Adjunct Law Prof Blog

Bond Rating at Albany, Building for Sale at Louisiana College

From Scott Waldman, Albany Times-Union last week:

Colleges and universities spend a lot of resources ensuring enrollment does one of two things: stabilize or increase.

Albany Law School is headed in the wrong direction. The school's enrollment has dropped 14 percent in just two years.

The school now enrolls 617 students, down from 720 in the 2010-2011 academic year. That loss has caught the attention of the Standard & Poor's bond rating agency, which downgraded the school's outlook from positive to stable. Standard & Poor's said the situation at Albany Law reflected a national trend of law schools losing students and tuition income...  Full Story Here.

The article concludes by suggesting a "day of reckoning" may be at hand for an industry that has been focused on "relentless expansion." Well, that day of reckoning may already be visiting the proposed Louisiana College's proposed Judge Paul Pressler School of Law that was announced in 2007 but has yet to admit a student.  Alexandria's Thetowntalk.com, a Gannett Co., reports today that the school has put the building it purchased to house the law school up for sale:

The Shreveport building Louisiana College purchased to be its law school in 2011 is now for sale.The former Joe D. Waggonner Federal Building, which was intended to house LC’s Judge Paul Pressler School of Law, is listed with Sealy Real Estate Services LLC in Shreveport.

The story does not address the proposed law school's future plans.  If opened, the law school would be the fifth in Louisiana, joining Tulane and Loyola in New Orleans and also LSU and Southern in Baton Rouge.  There is no law school in Lousiana's northern half.

Craig Estlinbaum

College Degree Becoming New High School Diploma

There is nothing new about college graduates having to take unskilled jobs. However, the New York Times recently published an interesting article outlining this problem, here. 

Mitchell H. Rubinstein

Even Harvard Students Cheat

Did you hear about this one?? Harvard University recently asked several students to leave after being found to have cheated on a take home exam in a government place. Details in the Feb. 1, 2013, NY Times, here. 

Mitchell H. RUbinstein

 

Profology and Other Adjunct News

Profology

The Rochester Democrat and Chronicle reports that Bob Ertischek, an adjunct professor at Monroe Community College in Rochester, has created a social media network for people working in higher education.  The site is called Profology.  The site describes itself as "a place where faculty and other higher education professionals can meet, exchange ideas and work to improve pedagogy, research, classroom technology and assessment, and more."  The platform actually opened in beta in 2011, and went fully operational sometime last year, but I just heard about it, so it's news to me.  And now, maybe to you.

IRS and Adjuncts

The IRS has posted guidance in the Federal Register relating to compensation for adjunct faculty, according to a Huffington Post report earlier this month.  From the HuffPo story:

The IRS noted in the Federal Register that "educational organizations generally do not track the full hours of service of adjunct faculty, but instead compensate adjunct faculty on the basis of credit hours taught." In short, most colleges are only paying part-time instructors for time spent in a classroom, and nothing for time spent grading or preparing.

The Treasury Department and the IRS are considering and "invite further comment on how best to determine the full-time status of employees" like educators, who may work many hours after students leave the classroom.

Correctly classifying adjunct, part-time or non-tenured faculty has taken on increased importance as the Affordable Care Act provisions relating to employer coverage come into effect.

Adjuncts and Governance

A joint subcommittee of the Association’s Committee on Contingency and the Profession and the Committee on College and University Governance, approved a final version of a report, "The Inclusion in Governance of Faculty Members Holding Contingent Appointments."  The report includes a broad range of recommendations designed to address the fact that more and more teaching at college and universities is performed by adjunct, part-time or non-tenured faculty.  Collene Flaherty at Inside Higher Ed has a summary and commentary on the report here.

Craig Estlinbaum

New Law School Proposed for South Texas

At least two Texas legislators, Rep. Eddie Lucio, III of Harlingen and Rep. Armando Martinez of Weslaco, have filed bills to establish a public law school in the Rio Grande Valley.  The two bills are similar to one another - the primary difference is that Lucio's bill would place the law school in the University of Texas System, while Martinez's bill would authorize the school to be created and operated by any willing and existing university system.

A law school in the fast-growing Rio Grande Valley has long been a goal for South Texas's legislative delegation.  While the need for a new law school in this national market is doubtful, the Rio Grande Valley is greatly underserved.  The nearest public law school to the Valley is the University of Texas at Austin some 300 miles away.  The Rio Grande Valley appears by far to be the largest region in the nation, measured by population, located so far from a public law school.  The two MSA's that make up the Valley have almost 1.2 million in population according to the last Census.

