only class I had like that where you didn’t know if you were going to be called on, and you had to be prepared no matter what,” said Nikea Bland. “It made it feel more authentic to
what I had seen in the movies.”
“Everyone loved Scott Skinner-Thompson, Aya Gruber, Andrew Schwartz, Ben Levin, Helen Norton, and Ahmed White,” said Lindsey Floyd. “But by far, I think probably the fan favorite, at least of my class and probably of everyone who’s ever had him, was Frederic Bloom. I had him for civil procedure, evidence, and federal courts, which are probably three of the worst classes I ever took. On the first day of civil procedure, my 1L year, he told us that he would never look at our grades. He will never know what we got in any class that we took unless we ask him to do so, because he wanted us to feel like no matter how we did in his course, we would still have someone who supported us in the law school, outside of our academic worth.”
“Helen Norton always challenged me and my classmates to bring our A-game. It was a privilege and simultaneously terrifying to be called on by her,” Jon Milgrom said.
Nikea Bland summarized what made so many of her professors memorable: “What I remember most about Professors Hill and Wesson and Melissa Hart and [former Professor] Dayna Matthew were that those were the people that had us over to their homes,” she said. “And I think that just created a different dynamic going outside of the school for a party or celebration. I really thought that they all did a good job of building community.”
What were some of the important historical moments that took place while you were in law school, and how did they affect you?
For alumni who graduated in the 1960s and 1970s, historic events including the Vietnam War, civil rights movement, and the assassinations of Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy shook their law school experience while sparking changes within the law school community itself.
More recently, the Black Lives Matter movement and the mass demonstrations in response to the murder of George Floyd created significant waves of change at the law school, including the creation of the student-led Council for Racial Justice and Equity and anti-racist components to the curriculum. Alumni shared their memories of how these historic events shaped their law school experience and lives.
“1967-1968 were big-time years,” said John Purvis '67. “One of those two years, a group of us from the law school joined a bunch of other people from 鶹ӰԺ and the university when George Williams, for whom Williams Towers is named, arranged with Bob Six, who owned Continental Airlines at the time, to make an airplane available for us to go to Montgomery at the end of the Selma-to-Montgomery march. I’ll never forget walking toward the Alabama Capitol in Montgomery and the song “We Shall Overcome” getting louder and louder and louder—remarkable. And some of us from the law school were part of that.”
“When I entered law school, in August of 1967, Thurgood Marshall was selected to be the first Black Supreme Court justice. So, he served of course as a role model for me,” said Gary Jackson. “In 1968, that was the assassination of Martin Luther King and all the riots that took place after his and Bobby Kennedy’s assassinations.”
He continued, “During the summer of 1968, I went to live in Oakland, California, to find a job, and my best friend, Sonny Flowers ’71, went to New York. We both became associated with and experienced the Black Panthers. I can remember coming back to law school in September 1968, I had an Afro out to here. I was wearing a dashiki. Sonny had his ’fro. Our arrival back in September 1968 was the period of time that affirmative action started at CU, and those experiences affected the administration of the law school, the relationship with us and other students, and what I considered to be a real growth of the law school in terms of changing and going forward and becoming more progressive.”
“The Ronald Reagan assassination attempt occurred when I was a 1L,” Bill Buck recalled. “I would guess that there were not a lot of law students that had voted for Ronald Reagan, yet my recollection is the reaction within the entire law school was one of shock and horror, and real relief when Reagan pulled through. And I just compare and contrast that to almost anything that could happen today, and I’d hope in the law school that there would still be a uniform reaction to whatever happened—shock, horror, and relief if things turned out well. At the time, I don’t recall anybody doing anything other than waiting anxiously to hear what had happened to the president of the United States, whether you voted for him or liked him or not.”
More recently, Adrian Untermyer recounted the confirmation hearings of several U.S. Supreme Court justices, including the controversial hearings around Justice Brett Kavanaugh.
“[Justice Kavanaugh's confirmation hearing] was the first time, I think, that a lot of us found ourselves getting phone calls from friends and relatives asking us to weigh in on a major legal issue of the day,” he said. “That was an interesting feeling, and it was sort of a new normal, because we all went on to be attorneys practicing in the communities, and of course we’re called upon all the time for advice. But as a student, you’re not really used to having a more senior person in your life looking to you for guidance on a major legal issue of the day. That was new.”
