Maine bar exam pass rate improves over previous year
BANGOR DAILY NEWS — Eighty-six percent of the September test takers passed the exam, the highest passage rate since July 2016 and nearly 30 percentage points higher than the average passage rate of 56.6 percent between February 2015 and July 2019. The 2020 class of the University of Maine School of Law did even better.
Read More about Maine bar exam pass rate improves over previous yearMichigan Supreme Court announces February bar exam to be administered online
GRAND RAPIDS BUSINESS JOURNAL — The Michigan Supreme Court announced the Board of Law Examiners will administer an online examination from Feb. 23-24. However, the opportunity for in-person testing will be available for students who qualify under the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Read More about Michigan Supreme Court announces February bar exam to be administered onlineNew York October bar exam pass rate improves over 2019
ABA JOURNAL — New York’s bar exam, administered online in October, had an overall pass rate of 84%. According to a news release from the New York Board of Law Examiners, 5,150 people took the test. Comparatively, 7,916 people sat for the state’s July 2019 exam, and the overall pass rate was 76%.
Read More about New York October bar exam pass rate improves over 2019Survey looks at student and faculty opinions about legal education during the pandemic
ABA JOURNAL — Law students understand that faculty are doing the best they can with remote classes but are still concerned about the value of legal education they are receiving, according to a survey recently released. Student respondents indicated that they saw things as being more difficult than faculty or administrators did.
Read More about Survey looks at student and faculty opinions about legal education during the pandemicFlorida colleges host virtual fall graduation ceremonies
TALLAHASSEE DEMOCRAT — Graduation 2020 is here, and in Tallahassee three higher education ceremonies are being held – without the benefit of venues filled with guests. Whether this weekend’s ceremonies are the last for the virtual setting remains up in the air.
Read More about Florida colleges host virtual fall graduation ceremoniesPandemic leads to decline in college enrollment
NPR — According to new data from the National Student Clearinghouse, undergraduate enrollment this fall declined by 3.6% from the fall of 2019. Most of that decline occurred at community colleges, where enrollment fell by more than 10%, or more than 544,000 students.
Read More about Pandemic leads to decline in college enrollmentColleges reflect on COVID-19 containment strategies
INSIDE HIGHER ED — Sewanee in Tennessee credits its relatively low case numbers to weekly required COVID testing for the approximately 1,600 students on campus combined with a “bubble” approach that largely prohibited students from leaving campus except for essential activities such as medical appointments.
Read More about Colleges reflect on COVID-19 containment strategiesSurvey measures student satisfaction with college classes during the pandemic
INSIDE HIGHER ED — Students who learned entirely online during the fall semester said they received a slightly poorer quality of education than those who had in-person instruction, according to a new poll released Tuesday. Dissatisfaction was highest among students whom the pandemic “forced online.”
Read More about Survey measures student satisfaction with college classes during the pandemicCommunity colleges experienced a sharp decline in fall enrollment
INSIDE HIGHER ED — Community college enrollment saw the sharpest declines, and freshman enrollment is down 13.1 percent. Community college enrollment is down 10.1 percent. Public colleges over all lost 4 percent of their enrollment, a concerning fact given public institutions enroll seven out of 10 students.
Read More about Community colleges experienced a sharp decline in fall enrollmentColleges request federal aid amid pandemic-driven economic declines
INSIDE HIGHER ED — At stake as negotiations in Congress over passing another coronavirus aid package remain stalled is whether more emergency grants are coming to students. Perhaps the most immediate need before Congress, say financial aid administrators, is more money for emergency grants to give out to struggling students.
Read More about Colleges request federal aid amid pandemic-driven economic declines