Engaging with Innovative Techniques
Michael Flannery doesn’t just care about the material his law students are learning or their academic performance, he is also concerned about their characters and concerns. Flannery never stops being his students’ teacher.
“He views himself as very much responsible for the futures of not only his students but also their clients,” said Lynn Foster, the Arkansas Bar Foundation professor of law at the UA Little Rock Bowen School of Law. “Wherever students may find themselves after they graduate, and in what careers they may ultimately have, he lets them know that part of his responsibility, as their teacher, is to be of service to them whenever they need him in the future.”
With innovative teaching methods, Flannery helps students discover interests in subject areas they didn’t have previously. He also uses his experience as an associate in a Philadelphia law firm and as a city solicitor.
His teaching methods involve innovative techniques. In Sports Law classes, he assigns “classroom quarterbacks” to lead an open discussion on the topic of the day, followed by a coaching session or lecture. At the end is the scrimmage in which students, who had submitted a draft of a paper, can share with the class and receive feedback before re-submitting the paper the next week for a final grade.
“Professor Flannery exemplifies the perfect blend of teacher and mentor,” said Bowen alum J. Blake Smith. “Michael Flannery embodies a lost art. He is a genuine student’s teacher.”
Flannery has been at UA Little Rock for nine years. He earned a B.A. degree from the University of Delaware in 1987 and a juris doctor from Catholic University of America Columbus School of Law in 1991.