Texas created a public law school in the Dallas during the 2009 session - the University of North Texas Dallas (UNT-Dallas) College of Law is scheduled to open in the Fall of 2014.  With law schools facing declining enrollment in this tough job market, getting yet another law school opened in Texas looks to be an uphill battle this session.

The Texas Legislature meets for 140 days during odd-numbered years, called special sessions excluded.

Craig Estlinbaum

Vermont Buyouts and Other Law School News

This is a tough time to be a law school dean.  Consider Vermont Law School dean Marc Mihaly, who only four months into the job, is now facing a $3.3 million budget deficit.  With a  14% projected revenue decline on the horizon, Mihaly has announced a voluntary buyout for VLS staff which he says could be extended to faculty if there are not enough takers.  He also announced that VLS will increase its LL.M program and certificate offerings to make up for the revenue loss. Taja-Nia Henderson at Concurring Opinions, has some interesting comments on the problems and risks associated with law school faculty buyout programs.

Meanwhile, Penn State Law dean Philip McConnaughay, facing declining enrollment at the dual-campus school, has proposed to "spin off" the Carlisle campus into a separate, autonomous entity beginning in 2015.  This proposal came after state and local officials rejected his proposal to consolidatete the 1L program into the University Park campus.  Interestingly, Penn State acquired the Carlisle campus in only 12 years ago.

Ten new law schools that are either ABA accredited or seeking accreditation have opened the doors in the last ten years with new schools in Idaho, Indiana, Louisiana and Texas planning to open.  With enrollment declining and legal jobs paying enough to reasonably retire law school debt harder to find, it seems obvious that some industry restructuring, including possible consolidation or school closure, will occur.  We can expect more stories such as the ones coming out of Vermont and Pennsylvania as this process unwinds.

Craig Estlinbaum  

 

Becoming A Lawyer Blog

I just came across Becoming A Lawyer, a blog by law school publisher Wolters Kluwer-one of the giants in law school publishing. It provides helpful information to prospective law students. For example, the article I just read is about being a law student and a parent at the same time. If your a college student thinking about law school and even if your a 1 L, you may want to check this blog out.

Mitchell H. Rubinstein

National Labor College Closing, Well Sort of

For as long as I can remember, the AFL-CIO owned and operated the National Labor College. Located just outside of D.C., it was a place where union loyalists could get a quality education. As you can imagine, the college also offerred excellent classes on labor relations.

The New York Times is reporting that the AFL-CIO is selling the National Labor College. It just became too expensive, here. Well, all is not lost as the National Labor College will continue to offer online classes and may relocate soon.

Mitchell H. Rubinstein

South Texas College of Law Sweeps Writing Awards

From the South Texas College of Law website:

June 27, 2012 - For the first time in the history of the prestigious American Society of Legal Writers’ Scribes competition, one school took first, second, and third place: South Texas College of Law. The Scribes award is given to authors of the best written legal brief submitted in a national moot court advocacy competition this past academic year. South Texas students authored eight of the 68 briefs entered in the competition. This is the 5th time South Texas has won first place in the competition—no other law school in the U.S. has won it more than once. “The Scribes Award is recognized by all academics as the gold standard for legal writing,” says Associate Dean and Director of Advocacy T. Gerald Treece. “These briefs are judged anonymously and three of ours were the best of best from across the country.”

Formal presentation will be made on August 3 at the Scribes' annual luncheon during the ABA Annual Meetings in Chicago.  Congratulations to winning authors and to Dean Treece and the South Texas advocacy program for this impressive sweep.

Craig Estlinbaum

A 3 Year College Degree

An interesting article in the May 30, 2012 Washington Post entitled New momentum for the three-year degree? outlines the fact that at least two colleges are now offerring 3 year college degrees. The article describes the advantages of a 3 year degree as follows:

The three-year degree holds great promise as a solution to several problems vexing higher education.

One is affordability. At Wesleyan, the annual sticker price is $58,232, although the average student receiving grant aid pays only $21,854. A three-year degree eliminates most or all of that fourth-year tuition and potentially puts the student in the job market a year early.

Another is attainment. President Obama wants the nation to regain the world lead in college attainment (the share of adults with degrees) by 2020. A three-year degree accelerates the pace of completion and opens more seats in the higher-education pipeline. Plus, it’s well-documented that students who remain in college longer stand a progressively worse chance of ever graduating

Presumably, the students still have to take the same amount of classes. This is actually nothing new. I knew students who graduated early by taking classes over the summer and during intersession. 

Frankly, I doubt that this is a good thing. While I have no doubt that many students can finish their degrees earlier, I also have no doubt that rushing things will result in them learning less-much less. There is also a maturity factor that young college students often do not appreciate. 

