Westfield State has established an articulation agreement with the University of Massachusetts School of Law, which will enable students to complete undergraduate studies and a juris doctor degree in six years. The formal agreement will be signed on April 24.
The April 24 announcement and agreement signing event will begin at 12:30 p.m. in the Owl’s Nest in Ely Hall and will feature an expert panel. A reception with networking opportunities and refreshments will follow the panel presentation and signing.
“The Role of a Public Law School in Promoting Social Justice” panelists include:
Attorney Eric J. Mitnick, dean, UMass Law
Dr. John F. Quinn, director of Public Interest Law Programs and Community Partnership, UMass Law
Dr. Alice Perry, Associate Professor, Department of Criminal Justice, Westfield State University (former prosecuting attorney)
Attorney Len Zandrow, Justice Bridge Incubator, UMass Law
The agreement would reduce a process that would take seven years, saving interested students a year of tuition costs. Aimed at individuals entering Westfield State University with intentions to pursue a law degree, students will complete 90 credits at Westfield State prior to beginning their first year at UMass Law. After earning 30 credits there, students will obtain their bachelor’s degree from Westfield State. Following the completion of three years of law school, students will earn a juris doctor from UMass Law.
The state’s only public law school, UMass Law graduated its first class in 2011 and earned accreditation from the American Bar Association in 2016. Courses are taken in Dartmouth, a few miles from the UMass Dartmouth campus.