Jon Milgrom noted the “100-year” 鶹ӰԺ flood of 2013, which dealt catastrophic damages to homes and businesses in 鶹ӰԺ and the surrounding area. “A lot of law students were displaced and ended up having to live together and move into each other’s spaces,” he said. “It really brought us together as a community, and it was really cool to see folks volunteering, helping other people who had been flooded out of their own homes. Down the river in Longmont, things were even worse, and a whole bunch of people trucked out there to help put up sandbags and help move people out. I think it ended up bringing people closer together.”
Bringing it back to the present day, Lindsey Floyd commented, “I cannot underscore how big of an impact Black Lives Matter in summer 2020 had on the law school and on my graduating class. We had other big events like COVID and the mass shooting at the King Soopers on Table Mesa. But the entire fabric of the law school changed in response to the protests in 2020. We’ve created more affinity groups, like the Council for Racial Justice and Equity and the Women of Color Collective. Professors who had never had a racial justice component to their syllabus added discussions and readings about the ways in which their subjects of law were not isolated from racism. I think it opened a lot of students’ eyes to the ways in which the legal system is really impacted by systemic racism. I truly think that the Class of 2021 and on benefited so greatly from such a harrowing time, because even people who practice in areas of law that might not traditionally touch issues of racism still recognize the impact that systemic racism has on their practice. That was a really big deal for my class and was really important to us.”
What were some of your favorite law school traditions?
Alumni recalled the Spring Fling, a dance in the law library with a band, visits to the Dark Horse after finals and for Halloween, and FACs (Friday Afternoon Club) in “the Pit” in the old Fleming Law Building. And, as to be expected, there was no shortage of outdoor activities to burn off steam. Alumni organized a 1L camping trip, rode bikes together up Flagstaff Mountain, skied, and hiked in the mountains surrounding 鶹ӰԺ.
Betty Arkell’s Class of 1975 has a group called Law Review and Friends—though not exclusive to the Law Review by any means—that meets annually. “We get together, usually at someone’s home, and just keep up with one another,” she said. “Obviously lives have evolved since law school, and I think there’ll be a number of retired colleagues at this next one in a couple of weeks, but it’s really been a nice tradition starting shortly after we graduated to find a way to get together and support one another.”
“The Pit in Fleming was really an important gathering point for our class,” noted Eric Elliff. “Classes would get out and everybody would just congregate there. I really enjoyed that.”
What positive changes have you seen at the law school since you graduated, and what direction would you like to see the law school head in the future?
Alumni reflected on the gender and racial makeup of the school, which has changed dramatically since the early 20th century and even in recent years.
Betty Arkell noted that she began seeing progress in gender equality in the profession—albeit small compared to today—starting in the 1970s. “My class was approximately 10% women, and there was one female professor,” she said. “Several of us got interviews with major law firms in Denver, which, two years before, women at the top of the class were not even invited to. I think the class now is at least 50% women, and that’s reflected in the practice. I think the school has really contributed to that. So, I saw that starting to happen in the mid-70s and I’m so pleased that it has continued and accelerated.”
Gary Jackson added, “I'm so grateful that we now have a Black dean. Having seen [diversity initiatives] start in 1968, to where it is today demonstrates a recognition of the type of progress, not only within our population but within our university, that having a diverse student body, staff, and administration will make us more prominent, will allow and attract a better-quality student, and will help change the legal profession.”
Rich Lopez also noted the importance of a diverse faculty and student body.
“Leadership should be reflective of the community that they’re serving. It goes to the bottom line. Having diverse leadership and staff is good business. And when we are diverse, this law school also becomes truly representative of the communities we see around us,” he said.
Diversity was something that Nikea Bland was very conscious of when she was a student. She recalls the Black Law Students Association putting in efforts into increasing diversity of the student body. “And then, it sort of went back to the status quo,” she said. “It was sad to me that if you’re not constantly working toward it, things revert back to the way they were. Being on the alumni board and working to increase diversity has been something that’s been important to me. I’m really happy that it does feel like things are changing at the school.”
John Purvis noted the school’s growing focus on experiential learning and tackling real-world challenges since he graduated.
“There’s been a remarkable change since I first got involved with the law school in terms of the academic energy that’s focused on real-world problems and issues,” he said, referencing former dean David Getches’ co-founding of the Native American Rights Fund (NARF) in 1970, which remains a close partner of the law school, and the work of former dean Gene Nichol and Jim Carrigan that focused on the real-world impact of laws of evidence and civil procedure. “That’s a real evolution for much the better, to see that academic energy taking that direction.”
