“If you’re any good at all, you know you can be better.” – Lindsey Buckingham

My name is Stephen Schilling. I'm 41-years-old, I'm married, and I have triplets who were born in January at the beginning of Spring Semester this year – two girls and one boy. I grew up in Pittsburgh (New Kensington if you’re familiar with the area), and I went to the University of Pittsburgh as a history major. But that was a long time ago – I graduated in 1992.

I came to Dayton by way of New Orleans, where I used to live until Hurricane Katrina. Between that and health problems I had after moving to Dayton, I basically had to start my life over. So I figured I might as well do it right this time. And that meant doing something challenging and rewarding. Law school was definitely the right choice.

My involvement with the Academic Excellence Program began on my first day of law school, two years ago. As a non-traditional student who had been out of school for a long time, I was concerned that I wasn't ready to be a full-time student again. Even for students who come straight out of undergrad, nobody is ever truly ready for law school. The weeklong AEP Orientation was exactly what I needed. By the time classes started, I felt ready, or at least as ready as anyone can ever be for the shock that is your first semester of law school.

I wanted to continue with AEP as a TA because it was the only way to give something back to the program. My first-year involvement was a great help to me. So I wanted to do something to help new students just as others had helped me. The wonderful fringe benefit was that I learned just as much as being a TA as I did being a student – maybe even more.

AEP has been a true learning process, and that is why I want to continue as a TA in my third year. Law school isn't just about learning the law. It's also about learning how to learn – learning how to be taught, and learning how to teach yourself. That's the trick that seems to make students successful. Those who figure out how they learn best, and then put that knowledge into practice, are the ones who achieve the most in law school. And if you are an active participant, not just in AEP but also in the process of figuring out how you learn best, then you can be successful in law school too. I hope that I can be there to help you, just as TAs from years past were there to help me.