Nirvana or Apocalypse Now:Nirvana or Apocalypse Now:

Distance Learning, For-Profit EducationDistance Learning, For-Profit Education

And the Concord Law School StoryAnd the Concord Law School Story

Washington University Law SchoolOctober 6, 2006

Dean Barry CurrierConcord Law School

Nirvana

Emancipation from ignorance and achieving enlightenment?

or…

Kurt Cobain’s band and music that the older generation just did not get?

Apocalypse Now

The imminent destruction of the world?

or…

A cutting-edge movie that helped fire the career of a great

American filmmaker?

Concord Law School is a …

For-profit

Online

Law School

Concord Law School is … For-profit

For-profit vs. Not-for-profit EducationFor-profit vs. Not-for-profit Education

• Not impure vs. pure; better: taxed vs. not taxed

• For for-profits: access and cost advantages; focus on outcomes and accountability

• Not for not-for-profits: disconnected business activities (IP, sports, memorial plots, selling direct loans; logo license, radio stations); discounted tuition/rankings; targeted philanthropy

For-profit Education: Scope and Major PlayersFor-profit Education: Scope and Major Players

In addition to Kaplan, some major players: • Apollo Group (U. Phoenix, Axia): >300,000 students at 160+

campuses + online; 2005 revenue of $2.3 billion• Laureate: >225,000 students in 15 countries + online; 2005

revenue of $875 million• Capella: >16,000, graduate curriculum, fully online, students in all

states and 63 countries• EDMC: >72,000 students at 72 campuses + online; includes

Western State University College of Law; 2005 revenue > $1 billion

• Cardean: consortium including Carnegie-Mellon, Columbia, Chicago, LSE, Stanford B-schools; MBA and MA/MS degrees

• NYU undergraduate online degrees• U. Maryland online• Duke (and others in MBA space)

Concord’s Corporate Context: Concord’s Corporate Context: Kaplan and the Washington Post CompanyKaplan and the Washington Post Company

Concord is Part of Kaplan, Inc.Concord is Part of Kaplan, Inc.

Kaplan Mission Statement:

At Kaplan, our mission is to help individuals achieve their educational

and career goals. We build futures one success story at a time.

Kaplan: More Than a Test Prep Kaplan: More Than a Test Prep BusinessBusiness

Kaplan Higher Education is a Major Player in Kaplan Higher Education is a Major Player in the For-profit Higher Ed Worldthe For-profit Higher Ed World

KHE: >60,000 total students, >75 campuses in >25 states) and onlineKU: >20,000, HLC-accredited online university, certificate programs to Masters degrees

The Kaplan/ ConnectionThe Kaplan/ Connection

“Kaplan became our most profitable business for the first time. Writing that sentence still feels somewhat amazing: ten years ago… Kaplan … was so small we recorded its results in the ‘other’ segment. Last year, Kaplan’s revenues were 40% of The Post Company’s. The education company employs 8,980 people, 55% of the company’s total full-time employees.”

Chairman Donald Graham’s Letter to Shareholders, The Washington Post Company 2005 Annual Report

Concord Law School is … Online

Distance EducationDistance Education

Not the perfect solution for all education

and…

Not the end of life as we know it

Graphing the Learning EnvironmentGraphing the Learning Environment

Synchronous

Asynchronous

No F 2 F

100% F 2 F

= Correspondence

= Concord

= A Course

= Classroom

A Distance Learning ContinuumA Distance Learning Continuum

• Distance learning: separation between students and teacher in time or space

• A variety of ways to use contemporary distance learning approaches and technologies:

– Class supplement – Hybrid course – Fully online course – Hybrid degree program – Fully online degree program

Distance Learning VocabularyDistance Learning Vocabulary

• Synchronous: real-time

• Asynchronous: not at the same time

• F2F: Face-to-face, students and teachers in one room

• Chat: a distance learning class– Moderated or unmoderated– Text-based, audio, video or a combination– Can include whiteboard, PowerPoint, video clips, polling and

other features

• Message Board: Q & A; some say an asynchronous class, and others say a method of interaction that is not a class; can be moderated or not

Distance Learning VocabularyDistance Learning Vocabulary

• “Online” program:

– Read the ingredients on the back of the box• Is the online program:

– P.O. Box with a website?– Old-style correspondence sped up by e-mail attachment?– Completely self-paced, completely asynchronous?– Blended online and F2F curriculum?– A full, robust interactive experience for students and faculty?

