B.A. to J.D. Pipeline Project Launched

The B.A. to J.D. Pipeline Program Symposium

Opening Doors: Making Diversity Matter in Law School Admissions


Co-Sponsors

• Society of American Law Teachers (SALT)
• The Ronald H. Brown Center for Civil Rights and Economic Development, St. John's School of Law
• Journal of Civil Rights and Economic Development, St. John's School of Law
• Dean's Diversity Council, Seton Hall University School of Law
• Center for Diversity in the Legal Profession, CUNY School of Law
• LatinoJustice PRLDEF
• The Institute for Inclusion in the Legal Profession
• American Bar Association Council on Racial and Ethnic Diversity in the Educational Pipeline

Date
: Friday, November 11, 2011

Law school admissions of students of color, especially African American and Mexican American candidates, have been on the decline. The work of Columbia Clinical Law Professor Conrad Johnson through the Society of American Law Schools (SALT) shows that despite an increase of 3,000 additional seats in new ABA-approved law schools, few of these new seats have gone to minority law school applicants. During the same period of time, candidates of color have improved their LSAT scores and overall GPAs, making them more attractive applicants, yet their "shut out rate"—rejections from all of the schools to which they applied—is significantly higher than white candidates.

This symposium, which launches SALT's B.A. to J.D. Pipeline Program, will examine a wide array of issues and factors that deter college students of color from applying to and gaining admission to law schools.

This program has been generously funded by The Charles Evans Hughes Memorial Foundation and St. John's University School of Law. 

Conference Themes Include:

    •    The impact of low LSAT scores on a candidate's chances of being admitted to law schools, especially in light of law schools' overreliance on the LSAT

    •    How to identify and develop studies highlighting special issues in advising students of color

    •    The various methodologies available to reform U.S. News to incorporate diversity within its overall rankings methodology

    •    How to devise and promote adoption of model pre-law counseling techniques for students of color

Featured Speakers Include:

• Juan Cartagena, President and General Counsel, LatinoJustice PRLDEF
• Anthony Paul Farley, James Campbell Matthews Distinguished Professor of Jurisprudence, Albany Law School
• Rachel D. Godsil, Eleanor Bontecou Professor of Law, Seton Hall Law
• Conrad Johnson, Clinical Professor of Law, Columbia Law School
• Kevin Johnson, Dean and Mabie-Apallas Professor of Public Interest and Chicana/o Studies, UC Davis School of Law
• Robert Morse, Director of Data Research, U.S. News & World Report
• Jeffrey Evans Stake, Robert A. Lucas Chair of Law, Indiana University Maurer School of Law
• Sarah E. Redfield, University of New Hampshire School of Law

   The B.A. to J.D. Pipeline Program

Symposium: Opening Doors: Making Diversity Matter in Law School Admissions

B.A. to J.D. Pipeline presents

Opening Doors: Making Diversity Matter in Law School Admissions
Friday, November 11, 2011
9:15 am – 5:00 pm, reception to follow
St. John’s University School of Law
8000 Utopia Parkway, Jamaica, NY 11439

9:45 am: Welcome:     Michael A. Simons, Dean, St. John’s University School of Law
            Hazel Weiser, Executive Director, Society of American Law Teachers

10:00-11:30: Opening Plenary:  We Have a Problem Here—Admissions and the LSAT

Moderator: Anthony Paul Farley, James Campbell Matthews, Distinguished Professor of Jurisprudence, Albany Law School
    •    Conrad Johnson, Clinical Professor of Law, Columbia Law School; Author, The Disturbing Decline in Law School Admissions
    •    Rachel D. Godsil, Eleanor Bontecou Professor of Law, Seton Hall School of Law 

11:45 am-12:45 pm: Working Session: Strategies for Reaching Students of Color
Moderator: Solangel Maldonado, Professor of Law, Seton Hall School of Law
    •    Leonard M. Baynes, Professor of Law, Director, The Ronald H. Brown Center for Civil Rights and Economic Development, St. John’s School of Law
    •    Juan Cartagena, President and General Counsel, LatinoJustice
    •    Hector Maquieira '13, St. John’s School of Law
    •    Whitney Montgomery '12, Touro Law Center


12:45-2:00 pm: Luncheon is served: informal conversation and networking

2:15-3:15 pm: Working Session: Difficult Conversations: Cultural Sensitivity in Effective Counseling of Students of Color

    •    Sonji R. Patrick, Director of Education, LatinoJustice
    •    Nathalie Lamberto '13, St. John’s School of Law
    •    Robert Pallitto, Pre Law Advisor, Seton Hall University
    •    Chrishana White '13, Seton Hall School of Law
    •    Joseph Kenny, Sr., Pre Law Advisor, St. John’s University, Staten Island Campus
    •    Audree Maldonado '12, St. John’s School of Law
     
3:30-5:00 pm: Closing Plenary: Reforming U.S News Rankings to Include Diversity
Moderator: Michael A. Simons, Dean and John V. Brennan 
Professor of Law and Ethics, St. John’s School of Law
    •    Kevin Johnson, Dean and Mabie-Apallas Professor of Public Interest and Chicana/o Studies, UC Davis School of Law
    •    Robert Morse, Director of Data Research, U.S. News & World Report
    •    Jeffrey Evans Stake, Robert A. Lucas Chair of Law, Indiana University Maurer School of Law

• Sarah E. Redfield, University of New Hampshire School of Law
  

The B.A. to J.D. Pipeline has been generously funded by The Charles Evans Hughes Memorial Foundation and St. John’s University School of Law.