SBA Initiatives
Executive Platform 2007-2008;
President Karim David Marshall & Vice President Scott Ross Daniel
Coming Soon!
Executive Platform 2006-2007;
President Jon D. Feere & Vice President Noah Schabacker
Coming Soon!
Executive Platform 2005-2006;
President Adam J. Cohen & Vice President Jon D. Feere
Fighting for Greater Equity and Opportunity in the Academic Program
As members of the student body, I hope you will amplify our voice by also taking the time to speak with your professors and show your support for the following initiatives by signing petitions that we will prepare for submission to the Dean's office.
- The adoption of section rankings for first-year students as a complement to the class-wide ranking system. This system would provide a more equitable and accurate mechanism for exhibiting students' academic achievement during their first year of legal study. Such a system would more accurately inform prospective employers of how students compare to their immediate peers, and not merely to students held to a different standard by a different set of first-year professors.
- The availability of enrolling in a pass/fail option for up to three (3) courses during one's second and third years to encourage students to take bar-preparatory courses they might not otherwise take out of fear of weaker academic performance. One would expect that by increasing enrollment in such courses as Evidence and Wills, Trusts, and Estates for example, a greater number of students will approach their post-graduation bar preparation with a stronger foundation of knowledge and understanding.
- The extension of the law school's add/drop period to allow students to fully survey courses. Lengthening this period (the current period is only five days) would ensure that students remain enrolled in courses that meet their specific academic needs and have an opportunity to withdraw from courses that do not meet their expectations without penalty. ABA credit requirements preclude a lengthy add period, but there is no reason such a period cannot be extended at least through the weekend to allow students additional time to consider alternate courses. And certainly, more time could be allotted for students to drop courses they find after two weeks are not what they anticipated.
- The development of a course waiting list that allows students with course selection priority to take advantage of their priority number by adding their names into a queue for high demand courses when they become full. In preliminary discussions, the Administration has said that the law school's current course registration software does not accommodate such a capability. We hope to explore with the Administration the financial and technological obstacles to modernizing its software in order to better accommodate student needs and desires.
Developing Clearer Avenues of Communication
- Facilitating Communication Between Student Organizations and the WCL Administration: The SBA recognizes the importance of interconnectedness within the law school and that WCL is strongest when the students, deans, and administrators all work together to advance the institution's interests. To ensure that the Offices of Alumni Relations, Career Services, and Externship Services do not miss opportunities to build and cultivate relationships with those alumni and visitors participating in WCL student organization events, President Cohen and Vice President Feere have led the development of a formal automated reporting system that will permit these important WCL offices to expand the law school's network while simultaneously respecting the autonomy that student organizations presently enjoy when hosting panel discussions and other events.
- Requiring Student Organizations to Develop Organizational TWEN Homepages: This year the Student Bar Association (SBA) will require the use of Westlaw-developed course homepages which will promote the institutionalization of organizational knowledge and facilitate communication between the SBA leadership and student organizational leaders. In addition, TWEN homepages contain a functionality that allows for the page administrator to develop forums in which student members can engage in dialogue on the day's hottest legal issues.
- Revamping the Law School Newsletter ("The Docket") to Make it More User-Friendly: The Student Bar Association hopes to work with the Administration in the year ahead to modernize the Docket to better facilitate student searches for the information and opportunities they seek. By developing a pull-down menu that pertains to specific issues (e.g., criminal law, IP, law and government), deadlines (e.g., deadlines for scholarship opportunities and financial aid filing), and professional opportunities (e.g., dean's fellowships, clinics, and externships), students, faculty and members of the WCL Administration will be able to more easily navigate through what has become a lengthy document. The SBA advocates the adoption of this functionality that will allow Docket readers to quickly identify those things most pertinent to them and also to review any matters the Administration considers pressing.
- Working with the Administration to Improve Communication of Programs to Students: Recognizing the difficulty the Administration encounters in informing the student body of various academic programs and opportunities, the SBA has committed to partnering with the Administration to ensure that important messages regarding academic advising and career services programs are communicated through more efficient channels, even if it means recruiting student leaders to enter individual classrooms and make formal announcements.