Mitchell H. Rubinstein

Uniform College Applications

Common App. 4.0 is an interesting New York Times article about a uniform college application which is used by 456 colleges and universities. It is due for an upgrade. Will law schools be next??

Mitchell H. Rubinstein

College/Law School Rankings

Find The Best has a rating system for colleges and law schools. It is not so much of a ranking tool as it is a selection tool. The site takes public information (such as SAT score and tuition) and allows you to narrow your choice of schools in seconds. It is a handy tool and worth a look.

Mitchell H. Rubinstein

College Student Suspended For Writing About Being Attracted To Professor

Oakland University (near Detroit) reportedly suspended a student for 3 semesters because he wrote in a class assignment that he found his instructors attractive. The course specifically permitted students to write creatively about any topic. In one entry titled "Hot for Teacher," the student tells a story about being worried because he is distracted in class by attractive professors. From the Press Release I saw, nothing vulgar was written. I do not know how many stories were written.

The student has retained a lawyer and is apparently bringing a First Amendment case to challenge his suspension. He is supported by an organization called Foundation For Individual Rights in Education, or "FIRE." You can read more about this bizzare story here.

UPDATE: February 13, 2012

It appears that some of the participants in this matter have chosen to comment. Their comments appear below.  

Mitchell H. Rubinstein

New College Ranking System

Check it out. I like the way it is organized; particularly with respect to the composite rating.

Mitchell H. Rubinstein

(note, posting updated to fix broken link)

ICE Raids University of Northern VA

The University of Northern Virginia is an unaccredited for-profit private university that is apparently very popular with foreign students from the country of India. ICE recently raided them. An NBC news report is here. As of 8:12 am EST today, the school's web site is down or at leat I cannot access it.

Mitchell H. Rubinstein 

College Rankings

1. QS World University Rankings This university rankings rank the top schools worldwide, which is usually divided between U.S. and British schools. This site also breaks down top schools by major, with a heavy emphasis on science and technology schools. These rankings are based on academic peer review and employer reviews.
2. U.S. News and World Report College Rankings This publication is well-known as an authority for ranking colleges in the U.S., but they do the same amount of work each year to compile a list of the best universities worldwide. It does this by program and also offers college ranking systems for foreign countries such as Canada and Australia and New Zealand.
3. Princeton Review With the Princeton Review come reviews from college students themselves. This traditional ranking system takes into account student quality life, demographics and the social scene. It also has less traditional rankings including one that may stand out for parents – schools that give you most bang for your buck.
4. Maclean’s University Rankings This Canadian-based magazine has issued worldwide university rankings for years. Maclean’s talks to students and faculty when compiling their list of top schools. There are also lists for best Canadian university, which takes into account job placement and graduation percentages.
5. Academic Ranking of World Universities This is one of the most widely recognized and prestigious world rankings for universities. It has top 100 lists for subjects like engineering and technology as well as social sciences. A conference is held every year to help the committee decide on rankings and several other publications site the ACRU as a source when conducting their own rankings.
6. Times Higher Education Rankings For the past few years, the Times Higher Education Rankings have become of the most definitive sources of ranking world colleges and universities on the web. Schools from 15 countries are featured and rankings are conducted by 50 of the top faculty and education innovators working in higher education. The study goes over 400 schools, ranking them in five primary categories such as teaching and “international mix”.
7. World University Web Rankings This site ranks universities all over the world and is an invaluable tool for students looking to study outside of the country. The site has top 100 lists for the U.S., Europe and Asia, as well as links to schools who participate in the social media wave. Unlike many authoritative lists that discount religion schools, this site has a section for them too.
8. Webometrics Rankings of World Universities This site has been publishing bi-annual rankings each year, covering a whopping 20,000 schools all over the world. The list for top 12,000 schools include learning institutions from China and India. Webometrics ranks schools in numerous areas and with such a large amount of schools, works as a great resource for those attending non-Ivy League schools.
9. Kiplinger World University Rankings This financial site focuses on what you’re getting out of an education at some of the most elite schools in the world. Is any degree worth $100,000 a year? Apparently, the answer is yes and the economists at this site break down what to look for when choosing to attend one of the top schools in the world.
10. The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education has become one of the premiere college and university rankings systems for schools. It bases all of its rankings on how many black students are admitted to the freshman class and the percentage of blacks that graduate from the school each year. It also takes into account black faculty, including how many on staff have made tenure.

