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Office of Academic Administration and Student Affairs

Asst. Dean Stephen D. Sowle

Week of January 27, 2014
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Applications for Graduation. J.D. students who plan on graduating at the end of the Spring semester must submit an online Application for Graduation form no later than Tuesday, February 4, 2014. To complete the form, go to Web for Students at https://wfs.kentlaw.iit.edu and click on "Application for Graduation" under "Online Forms" in the lefthand menu. Please complete every field in the form, and click Submit when done. You will receive a confirmation e-mail once a graduation audit has been performed. Please note that any changes you make to your schedule after the audit may affect your graduation requirements. You should check with the Registrar's Office prior to making any changes. Also note that, although the Registrar's Office does conduct graduation audits on all applications, it is your responsibility to make certain all requirements for graduation are met. If you have any questions, please stop by the Registrar's office.

Faculty-Student Happy Hour. The Student Life Committee is sponsoring the first 2014 Student/Faculty Happy Hour on Thursday, January 30, from 4:30 to 6:00pm in the First Floor Lobby. Stop by and enjoy the food, spirits and conversation with faculty and students.

Adding and Dropping Classes. You may add an open course without special permission until the end of the first week of Spring classes; during the second week, however, you may add an open course only with permission of the instructor. You may not add a course after Tuesday, February 4.

You may withdraw from any course except a required course, a clinical course, Law Review, Moot Court, or Intensive Trial Advocacy at any time prior to the date of the final exam or final paper (see §3.10(c) of the Student Handbook). There is no tuition penalty if you drop a course during the first two weeks of classes. You will not receive a tuition refund, however, if you drop a course after Tuesday, February 4.

Pass/Fail Elections. Pass/fail elections for the Spring semester must be made online no later than Monday, February 17. Please review section 2.4 "Pass/Fail Election" in the Student Handbook if you have any questions regarding your pass/fail elections. In order to make your election, you should:

  1. Log into Web for Students.

  2. Select the "Take Class Pass/Fail" option under the "Online Forms" heading

  3. Select the course you would like to take on a pass/fail basis

  4. Submit your selection

The Registrar's Office will review your request and inform you if there is any problem with your request.

Graduating Students: Reduced Loads and Tuition Discounts. Students graduating at the end of the Spring 2014 semester who need fewer than the minimum number of hours to graduate may take fewer credits without special permission. In addition, if you will be graduating at the end of the Spring 2014 semester, and will be taking more than the 87 credits required to graduate, you may receive a 50% discount on each credit you take over the required 87 credits. If this affects you, please contact me by email no later than Friday, January 31, 2014, and I will arrange for the credit to be applied to your account.

Academic Support Program.
 Information about the Academic Support Program for first-year students, including membership criteria for ASP small group sessions and the process for petitioning into the small groups, is available by clicking here. Petitions to participate in the Spring Semester are due on Wednesday, January 29. For more information about the Academic Support Program and study resources, please visit the ASP web site.

Business Law Certificate Program. Certificate students who will graduate in May 2014 should submit an Application for the Certificate in Business Law as soon as your Spring semester schedule is finalized, but no later than January 31, 2014. Applications are available from Nicole Lechuga, outside room 827, or by clicking here.

IIT Policy on Firearms and Weapons on Campus. (From the IIT General Counsel's Office:) Because of recent changes in Illinois law, the University has had to update its policy prohibiting firearms and weapons on campus. Despite this update, the substance of IIT’s policy remains the same: In general, carrying or bringing any type of firearm or other weapon in, on or to the campus or property of IIT is expressly prohibited.  This prohibition applies even if you have all of the requisite permits to carry the firearm or weapon, including a concealed carry permit.  The policy expressly defines “firearm,” “weapon,” “campus” and “property of IIT.” The policy does contain a very limited number of narrowly tailored exceptions, such as allowing ROTC to utilize firearms for training and permitting personnel of the Department of Public Safety and on duty police officers to carry firearms.

The link to the full, updated policy is provided below and everyone should familiarize themselves with it, as the policy will be strictly enforced: Concealed Carry and Prohibition Regarding Firearms and Weapons On Campus Policy.

Employment Limitation for Full-Time Day Division Students. ABA accreditation rules and Law School regulations provide that full-time Day Division students may not be employed for more than 20 hours per week while school is in session. If a full-time Day Division student must work more than 20 hours per week, the student must transfer to the part-time Day Division or the Evening Division.

Legal Writing Ethics Guidelines. This is a reminder that the Chicago-Kent Legal Writing Ethics Guidelines apply to all Chicago-Kent students, including students enrolled in first-year and upper-level writing courses (Legal Writing 1, Legal Writing 2, Legal Writing 3, Legal Writing 4, and all seminars). The Guidelines, which address a variety of issues, including plagiarism, are available by clicking here. If you have not reviewed the Guidelines recently, please do so.

Counseling Services. IIT's Student Health and Wellness Center provides counseling services at the Law School by appointment. To schedule an appointment, call (312) 567-7550. There is no charge for these counseling services.

Notice to Students in Substance Abuse Recovery (or who want to be). If you are in recovery for a substance abuse problem, or if you are not in recovery but would like help with a substance abuse problem, consider contacting the Lawyers Assistance Program. This confidential program exists to help lawyers, judges, and law students with alcohol abuse, drug dependency, or mental health problems. If you are already in recovery, there are weekly A.A. meetings at LAP's Chicago office on Tuesdays, 12:15-1:15 pm, and Thursdays, 12:15-1:15 pm, , at 20 S. Clark Street, Suite 1820. If you are not in recovery but would like to find out more about what LAP can do for you, call or stop by LAP's office, or go to their web site at http://www.illinoislap.org.