Student Services
- Launching of Exam Preparatory Outline Bank: At the end of each semester, law students nationwide often prepare for final exams by creating detailed outlines that organize their full semester's course notes. Historically, upper-class students have assisted their underclass counterparts in preparing for exams by sharing outlines created in previous semesters - a practice many law schools, including WCL, promote. To facilitate this exchange, the SBA has launched an outline database for students to submit and download course outlines, which has the effect of providing students the opportunity to consider another student's perspective on how best to organize an entire semester's worth of material. The availability of this resource will lead to a more efficient use of limited study time, as well as continue to foster the noncompetitive environment that has become the hallmark of legal study at WCL.
- Assuming a Greater Role in American Bar Association (ABA) Activities: In recent years, the SBA at the Washington College of Law has failed to maintain a high level of activity within its local circuit of the ABA. President Cohen has appointed Senator Katie Smith to serve as the WCL student liaison to the ABA and charged her with the primary responsibility of identifying student opportunities within that association. In addition to this liaison, the SBA also plans to organize an ABA membership drive next year, which will encourage WCL students to take advantage of other educational and professional opportunities available through the ABA. To learn more about ABA opportunities, contact Senator Smith or visit the ABA law student division's site.
- Renovating Student Lounges to Create a More "Relaxed" Student Study Space: This summer President Cohen and Vice President Feere commenced plans to renovate a popular student lounge on the sixth floor of the Washington College of Law. The SBA will seek to work with the Administration to fully fund these renovations in the year ahead to ensure that these plans move forward as anticipated and are completed in a manner that will best accommodate students' diverse needs and desires.
- Developing Relationships with Local Establishments to Benefit Students: Last May President Cohen arranged for the local Starbucks establishment to provide up to 60 gallons of free coffee to students during the law school's reading and exam period, as well as committing to extending their hours during this same period to accommodate WCL students as they prepare for exams. The SBA will continue to meet with local community establishments in hope of developing relationships that will result in a variety of financial discounts for WCL students throughout the District of Columbia.
- Improving the SBA Mentor-Mentee Program: This year for the first time the SBA has matched 1L students with 2Ls and 3Ls of similar interests and experiences. Student leader Laurita Denny has been leading this effort and should be contacted if you are interested in serving as either a mentor to a first-year student or are a first-year student yourself and seeking a mentor at WCL.
- Developing a Multi-Functional Student Bar Association Website: The SBA hopes the creation and consistent maintenance of this site will serve as an information hub to serve all of the WCL student body's needs, including state bar applications and opportunities to participate in events at Washington's other law and professional schools that will further enhance your chances for networking. For the first time, this year the SBA's locker distribution system was automated and our exam outline bank is now fully functional and available on this site.
Providing More Improved Services for WCL Students and Organizations
- Redrafting of the SBA Finance Committee's Budget Guidelines: By providing more transparent guidelines, organizational presidents and treasurers will understand in advance which expenses are permissible and the processes by which the SBA Finance Committee will appropriate funds.
Parking
- Advocate for a More Reasonable Parking Policy that Recognizes Students' Rights to Park on Public Streets While Simultaneously Respecting Local Neighborhood Interests: After years of calling on American University (AU) and WCL Administrators to better articulate various facets of an overly vague parking policy, this past spring AU finally defined the policy's geographic boundaries, which had long been one of the students' central concerns. However, the area AU has identified as falling within the policy's scope remains excessively overbroad and unfair. The SBA plans to continue challenging this unreasonable policy in the year ahead and will work with the AU and WCL Administration to identify more realistic boundaries that respect both neighborhood concerns and students' rights.
Health Care
- SBA is continually working to improve the quality of health care and insurance coverage made available to WCL students. In recent years, the Student Bar Association has succeeded in having the Student Health Center's $55 per year initial visit fee waived and gaining prescription coverage for most Birth Control medications.
Community Service & Public Interest
- Launching an SBA community service program: The SBA will seek to sponsor one community service event each semester to promote the need for our students to take some time away from our studies to give back to the Washington, D.C. community, and provide opportunities for our students to interact on a social level outside the classroom at the same time.
- Advocating for more funding of PILRAP: As an institution WCL prides itself on its public interest program, and rightfully so. However, while the program is first rate, the financial support of the students actively involved in it is not. The Public Interest Loan Repayment Assistance Program must be revisited to increase its funding level to accommodate larger scholarships to a greater number of students. The SBA's Vice President of Economic Affairs will lead that effort beginning this year.
