Law Schools
University of New Hampshire law students slam hybrid JD program as dean steps down
The front entrance of the University of New Hampshire Franklin Pierce School of Law in Concord, New Hampshire, in October 2021. (Photo by Ken_Gallager, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons)
As the dean of the University of New Hampshire Franklin Pierce School of Law steps down Dec. 31, students and faculty are expressing concerns over the hybrid JD program that she helped launch in 2019.
According to Law.com, three students admitted for the fall 2024 semester said their April 2024 acceptance letters mandated a minimum cumulative GPA of 2.0 to remain in good academic standing in the intellectual property law-focused hybrid program.
But before they matriculated, they claim that they were informed that the minimum GPA had shifted to 2.5, while those with a 2.5 GPA to 2.75 GPA would be subject to early intervention and review by the law school’s Committee for Academic Success and Standing.
Several students from the school told the publication how they landed on academic probation and then later left the program. One former faculty member said her termination was allegedly due to complaining to Megan Carpenter, the law school’s dean, about the online JD program being problematic.
In February, the council of the ABA Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar found the law school not compliant with Standard 202(a), a core standard related to requiring sufficient financial resources. The school returned to compliance in August.
Carpenter plans to take a short leave to pursue research interests and other professional endeavors and then return to faculty, according to Law.com.
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