Major changes are happening in legal education. In addition to the Next Gen bar exam and new pathways for licensure, the ABA recently changed accreditation standards to include professional identity formation and training on bias, cross-cultural competency, and racism, and, in February, added more requirements for learning outcomes and standards-based assessment. Meanwhile, the Conference of Chief Justices will soon issue recommendations on how we license new lawyers and ensure they are practice ready upon graduation.
To address these changes, the panel will discuss clinical design and the importance of integrated student learning with respective community partners—inside and outside of law school—including mental health services, medical providers, and political leadership, to showcasing how clinical legal education may leverage its unique space outside of the conventional classroom. The panel will also discuss the merits of professional identity being forged “all at once” or through a steady programmatic progression, with varying formats preparing students for innovative licensure, supervisory practice, and the Next Gen bar exam.
The panel brings together a uniquely suited set of experience and perspective. Logan Cornett is a leading expert in innovative licensure and advises many states, including Oregon, Utah, and Minnesota. Zack DeMeola oversees LSAC research on who today’s law students are, what motivates them, and how they learn. Zack and Logan will also share insights from Foundations 2.0, a collaborative project scoping how competence in the legal profession can be aligned with legal education at a time when lawyers are expected to be highly skilled but also adaptable, inclusive, and responsive to the needs of an evolving society. Last, two professors, Christine Cerniglia and Michael Vastine, will share their new collaboration, melding different perspectives on clinical practices while discussing how they simultaneously created effective partnerships and efficient programming.