Senior Director of Professionalism & Special Projects Jordana Confino was quoted in a Law.com article examining the American Bar Association’s newly adopted diversity training mandate for law schools and students.
The American Bar Association House of Delegates on Monday adopted several changes to the ABA’s accreditation standards, including adding a controversial requirement that law schools provide ”education on bias, cross-cultural competency and racism” to students.
The newly revised Standard 303 of Standards and Rules of Procedure for Approval of Law Schools says law schools must provide substantial opportunities to law students for “the development of a professional identity” and requires curriculums to include bias, cross-cultural competency and racism education “at the start of the program of legal education, and at least once again before graduation.”
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But Fordham University School of Law’s Senior Director of Professionalism Jordana Confino told Law.com on Wednesday that the law schools taking steps to add or improve diversity training on their own are “few and far between.”
“It shouldn’t be left to the schools because this is a must-have in order to operate effectively,” Confino told Law.com. “This isn’t a ‘nice to have,’ but it’s an essential element of students’ legal education and what all law students need to be successful, satisfied lawyers in the profession.”