Reminder About IIT's Political Activity Policy. (From the IIT General Counsel's Office:) Because there will be a number of political campaigns at the national and state level in 2014, it is important to review IIT's policy on political activity as well as its policy on the use of space for partisan purposes during the campaign season. As a tax-exempt entity, IIT is prohibited from directly or indirectly participating or intervening in any campaign on behalf of or in opposition to any candidate for elective office, and IIT has an obligation to refrain from engaging in any partisan political activity. Violation of these prohibitions against such activities could jeopardize the university's tax-exempt status.

While individuals are free to express their opinions and to support political candidates on their own, it must be clear that the individual is acting on his or her own behalf and not on behalf of IIT. No one should identify himself or herself as an employee of IIT when supporting a candidate. If, when speaking or writing on behalf of a candidate someone is identified as an IIT faculty member or other employee, that individual should indicate prior to any speech or as part of any writing that the comments are personal and not intended to represent the views of IIT. Further, no individual or event may use the name, symbols or resources of the university in any way in connection with any political campaign on behalf of or in opposition to any candidate for political office.

Specific examples of impermissible activities include, but are not limited to (i) using university letterhead, campus mail, telephones or email accounts to solicit support or contributions for a candidate; (ii) using university funds to purchase tickets for a candidate's fund-raiser; and (iii) putting campaign posters on university property.

Further, until after the general election in November 2014, no political candidate or campaign may use or rent any IIT facilities on any of its campuses. Subject to certain conditions and restrictions, political candidates may be invited to speak at events hosted by the university or a unit of the university. However, no invitation for such an event should be extended without the extending party first discussing the proposed activity with the General Counsel's Office to ensure that it complies with applicable laws.

Certain voter education activities, including voter registration and get-out-the-vote drives, are permissible but only if they are undertaken in accordance with applicable rules and regulations and are conducted in a non-partisan manner. Again, before any such activities are undertaken, the initiating party should contact the General Counsel's Office.

Any questions about this policy should be directed to Anthony D. D'Amato, General Counsel, at 7-8821.

Bar Registration for First-Year Students. This is a reminder that first-year students who plan to take the Illinois Bar Examination after graduation should register with the Illinois bar examiners. The registration materials are due by March 1, 2014. The forms and instructions are available on the bar examiners' web site at https://www.ilbaradmissions.org

Although you are not required to register as a first-year student, the advantage of doing so is that you will avoid paying substantial additional fees if you register at any point after March of their first year. If you are uncertain whether you intend to practice in Illinois, you may want to consider waiting to register and paying the late fee should you eventually decide to take the Illinois bar exam. The application form is very comprehensive and requires you to provide a significant amount of background information, some of which may be difficult to remember or obtain. I suggest that, if you do plan to register by the March deadline, you begin working on the materials sooner rather than later. If you have any questions about the application materials, you may call the Illinois Board of Admissions to the Bar at 217/522-5917.

All information you disclose on the bar registration application should be consistent with answers to questions on your Application for Admission to the law school. Please note, however, that the bar registration application asks for a considerable amount of information that you were not asked to provide on our Application for Admission. You only need to be concerned about the consistency of your answers for questions asked on both forms. You can amend your Application for Admission, if necessary, by addressing a letter to me setting forth the details of the omission or misrepresentation and the reason for it.

July 2014 Illinois Bar Application. This is a reminder that applications for the July 2014 bar exam are due by February 15, 2014. You may file a late application up to May 31, but penalty fees apply. The forms and instructions are available on the bar examiners' web site: https://www.ilbaradmissions.orgPlease note: Even if you registered with the bar examiners as a first-year student, you must still file a final application. If you have any questions about the application materials, you may call the Illinois Board of Admissions to the Bar at 217/522-5917.

All information you disclose on the bar application should be consistent with answers to questions on your Application for Admission to the law school. Please note, however, that the bar application asks for a considerable amount of information that you were not asked to provide on our Application for Admission. You only need to be concerned about the consistency of your answers for questions asked on both forms. You can amend your Application for Admission, if necessary, by addressing a letter to me setting forth the details of the omission or misrepresentation and the reason for it.

Dean's Certificate: The law school sends a “Certificate of Dean of Law School Proof of Legal Education” to the Illinois bar examiners for every student who graduates in December or May. Please be sure to file an Application for Graduation (see information above for how to file one) at the beginning of your last semester so we will know you plan to graduate at the end of that semester. Important note: We will not certify any student to the bar examiners if the student has an outstanding balance owed to the school.

Bar Exams in Other States. Students who may practice in another state should familiarize themselves with those states' bar admission requirements, registration procedures, and deadlines. In particular, if you may take the New York bar exam, you should read the new admission requirements (including coursework requirements and limitations) adopted by New York in April 2012, available here. We have been informed that students who began their law studies prior to April 2012 are not subject to the new requirements.

Multistate Professional Responsibility Exam (MPRE). The MPRE is required for admission to the bars of most jurisdictions, including Illinois. The exam is administered in March or April, August, and November each year. The next exam will be given on March 29, 2014. You may register online by clicking here. The deadline for applying for the March exam is February 4 (the late deadline, with an extra fee, is February 20). Students planning on taking the Illinois bar exam may take the MPRE at any time during or after law school. (Previously, students had to wait to take the MPRE until they had completed two-thirds of the credits required for graduation.)

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