(239) 687-5300
Our Passion For What We Do Transfers Into Our Students
We understand you have choices and we know the decision you are about to make will be life changing. With that in mind, we would like to share with you how Ave Maria Law could benefit you on your law school journey.
Ranked one of the nation’s most outstanding law schools by The Princeton Review and the best Catholic Law School in the United States for the Devout by The National Jurist’s preLaw Magazine, Ave Maria Law has enrolled students from 49 states and abroad and from more than 200 colleges and universities. They range in age and bring diverse backgrounds in career and educational experience.
The Office of Admissions is a group of passionate and dedicated professionals interested in helping prospective law students fulfill their dream of becoming an attorney. The team prides itself on its personal approach, treating every potential student as a unique individual with different hopes, dreams, and backgrounds. Our application and interview process is a holistic review and one in which we endeavor to learn as much as we can about our prospective students. It is our goal to have a student body that is diverse in thought and that will contribute greatly to the educational experience at Ave Law.
The Admissions team recruits both nationally and locally. While a significant percentage of our recent incoming students are native Floridians, we have a strong national applicant pool, with close to 50% of the incoming classes hailing from more than 20 different states. Our recruiting calendar includes a presence at virtually all of the LSAC forums in the major cities, as well as the many pre-law caravans at universities and colleges in various states.
- You’re a name here, not a number.
- You’re encouraged to practice your faith on campus.
- You’ll become a part of our family-friendly campus.
- Your post-grad job opportunities are high…we’re the only law school in Southwest Florida.
- You’re bound to fit in…with a variety of student orgs on campus.
- Your ideal study environment in Naples…Southwest Florida’s paradise.
- Unique externship opportunities await.
- Your health and wellness is important to us.
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GET A HEAD START
Summer Start Advantage Program
Affords incoming students the opportunity to take two of their 1L classes over the summer prior to the start of the traditional fall semester. This program allows for a lighter course load during the first year of law school.
The advantages are significant:
• Begin law school journey with 2 classes instead of 6.
• Easier to form study partnerships with a smaller cohort.
• Less overwhelming.
• Legal Analysis Writing and Research (LAWR) is one of the most difficult and time consuming classes so, the ability to take it with just one other class is invaluable.
• Students are more prepared for the fall since they understand class prep,
case briefing and exams.
• Affords students the luxury of prepping for exams in the fall semester without
also writing a legal memo for LAWR.
• Students who have enrolled in the Summer Start Program have been
overwhelmingly positive about their decision and the advantages it provided.
CATHOLIC | CONSERVATIVE | COMPETITIVE
Meet Our Admissions Team
- 239-687-5423
- rcruz@avemarialaw.edu
Roxanna Cruz is an accomplished, results-driven enrollment professional with over 20 years of working in higher education. Her extensive experience in developing and implementing comprehensive plans to recruit and retain talented and diverse individuals has been proven through her track record of consistently meeting and exceeding university and law school enrollment goals. Roxanna’s commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion through her leadership is evident in her ability to not only help shape a class that is reflective of the world, but also in recruiting, developing, mentoring, and leading high-functioning diverse teams.
Roxanna recently re-entered law school admissions where she serves as the Associate Dean of Admissions at Ave Maria School as of January 2023. Prior to this role, Roxanna held the position of Associate Vice President of Enrollment at Barry University in Miami Shores where she oversaw all undergraduate, graduate & professional enrollment. Roxanna also served as the Assistant Dean of Admissions at Barry University School of Law, Associate Director of Recruitment & Marketing at FIU Law, and as Director of Student Recruitment at Miami Law.
Roxanna holds a Bachelor of Arts in Organizational Leadership from St. Thomas University and a Master of Business Administration in Management at Nova Southeastern University. As a first-generation college graduate, Roxanna takes pride in her accomplishments and her professional development in enrollment management. Roxanna’s creativity, adaptability, innovative thinking, and passion for access to higher education has provided successful outcomes in many aspects of her work. In addition, she considers her most prominent role to date as that of wife and mother of four children.
(239) 687-5420
Colleen joined Ave Maria School of Law in Feb 2023. Her diverse background spans over 20 years of experience in telecommunications software, project management, event planning, and higher education. Before joining Ave Maria School of Law, Colleen was the Admission Specialist for Wheaton College. Colleen graduated from Russell Sage College with a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science. She thoroughly enjoys working with students in the recruitment of our next class of future attorneys.
(239) 687-5335
Prior to joining the Ave Maria School of Law, Frank held Executive Director and Director level roles in Student Financial Aid services at three prior institutions where he oversaw the proper administration of Title IV and service to students. His experience has expanded well over a decade in financial aid and student financial services.
He holds a Master of Science in Higher Education Administration and is a member of various higher education professional associations.
(239) 687-5422
(239) 687-5421
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