National Jurist reports
Four law schools that missed the mark last year on standards set by the American Bar Association are now back in compliance with those standards, according to public notices posted on March 3.
Ave Maria School of Law, Vermont Law and Graduate School and the University of the District of Columbia David A. Clarke School fell short of bar passage rates according to notices posted in December.
The standard requires a 75% two-year bar passage rate, for the Class of 2019. The schools’ 509 reports show that Ave Maria Law’s ultimate bar passage rate for 2019 graduates was 67.21%, UDC Law’s was 66.67% and VLS’s was 67.54%.
The three schools were asked to submit a report by Feb. 1 to be reviewed later that month by the Council to see if they meet compliance. A few of the schools stated that their results were impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Last month, the ABA found the three schools back in compliance with Standard 316 for their Class of 2020: with Ave Maria at 88.4%, District of Columbia at 80.6% and Vermont at 77.7%.
Maurice A. Deane School of Law at Hofstra University was out of compliance with Standard 206(b), which states: “Consistent with sound educational policy and the Standards, a law school shall demonstrate by concrete action a commitment to diversity and inclusion by having a faculty and staff that are diverse with respect to gender, race and ethnicity,” according to the ABA’s website.
The law school’s noncompliance pertained to its full-time and adjunct faculty, according to the notice, which was made by the council of the ABA’s Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar.
“Hofstra Law is committed to diversity, equity and inclusion in legal education and the legal profession and has implemented educational and recruitment efforts that have improved diversity and inclusion at the law school,” said Gail Prudenti, the school’s dean, in a statement to the National Jurist. “The law school is continually growing and strengthening these efforts. We take seriously their importance in the ABA accreditation process and will respond appropriately to the concerns raised.”
The council has asked Hofstra Law to submit a written report by March 31, which would be reviewed in May. The school proved compliance with Standard 206 before that time period, according to a public notice from the ABA posted on March 3.
Its 2022 509 Report shows that the school has:
? 50 full-time faculty: 54.0% female, 14.0% people of color
? 77 non-full-time faculty: 35.1% female, 6.5% people of color
? 127 total faculty: 42.5% female, 9.45% people of color
