Initiatives

CCIE is attacking the diversity “dilemma” on all fronts – pipeline, recruiting, and retention/advancement. CCIE’s efforts to promote inclusive excellence depart from the activities usually undertaken by legal communities to promote diversity – diversity job fairs and 1L recruiting programs. Because these programs were already well-established in Denver (Rocky Mountain Diversity Legal Career Fair and the Colorado Pledge to Diversity Group’s Summer Clerkship Program), CCIE is committed to taking diversity efforts to the next level with new initiatives:

  • Inclusiveness Program – An innovative six-step program currently being piloted by ten legal organizations - six law firms, two government legal offices,  and two corporate legal departments - in Denver that is designed to assist legal organizations in creating cultures of inclusion. Legal organizations that just engage in “diversity programs” such as recruiting, mentoring, and affinity groups will never achieve success if their climate and culture are not inclusive.  Learn more about the six-step process they are piloting about the pilot organizations by visiting www.legalinclusiveness.org.  
  • Education Programs –
    • Rocky Mountain Legal Diversity Summit -- CCIE sponsors an annual diversity and inclusiveness conference that brings national experts to Denver to educate the legal community.
    • CLE programs – CCIE hosts a series of CLE programs throughout the summer.  Please check here for more information about the Summer 2010 series.  The first program, Inclusiveness 101, is scheduled for Thursday May, 13, 2010 and it will feature Kathleen Nalty, CCIE Executive Director and Patricia Powell, Hummons Consulting, who will present the innovative six-step process the Inclusiveness Network has been devoted to over the past year.
  • Diversity Survey – A comprehensive survey was conducted in May 2007 and the results demonstrate that diverse attorneys experience the practice of law in ways that differ remarkably from non-diverse attorneys. Diverse attorneys also are still experiencing discrimination in the legal workplace, which all too often is not fully acknowledged by non-diverse attorneys or legal organizations.
  • Working Groups – Three working groups are tackling issues in pipeline, recruiting, and retention.
  • Deans’ Diversity Council – Recognizing that every “best practice” list for diversity begins with leadership from the top, the law deans from both of Colorado’s law schools brought together top leaders from every sector of the legal community – law schools, law firms, judiciary, government, public interest, and bar associations - to regularly discuss diversity issue. The Deans’ Diversity Council acts as an advisory group to the Campaign.
  • Law School Inclusive Excellence Leadership Series - CCIE is piloting an innovative program at the University of Denver Sturm College of Law aimed at raising awareness among law school students and faculty regarding inclusiveness and diversity in the legal profession.