Reproduced from Sir Learnalot's Knowledge Blog

Hat Tip: Julia Murphy

College Rankings

So, when it comes time to pick a college many people rely on the so called rankings. Unfortunately, they are often no reliable. Below is a list of websites that rank colleges. You should review all of them and not rely on simply one. Note, the commentary is from online universities, a commercial website.

1. U.S. News
   One of the originals is still the best. With over 25 years of analyzing and reporting on colleges and universities, this publication keeps track of all sorts of schools in addition to ranking them. Along with choices for items such as best liberal arts college and up and coming schools, you can also get profiles on over 1,400 colleges and universities. There are also several blogs to choose from such as Inside the College Rankings and the Student Loan Ranger. 
2. Forbes
   As with the tradition of the magazine, there is nothing cute or jazzy about these college rankings. It is strictly a listing beyond the top 500 of colleges in the U.S. for the current school year. However, those who wish to know the total student population and cost of one year of tuition in one visit will appreciate it. Those interested in statistics on any school that appears on the list can click on it to get information such as student to faculty ratio, graduation rates, financial aid data, and even admissions and athletic data. 
3. The Princeton Review
   Another well-known ranking entity, they survey students as well as others in education to come up with their list. A highlight of the site is being able to choose from rankings by subject such as demographics, town life, schools by type, politics, and others. Clicking under Academics/Administration alone shows you which schools have earned extra credit and which need improvement. However, a subscription is required to view a lot of the material. 
4. Newsweek 
   This leading publication has also become a go-to service for college rankings. They strive to address the needs of both parents and prospective students. Lists of rankings often include specialized schools such as the most desirable of the smaller universities and best colleges for the service minded. There are also guides for getting into school, along with how to pay for it. 
5. WSJ College Rankings
   See your college or university as a business professional does on this site. Unique rankings, such as the top schools as chosen by recruiters, really show you the real world applications of statistics. Many educational and business experts also stop in to write about how they rank schools and hire students.
6.  College ProwlerParents will love the academic rankings. Students will enjoy the rankings of attractiveness of their fellow students. Everything in between is also answered on this site that automatically guesses the schools in your area and lists the grades they got. You can also get statistics and information on campus housing, diversity, athletics, and many others. 
7. Academic Ranking of World Universities 
   If international university rankings are what you are interested in, click here. In addition to ranking schools in the United States, they also take on colleges across the globe. You can get more information on the top 500 universities in general, or search by best school in math, sciences, engineering, and others. 
8. College Guide
   This site, blog, and ranking system are provided by Washington Monthly. Specialty items such as dropout factories and fastest degrees are often taken on and examined thoroughly. You can also get traditional rankings such as best master’s, baccalaureate, and community colleges.

Mitchell H. Rubinstein

Hat Tip: Sir Learnalot's Knowledge Blog

Surprise Surprise New College Grads Not Doing Well In This Economy

Many With New College Degree Find Job Market Humbling is an interesting May 18, 2011 New York Times article. It documents something we all know. The job market is bleak for new college grads with about only 50% of them finding employment in jobs that require a college degree. The article includes the following chart:

Study suggests that undergrad students want to make personal connections with their profs through Twitter.

 The Chronicle of Higher Ed recently published an interesting article on undergraduates and Twitter. The article concludes that most students would like to twitter with their profs. Personally, I do not Twitter. Maybe it is a generational thing, but I simply have no interest in it. 

Hat Tip: Legal Skills Prof Blog

Mitchell H. Rubinstein

AAUP Releases 10-11 Report on The Status of the Profession

AAUP just released its annual report about the status of the profession and the news is not good. The average real increase for all FT faculty is 1%. Contingent non-tenured faculty (FT and Adjunct) now make up 75% of the faculty-yes 75%. A number of institutions have also decreased the level of retirement contributions. 

Interestingly, 63% of all faculty are public employees. So, the current attack on public employees may have a direct effect on higher education.

As someone who has taught as an adjunct for several years now, I believe that there is clearly a place for adjuncts and non-tenured faculty. However, many adjuncts, including this one, feel that they are not part of the university-because they are not. They come and go, often after the regular faculty have left, and simply teach.

Students need more- much more. They need faculty who are committed to an institution. Faculty need to regularly be on campus and be available for students and to participate in school activies whether it is going to a football game or attending a school's moot court competition.

FT tenured track faculty are also important because they are a reflection of the profession. They will be more in tune with the latest trends in education and what is going on in other schools. They are in a better position to both write and recommend new books and to counsel students about additional classes and educational opportunites. It is too bad that so many insitutions are simply focused on the bottom line of paying as less as they can for faculty. Guess who suffers by this. We all do. 

Mitchell H. Rubinstein