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Phoenix grapples with dismal bar pass rate; UMass dean suddenly resigns

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It was a GOOD week for …

FACING UP TO PROBLEMS, after Phoenix School of Law Dean Shirley Mays responded to her school’s dismal bar pass rate with a series of action items. The only private school in the state, founded in 2005 and accredited last year, had a first time pass rate of 61.8 percent, compared to the statewide first time pass rate of 75.7 percent.

“The most recent bar pass rates fell below our standards and our expectations, and we are in the process of exploring the factors that may have led to the lower exam scores,” said Mays.

The $36,116-per-year school (which has no relation to the University of Phoenix) surveyed those who did not pass the bar, met with current students and staff and will meet with alumni and faculty in the coming weeks.

The school’s bar prep course will focus more attention on tackling multiple-choice questions, since that section now carries heavier weight. In addition, the school will hold a faculty summit to “assess the level of rigor in the classroom,” Mays said.

A pissed-off grad outlined his beef with his alma mater in a letter, which Above the Law posted in a blog about Phoenix’s low bar passage rates.

“We strongly refute the multiple inaccuracies in this story,” Mays said.

The letter insinuates that Phoenix mostly hires past grads as legal skills counselors; Mays responded by saying out of its 10 legal skills counselors, three are grads. The letter also suggests that Phoenix tells its students to take their Gateway to Success post-grad bar prep course over an established one, but Mays argued that Phoenix’s course is “designed to supplement, not replace, other commercial bar prep courses and students are strongly encouraged to take a commercial bar prep course.”

It was a BAD week for …

DEAN DROPOUTS, after the dean of the year-old University of Massachusetts School of Law in Dartmouth stepped down amidst speculations he inappropriately used the school’s credit card

He instead blames his resignation on the toll his two-hour commute took on his family and his deteriorating health, according to his resignation letter addressed to Chancellor Jean MacCormack.

“Given everything that we have accomplished and the tasks which remain unfinished, I realize that there will never be a good time to step down,” he wrote.

His sudden resignation — effective Oct. 21 — comes at an inopportune time as the new school seeks accreditation from the American Bar Association this year. UMass has quite the search task on its hands; on top of Ward, the school also needs to replace MacCormack, who already announced her retirement at the end of the school year, and provost Anthony Garro, who exits in January.

“Like many University officials, I was authorized to use a University credit card for official travel and other expenses. I reimbursed the University for any personal expenses which appeared on that card,” according to a statement released from a media relations official hired by Ward.

“An unrelated University audit revealed $2,235 in expenses which should have been reimbursed. The moment I was told of this oversight, I reimbursed the University fully and completely. This issue had no bearing on my decision to resign for personal and health reasons and it does absolutely nothing to diminish the great success we have had creating a successful, public law school in Massachusetts.”

An official at another Massachusetts law school recently made headlines for financial misconduct. Douglas Lehman, a former controller at New England Law Boston, plead guilty this month to charges of stealing $173,000 from the law school using his work computer.
 

Tierney Plumb

Tierney Plumb

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