The Barney Center was originally founded to address what I viewed as growing deficiencies in both continuing legal education and the broader educational marketplace. Too often, professional education became expensive, impersonal, overly theoretical, or disconnected from the realities of public life and professional practice.
From the beginning, the goal was to create educational experiences that were intellectually serious, practical, interdisciplinary, accessible, and human.
The Barney Center’s individual advisement services reflect that same philosophy.
Individual advisement is designed for students, aspiring law students, young professionals, educators, and individuals seeking thoughtful guidance related to education, professional development, leadership, and institutional life during a period of rapid technological and social change.
Areas of advisement may include:
The Center’s approach combines practical experience with interdisciplinary thinking. Conversations often draw from law, history, politics, higher education, and lived professional experience rather than narrow credentialism or formulaic advice.
The original vision of the Barney Center was always rooted in small-group learning, mentorship, networking, and meaningful conversation. Whether through CLE seminars, boot camps, webinars, or individual advisement, the broader mission remains the same: creating educational experiences that are thoughtful, accessible, engaging, and grounded in real human interaction.
At a time when so much education feels transactional and automated, the Barney Center continues to emphasize something increasingly rare: honest conversation, mentorship, intellectual curiosity, and the belief that education is still fundamentally about people.
The Barney Center engages selectively with institutions and individuals whose goals align with its broader educational mission.