– There are many possible arrangements

– Delivery mechanisms are part of the analysis; more important are what is delivered and who delivers it

Distance Learning Is a Fact of Life Distance Learning Is a Fact of Life Outside of Legal EducationOutside of Legal Education

Virtual High School Marketing is BoomingVirtual High School Marketing is Booming

Online Degree and Certificate Programs are GrowingOnline Degree and Certificate Programs are Growing

Online Learning is Working Well in the Online Learning is Working Well in the University EnvironmentUniversity Environment

• > 2.3 million students studying online in Fall 2004 semester, up 18% from Fall 2003

• The proportion of institutions which believe that online education is critical to their long-term strategy continues to increase, from 49% in 2003 to 56% in 2005.

Growing by Degrees: Online Education in the United States, 2005 (The Sloan Consortium)

• 97% of institutions report that students are as or more satisfied with online courses as with face-to-face courses.

Entering the Mainstream: The Quality and Extent of Online Education in the United States, 2003 and 2004 (The Sloan Consortium)

Online Learning: the Higher Education ActOnline Learning: the Higher Education Act

• Elimination of the “50 percent rule”

• Beginning of differentiation between traditional correspondence education and online learning

Online Learning: Accreditation Outside of Online Learning: Accreditation Outside of Legal EducationLegal Education

Statement of Commitment by the Regional Accrediting Commissions for theEvaluation of Electronically Offered Degree and Certificate Programs

Technologically mediated instruction offered at a distance has rapidly become an important component of higher education…. The approach of the regional commissions to these emergent forms of learning is expressed in a set of commitments aimed at ensuring high quality in distance education….

* * *

The regional accrediting commissions are aware of the need for a collaborative approach which extends beyond their community, that others, particularly the states and federal government, have substantial voice in addressing quality assurance issues related to distance education programming…. [T]he eight commissions are pledged to continue to work individually and collectively with those agencies to achieve our commonly held goals of assuring the quality of academic offerings regardless of the medium of their delivery….

* * *

As the higher education community increasingly expands educational opportunities through electronically offered programming, the regional commissions are committed to supporting good practice in distance education among affiliated colleges and universities. Doing so is in keeping with their mission to encourage institutional improvement toward a goal of excellence….

Online Learning: Accreditation Outside of Online Learning: Accreditation Outside of Legal EducationLegal Education

Best Practices for Electronically Offered Degree and Certificate Programs

… The[se] Best Practices … are not new evaluative criteria. Rather they explicate how the well-established essentials of institutional quality found in regional accreditation standards are applicable to the emergent forms of learning; much of the detail of their content would find application in any learning environment. …

These Best Practices are divided into five separate components:

1. Institutional Context and Commitment. Electronically offered programs both support and extend the roles of educational institutions. Increasingly they are integral to academic organization, with growing implications for institutional infrastructure.

2. Curriculum and Instruction. Methods change, but standards of quality endure. The important issues are not technical but curriculum-driven and pedagogical….

3. Faculty Support. As indicated above, faculty roles are becoming increasingly diverse and reorganized. For example, the same person may not perform both the tasks of course development and direct instruction to students….

4. Student Support. Colleges and universities have learned that the twenty-first century student is different, both demographically and geographically, from students of previous generations. These differences affect everything from admissions policy to library services. Reaching these students, and serving them appropriately, are major challenges….

5. Evaluation and Assessment. Both the assessment of student achievement and evaluation of the overall program take on added importance as new techniques evolve. For example, in asynchronous programs the element of seat time is essentially removed from the equation. For these reasons, the institution conducts sustained, evidence-based and participatory inquiry as to whether distance learning programs are achieving objectives. The results of such inquiry are used to guide curriculum design and delivery, pedagogy, and educational processes, and may affect future policy and budgets and perhaps have implications for the institution’s roles and mission.