Reflections on Community
When asked if there was anything else they’d like to add to the conversation, alumni were quick to bring up the importance of the Colorado Law community in their own lives and careers.
"This CU law community is pretty tight-knit. They know each other; they look out for each other in the community well beyond the law school years."
“I feel like I owe because this law school changed the trajectory of my life, socially, economically, in so many different ways. I wouldn’t be where I’m at without the opportunity that this law school gave me. So I feel like I owe, and it’s just wonderful,” said Franz Hardy. “This CU law community is pretty tight-knit. They know each other; they look out for each other in the community well beyond the law school years. I’ve always enjoyed that, and I feel a debt of gratitude to this law school and I always will,” he added.
“We’ve got advantages over big schools like Michigan,” continued Betty Arkell. “We’re a small school, and many people who graduate tend to stay in the area. And so I think they continue to feel the sort of commitment, the feeling of wanting to give back. We’re so fortunate to have the kind of law school that we have and the people who remain committed to it after they graduate.”
Jon Milgrom agreed. “It’s been incredibly valuable with my mentorship from a lot of folks and just building laterally with my classmates. Our firm is 17 people, and nine of them graduated from CU law, as far back as 1970 to more recently one from the Class of 2022. It’s been a really great gift to be part of this community and to have that kind of support.”
“It’s a good phone-a-friend network,” said Lucy Stark. “There are about five women from my class alone who are now managing large law firms in Denver. We get together regularly, and I feel very lucky to have that network.”
What's Next?
We asked alumni who are leading the way in their areas of the law: “What’s next?”
Civil Rights Law
Ryan Haygood ’01
President and Chief Executive Officer, New Jersey Institute for Social Justice
"I think a lot about Franklin Anderson, who in 1899 became the first Black graduate of the law school. I cannot imagine what Mr. Anderson endured, the hostility he confronted, or the racism he battled, and I drew inspiration from Mr. Anderson’s 1899 class photo every day as I walked past it in the law school. Mr. Anderson’s class picture is revealing not only for its depiction of him as a history-making pioneer, and an inspiration to generations of Black lawyers to come because of his sophistication, determination, and grace—but also because his classmate to his right is LEANING AWAY from him. There is little information about Mr. Anderson after he graduated and took the bar exam in Denver. But 100 years after his graduation, when I came from Denver to 鶹ӰԺ to enter law school as the only Black male in my class, along with two Black women, Lisa Calderon and Joi Williams, I’d like to think we were then—and are now, 20 years into my practice as a lawyer—walking in his footsteps. Mr. Anderson has been an example to me both of what is possible and what is required of us now. And for inspiring us to use our law degrees to fight for it.”
Water Law
John Entsminger ’99
Senior Deputy General Manager, Las Vegas Valley Water District
"The biggest challenge in Western water law over the next 130 years is going to be significantly reduced water supplies in the face of climate change. Applying the Prior Appropriations Doctrine strictly in that context will cause massive disruptions in our society, so modifications will be unavoidable. The biggest opportunity is the flip side of that—when one system breaks down, we get a chance to craft something more functional. I think the most important skill [for law graduates to have in this changing future] is being well-rounded. Having a law degree is great and opens up a lot of paths, but having a law degree and being conversant in engineering, finance, political strategy and various scientific disciplines opens up a lot more. Don’t stop learning when you leave school.”
American Indian Law
Kimberly Craven ’94
Legal Director, American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of South Dakota, North Dakota, and Wyoming. Enrolled member of the Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate
"We need to be vigilant at protecting Tribal sovereignty and guard against encroachments by other governments including the feds, states, and counties. It’s also important that our languages, culture, spiritual practices, and traditions are not usurped and that the things that make Native people unique remain intact. One of my most favorite things about being a Tribal attorney is appearing in court for child welfare cases, when you actually get to exercise Tribal sovereignty while protecting the most vulnerable, our children.”
Intellectual Property Law
Emily Wasserman ’13
Partner, Davis Graham & Stubbs LLP
"One of the biggest challenges (and also one of the reasons why I think this is such an interesting and fun area to practice in) is that technology changes and develops much faster than the law. Given this, I think it is and will continue to be critical that IP lawyers are creative thinkers. One big question for IP lawyers to be thinking about is, how do and will existing laws apply to new technology? One example that illustrates this challenge relates to personal jurisdiction and what constitutes sufficient minimum contacts when a company’s app or website is available everywhere. Given the speed with which technology develops, there are lots of opportunities to consider these types of questions.”