A friend of ours was in Charleston, S.C. this week during the peak of the local law school drama and snapped a picture (above) that we think is worth a thousand words.
It’s an especially interesting juxtaposition in light of the rumors surrounding the Charleston School of Law (CSOL) and its new “partner,” InfiLaw – a company critics say runs a ring of law school “diploma mills.”
Anyway … we thought we’d pass it along.
News of the CSOL-InfiLaw arrangement – which broke exclusively on FITS – has infuriated staffers, faculty and students. The deal also caused Judge Alex Sanders – a CSOL founder and the school’s longtime public face – to resign in protest along with fellow founder Ralph McCullough.
20 comments
Alex and Ralph are going to be just fine. One must just look at their “disraceful resignation in protest” as a cover for a wise business decision. They got in the game at a good time, and our stellar economic environment makes this an even better time to get out of the game.
But for cheap federal credit and the capitalistic endeavors of Budget, that part of Meeting Street would likely be inhabited by the brothers and sisters who vote for Joe Riley. Yes that same Joe Riley who has approved deals with the new owners of the school to gentrify said voters hoods. Must keep the property values up you see. Can’t lose that tax revenue….
Alex and Ralph are going to be just fine. One must just look at their “disraceful resignation in protest” as a cover for a wise business decision. They got in the game at a good time, and our stellar economic environment makes this an even better time to get out of the game.
But for cheap federal credit and the capitalistic endeavors of Budget, that part of Meeting Street would likely be inhabited by the brothers and sisters who vote for Joe Riley. Yes that same Joe Riley who has approved deals with the new owners of the school to gentrify said voters hoods. Must keep the property values up you see. Can’t lose that tax revenue….
Considering the diploma mill complaints, if only the Budget shop next door were actually a Kinkos, this would have been absolutely perfect.
Too funny!
Or maybe a UPS or FedEx, but you’d have to explain it (“fly by night”).
Considering the diploma mill complaints, if only the Budget shop next door were actually a Kinkos, this would have been absolutely perfect.
Too funny!
Or maybe a UPS or FedEx, but you’d have to explain it (“fly by night”).
That building has been utilized as a annex for multiple years. Not new to CSOL.
That building has been utilized as a annex for multiple years. Not new to CSOL.
I found it interesting that many students had inquired about transfers. Transferring from one school of law to another requires that the school the student is attending is a “credible” school and the student is an exceptional student. I would think it would be hard to transfer even to the USC School of Law from the CSOL. Anyone else have any thoughts on this?
As long as the school is ABA accredited and the other school is willing to accept the student, there shouldn’t be any problems with a transfer. Additionally, the school accepting the transfer student won’t have to report GPA/LSAT to the rankings since the student is entering his/her second year. USC might have an incentive to grab some students from Charleston and they won’t pay a price in the US News rankings. Additionally, these students may provide some needed tuition dollars for USC as USC is under no obligations to honor CSL scholarships. I guess USC could swoop in and grab the “best” of the CSL class.
But are there any exceptional students there? That is my ultimate question. Why would an exceptional student choose CSOL when there are so many other options.
There’s going to be a top 10% anywhere. An exceptional student at CSOL could be: there on full scholarship, well connected with a job after graduation, tied to Charleston due to spouse’s job, already wealthy, or maybe had poor numbers coming in but really improved in law school. Overall, I think some students are just going to be successful in spite of where they go. I’m sure USC is poaching right now. So if you thought the CSOL class was bad this year, wait until the fall starts. . .
Thank you for mentioning “spouses job.” Some of us are starting here in the fall because our spouse(s) have reputable jobs in the communit. For the traditionallyaged students who only have a degree as their major accomplishment on their resume, I understand the disdain over this whole ordeal. However, for a non-traditionallyaged student with an extensive work history in a niche market, this Infilaw variable changes nothing.
To your point Ocelot, I know a current student who is transferring to Emory. Top 25 law school. There are smart people everywhere. And usually they know that their degree is called a Juris Doctor and not a Juris “Doctorate” (sorry, had to)
I found it interesting that many students had inquired about transfers. Transferring from one school of law to another requires that the school the student is attending is a “credible” school and the student is an exceptional student. I would think it would be hard to transfer even to the USC School of Law from the CSOL. Anyone else have any thoughts on this?
As long as the school is ABA accredited and the other school is willing to accept the student, there shouldn’t be any problems with a transfer. Additionally, the school accepting the transfer student won’t have to report GPA/LSAT to the rankings since the student is entering his/her second year. USC might have an incentive to grab some students from Charleston and they won’t pay a price in the US News rankings. Additionally, these students may provide some needed tuition dollars for USC as USC is under no obligations to honor CSL scholarships. I guess USC could swoop in and grab the “best” of the CSL class.
But are there any exceptional students there? That is my ultimate question. Why would an exceptional student choose CSOL when there are so many other options.
There’s going to be a top 10% anywhere. An exceptional student at CSOL could be: there on full scholarship, well connected with a job after graduation, tied to Charleston due to spouse’s job, already wealthy, or maybe had poor numbers coming in but really improved in law school. Overall, I think some students are just going to be successful in spite of where they go. I’m sure USC is poaching right now. So if you thought the CSOL class was bad this year, wait until the fall starts. . .
Thank you for mentioning “spouses job.” Some of us are starting here in the fall because our spouse(s) have reputable jobs in the communit. For the traditionallyaged students who only have a degree as their major accomplishment on their resume, I understand the disdain over this whole ordeal. However, for a non-traditionallyaged student with an extensive work history in a niche market, this Infilaw variable changes nothing.
To your point Ocelot, I know a current student who is transferring to Emory. Top 25 law school. There are smart people everywhere. And usually they know that their degree is called a Juris Doctor and not a Juris “Doctorate” (sorry, had to)