Distance Learning Has Already Distance Learning Has Already Arrived in Legal EducationArrived in Legal Education

Online Learning: Law School AccreditationOnline Learning: Law School Accreditation

• The ABA is the USDE-recognized accrediting agency for first-degree programs in law

• All state bar admissions processes accept ABA-approved school degree

• Arrangement is efficient and cheap for schools and states

• Variations abound, but 95% of new lawyers each year come from ABA schools

Online Learning: Law School AccreditationOnline Learning: Law School Accreditation

ABA Standard 306 provides:

• No more than 12 credits of distance learning courses may count toward JD

• No more than 4 of these units allowed in any one semester

• No distance learning in 1L• Given definition, 1/3 of all JD credit could be for

distance learning

Distance Education in Today’s Law SchoolsDistance Education in Today’s Law Schools

• LMS: TWEN, LEXIS/Blackboard, eCollege, WebCT, Elluminate

• High-tech classrooms (wired, generally; two-way video classes)

• E-mail (through LMS or otherwise)

• Classroom components of semester-long clinics/ externships

• CALI lessons, and more in the supplement/study aid space

• Administrative systems (registration, paying fees), school calendars, announcements/newsletters, and more

• Library/legal information resources and services

• Exams

• Career service interviews

• Online LL.M. and Master of Legal Studies Programs operating

Distance Education in Today’s Law Schools (Sidebar): Distance Education in Today’s Law Schools (Sidebar): An International Shot Across the BowAn International Shot Across the Bow

Excerpts from Online Tutorials to Replace Law Lectures Financial Times (June 12, 2006)

• “… [Live] lectures [are] .. ‘ineffective and inefficient’ way of teaching…. (Scott Slorach, Director of LPC at the College of Law of England and Wales)

• “… [L]aw students have to help fund themselves through law school with part-time employment and this technology allows them to work flexibly….” (Professor Slorach)

• "We [the College or the UK generally?] are in an incredibly strong position globally because this technology can be used anywhere there is a computer. … [T]he UK is well-placed to dominate foreign markets because the Americans are still far behind on the development of distance learning." (Nigel Savage, Dean and CEO of the College of Law of England and Wales)

Concord Law SchoolConcord Law School

Concord Law School Basic Facts: StatusConcord Law School Basic Facts: Status

• Began in 1998

• J.D. graduates can sit for California Bar Exam; operates as California “correspondence school”; regulated by both California CBE and California BPPVE

• DETC accredited; institutional member of CHEA

• Degrees: Juris Doctor (J.D.) [four-year part-time]; Executive Juris Doctor (EJD) [three-year, part-time, non-bar qualifying]; also authority for LL.M. and BSL degrees not currently using

Concord Law School Basic Facts: FacultyConcord Law School Basic Facts: Faculty

• > 20 full-time faculty & professional staff, distributed around the country; > 25 part-time/adjunct faculty; dozens of instructors/graders

• Cooperating faculty from a number of ABA-approved schools (e.g., Arkansas, George Washington, Harvard, John Marshall-Atlanta, Loyola of Chicago, UOP-McGeorge, Montana, Tulane, Wake Forest, William Mitchell)

• Dozens of instructors and graders

• Administration in Los Angeles and Ft. Lauderdale

Concord Law School Basic Facts: EnrollmentConcord Law School Basic Facts: Enrollment

• Enrollment: ~1,400 JD; ~300 EJD

• Students in all 50 states and a dozen foreign countries; 25-30% California residents

• Average age: early 40’s

• ~40% have advanced degrees

Concord Law School Basic Facts: CostsConcord Law School Basic Facts: Costs

Concord tuition and fees:

• Annual tuition, 2005-2006: $8,300. Total cost of JD degree was $33,200

• 4% increase for 2006-2007. Total cost of JD degree will be $34,600

Comparative data:

• ABA 2005-2006, median cost of J.D. (annual tuition x 3 years):– Private schools: $86,010 (6% increase over prior year)– Public, non-resident: $70,518 (10% increase)– Public, resident: $36,321 (10% increase)

Concord Law School Basic Facts: Enrollment DataConcord Law School Basic Facts: Enrollment Data

Concord’s enrollment of ~1,400 part-time JD students would make it the second largest cohort of part-time students among ABA-approved law schools and in the top 15 of all schools on a head-count basis

2005-2006 Enrollment Data:

Part-time enrollment:Cooley 2,749 -- ConcordSuffolk 613Denver 428Widener 415McGeorge 401

Total Enrollment (head count, not FTEs):Cooley 3,252Georgetown 1,940Harvard 1,712

Suffolk 1,671Geo. Washington 1,636Fordham 1,516John Marshall-Chicago 1,495Brooklyn 1,490NY Law School 1,480NYU 1,424American 1,404 -- ConcordU Texas 1,387Loyola LA 1,319South Texas 1,262UC Hastings 1,255Denver 1,242Columbia 1,242

Concord Law School: GraduatesConcord Law School: Graduates

• Through July, 2006:

– 277 JD Graduates– 130 EJD Graduates– JD graduates from ~40 states, D.C., and abroad

• In 2006 Concord awarded 106 JD and 59 EJD (165 total) degrees. Within that group:

– 76 graduates (46%) held at least one other postgraduate degree; many had more than one

– 12 PhD, 13 MD, numerous MBAs, an ED, several MPH, dozens of MA and MS degrees

– Many of the country’s finest institutions were represented in the Concord student body: West Point, Naval Academy, Harvard, Yale, Berkeley, Stanford, Michigan, Sarah Lawrence, Howard, MIT, Columbia, Penn, etc.; there were also some students from other online universities and foreign institutions

Outcomes: ConcordOutcomes: ConcordGraduates Doing Well and Doing GoodGraduates Doing Well and Doing Good

• Established family law mediation practice• General Counsel of a structural engineering firm• Solo practice in Juvenile Dependency Court in remote mountain town• Expanded established CPA practice to provide estate planning, wills/trusts services• Partner in three-person commercial law and litigation firm • Airline pilot serving as pro bono deputy district attorney 3 days per week• Corporate liaison work for Fortune 500 real estate company, conducting legally

related real estate seminars (also a legal aid volunteer)• Director/regional VP for insurance company - regulatory affairs and compliance• Launched/runs IP Society in northern California directed to IP attorneys• Forensic accountant at major NYC firm (CA Bar member, doing some lawyer work at

the firm)• Court TV Associate Producer, working on coverage of Saddam Hussein trial (job offer

came from LEEP placement)• Dentist now doing forensic dentistry including on FEMA/demort teams, expert

witnessing, risk management consulting• Lawyer at Finnegan Henderson, a major No. Virginia patent/IP firm (listed as patent

agent on firm website since he is not a member of the VA bar) • Retired senior programming analyst for benefits for State of Alaska now doing pro

bono work for AARP tax clinic, represents clients in US Tax Court, volunteers on municipal tax appeals board

Outcomes: California Bar ResultsOutcomes: California Bar ResultsFebruary 2006February 2006

Passing Percentages 1st time Repeater Overall Concord 43 20 35Overall* 54 33 39ABA-approved 57 43 46All non-ABA schools* 26 10 13CA Bar accredited 29 12 15Correspondence* 26 9 15CA Unapproved Residential 6 5 5 * Concord takers/passers excluded

For this exam: – Concord’s 1st-time taker results would rank 15th of 20 CA ABA schools, beating

5 (note: small cohorts for some)– Concord’s first-time pass rate: 65% better than all other non-ABA schools and

65% better than other California correspondence schools– For 41 identified non-ABA schools, Concord graduates were 24% of takers and

34% of passers

Outcomes: LSSSEOutcomes: LSSSE

• LSSSE: Law School Survey of Student Engagement

• Third year; builds on NSSE; done by Indiana U. Center for Survey Research

• Sponsors: AALS, Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, Indiana University School of Education

• 53 schools in 2005 - Harvard and down the prestige chain, Northeastern to Southwestern, more privates than publics, 7 California schools

• 21,000/40,000 eligible students participated (34-73% response rate range; Concord rate was >70%)

• Largest, most reliable law student survey yet done

Outcomes: Some Concord LSSSE ResultsOutcomes: Some Concord LSSSE Results

2005 Law School Survey of Student Engagement*

Concord All LSSSE 1L/4L 1L/4L

Asked questions/contributed in class 3.04/3.13 2.61/2.83Discussed ideas from class with Professor outside of class 1.74/1.89 1.97/1.89Came to class unprepared (4=never; 1=often) 3.43/3.30 3.29/2.88Provided academic support 3.42/3.62 2.78/2.59Quality of relationships – students (7-1 range) 5.01/5.43 5.52/5.45Quality of relationships – faculty (7-1 range) 5.93/6.46 5.26/5.11Developing legal research skills 2.88/3.72 3.26/3.04Thinking analytically and critically 3.53/3.66

