Program: Law (JD)
Degree: Doctor, Juris
Date: Tue Oct 19, 2010 - 8:12:50 am
1) Below are the program student learning outcomes submitted last year. Please add/delete/modify as needed.
The William S. Richardson School of Law is a professional school conferring Juris Doctor (JD) and Master of Laws (LLM) degrees. The school's JD program is accredited by the American Bar Association and accepted for membership in the Association of American Law Schools.
Students admitted to the JD program must have an undergraduate degree, among other requirements.
In Hawai`i, and nearly every other state, a JD degree from an accredited school is essential to become a licensed attorney. The Law School necessarily focuses substantial attention on those learning objectives aimed at preparation to pass the bar examination and to practice law ethically and effectively. The school also emphasizes areas of law of importance to Hawai`i and to the school's mission.
JD Program student outcomes are to:
(1) understand ethical responsibilities as representatives of clients, officers of the court, and public citizens responsible for the quality and availability of justice;
(2) obtain basic education through a curriculum that develops:
(i) understanding of the theory, philosophy, role, and ramifications of the law and its institutions;
(ii) proficiency in legal analysis, reasoning, problem solving; oral and written communication; legal research;
(iii) fundamental professional practices necessary to participate effectively in the legal profession;
(iv) mastery of substantive law regarded as necessary to effective and responsible participation in the legal profession through a completion of a curriculum of required and elective study;
(3) understand the law as a public profession calling for performance of pro bono legal services;
(4) promote the development of students' critical thinking skills and other intellectual tools that will serve their life-long learning needs, and enable them to provide leadership in law through contributions in research and practice; and
(5) understand and respect law as a social institution in the context of a diverse state with a unique and important history and recognize our global connectedness, especially to the Asia and Pacific regions.
2) As of last year, your program's SLOs were published as follows. Please update as needed.
Department Website URL: Student Handbook. URL, if available online: Information Sheet, Flyer, or Brochure URL, if available online: UHM Catalog. Page Number: 
Course Syllabi. URL, if available online: NA Other: Other: 3) Below is the link to your program's curriculum map (if submitted in 2009). If it has changed or if we do not have your program's curriculum map, please upload it as a PDF.
4) The percentage of courses in 2009 that had course SLOs explicitly stated on the syllabus, a website, or other publicly available document is indicated below. Please update as needed.
0% 1-50% 51-80%
81-99% 100%5) State the assessment question(s) and/or goals of the assessment activity. Include the SLOs that were targeted, if applicable.
In conjunction with a site visit from our accrediting agency, the American Bar Association, the law school engaged in a thorough self-study process that resulted in a revised mission statement, goals to improve the law program and the means for accomplishing the goals. The 108 page document, plus appendices, represents a comprehensive assessment of all aspects of the law school.
6) State the type(s) of evidence gathered.
Surveys of students (e.g. the Law School Student Engagement Survey) faculty, staff, alumni, and members of the Hawai‘i state bar; statistics relating to admissions, bar passage rate, class sizes, numbers and types of courses offered etc.; and oral comments through focus groups and faculty meetings.
7) Who interpreted or analyzed the evidence that was collected?
Course instructor(s) Faculty committee Ad hoc faculty group Department chairperson Persons or organization outside the university Faculty advisor Advisors (in student support services) Students (graduate or undergraduate) Dean/Director Other: 8) How did they evaluate, analyze, or interpret the evidence?
Used a rubric or scoring guide Scored exams/tests/quizzes Used professional judgment (no rubric or scoring guide used) Compiled survey results Used qualitative methods on interview, focus group, open-ended response data External organization/person analyzed data (e.g., external organization administered and scored the nursing licensing exam) Other: 9) State how many persons submitted evidence that was evaluated.
If applicable, please include the sampling technique used.
Not sure.
10) Summarize the actual results.
We are awaiting the report from our accrediting body. We believe we have met and/or exceeded all requirements.
11) How did your program use the results? --or-- Explain planned use of results.
Please be specific.
We will use them in our upcoming strategic planning process and overall curricular review process.
12) Beyond the results, were there additional conclusions or discoveries? This can include insights about assessment procedures, teaching and learning, program aspects and so on.
No.