3.38/3.30Working effectively with others 2.32/2.42 2.39/2.34Learning effectively on your own 3.62/3.79 3.17/3.10Solving complex, real-world problems 2.79/3.06 2.53/2.52Encouraged ethical practice of law 3.21/3.68 3.03/3.05Entire educational experience 3.50/3.88 3.19/3.08

* Scored from 4 (high) – 1 (low), unless notedhttp://www.iub.edu/~lssse

A Day in the Life of a Student,A Day in the Life of a Student,Concord StyleConcord Style

Get to School …Get to School …

Go on in …Go on in …

Grab the School Paper …Grab the School Paper …

Get Organized …Get Organized …

Read the Casebook Assignment …Read the Casebook Assignment …

Take a Quiz …Take a Quiz …

Get Feedback on the Quiz …Get Feedback on the Quiz …

Get Feedback on That Essay You Get Feedback on That Essay You Completed a Couple of Days Ago …Completed a Couple of Days Ago …

Listen to a Lecture …Listen to a Lecture …

Go to Class … Go to Class …

Check Out a New Case or Check Out a New Case or Reference from Class, Readings, Reference from Class, Readings,

Lectures …Lectures …

Go to a Lecture or Forum …Go to a Lecture or Forum …

Participate in Student Life …Participate in Student Life …

• Join SBA, Student Organizations

• Be in a study group

• Hang out in the cyber-hallways, cyber-lounges

• Support a fellow student in need

• Raise money for a worthy cause

• Complain about “the administration”

Take Exams …Take Exams …

And If All Goes Well … GraduateAnd If All Goes Well … Graduate

Concord offersConcord offersa sound program of legal education,a sound program of legal education,

But,But,

Like all new schools, it is a work in Like all new schools, it is a work in progress progress

Concord as a “Disruptive Technology”Concord as a “Disruptive Technology”

Clayton Christensen, Harvard Business School

– The Innovator’s Dilemma (1997)

– The Innovator’s Solution (2003)

Proposition: great companies (and institutions) can fail even if (and maybe precisely because) they do everything right

Concord as a “Disruptive Technology”Concord as a “Disruptive Technology”

• “Sustaining technologies” foster improved performance and outcomes

• “Disruptive technologies” may underperform at the moment, but have features that some value (cheaper, simpler, more convenient)

• If sustaining technologies progress faster than market may require, a provider may overshoot – become too much or too expensive – making room for disruptive technology to become competitive down the road

Concord as a “Disruptive Technology: Christensen’s Concord as a “Disruptive Technology: Christensen’s ChartChart

•

We want to…We want to…

… work with law schools, the profession, the accrediting/bar admissions community, publishers, tech community, and others to:

• Expand access to legal education

• Make it work better for students

• Moderate cost increases

• Help protect and improve our legal system and promote the rule of law throughout the world

We are working to…We are working to…

• Deepen and broaden curriculum

• Build a full skills program

• Improve Academic Support

• Improve Library/Information Resources Program

• Improve career services

• Increase career opportunities for graduates

• Figure out what “faculty” means in our context; work on governance

Distance Learning in Legal Education: Neither the Distance Learning in Legal Education: Neither the Perfect Solution Nor the End of Life as We Know ItPerfect Solution Nor the End of Life as We Know It

• Distance learning done well adds interest, depth, and perspective that can make the traditional environment better; focus on how to use it effectively in our law schools

• We can learn to live well with distance learning in law schools by:– Remaining curious and skeptical about all teaching methodologies, not

just distance learning– By considering that

• it’s evolution, not revolution• it’s additive, not substitutional• there are lots of possibilities (e.g., hybrid programs)• it works well in many contexts – people and program matter more

than format• facts count, but so does what your intuition tells you

Concord website, usually and soon again:

http://www.concordlawschool.edu

For the moment:

http://info.concordlawschool.edu