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INSIDE LAW SCHOOL STARTED MONDAY,
learn about the new dean and visiting faculty. Also, big news about Oregon’s bar passage standard.
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EUGENE SENDS A STRONG MESSAGE ON CHARLOTTESVILLE
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đ&#x;”Ś NEWS Eugene community gathers in response to Charlottesville
March participators and UO gradutes Shaundra Cook and Sam Ruback hold signs at the August 14 march against recent protests in Charlottesville, Virginia. (Sararosa Davies)
➥ SARAROSA Photo by Ryan Kang
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On Monday, Aug. 14, the EMU amphitheater was abuzz with Eugene community members holding signs and chatting. Students, families and other community members gathered in response to recent conflicts between rallying white nationalists and those protesting against them in Charlottesville, Va. on Aug. 11. “We want to make sure that folks from marginalized communities feel safe,� said march organizer Jaki Salgado. “Having the ability to call out to allies too — to make sure that we’re not just talking about things that are happening, but that we are actually showing up in tangible ways and connecting with other organizations, having conversations with our families.� Organizers at the rally spoke about the recent events in Charlottesville and how they relate to Eugene. One speaker referenced the University of Oregon’s recent issues with Deady Hall and Dunn Hall. Dunn was recently renamed Unthank Hall after DeNorval Unthank Jr., who was the first African-American graduate of UO’s architecture school. Around 300 to 400 people marched as part of “Hate is Not Welcome In Lane County� event organized by local political groups, including the local branch of Democratic Socialists of America. The march began at the EMU amphitheater with a short list
of speakers and moved its way downtown through the Park Blocks to the Lane County Courthouse, where a rally was held after. As the crowd gathered at the EMU, recent UO graduate Shaundra Cook and Sam Ruback stood holding signs that said “Make Nazis Afraid Again� and “If you’re not outraged, you’re not paying attention,� a quote attributed to Heather Heyer, an activist who was killed in Charlottesville when a car ran into protestors. As for why she came to the rally, Cook said it was the one closest to her. But she and Ruback also came in support of minorities. “I think if you don’t feel a personal connection to the oppressed, then you are choosing the side of the oppressor,� Ruback said. As the march arrived at the courthouse, a man carrying a TrumpPence sign from the election walked towards marchers. A rally participant tore the sign out of the man’s hands and proceeded to tear it into pieces. Marchers arrived at the courthouse shouting “Black Lives Matter,� one of many chants. At the beginning of the march, community organizer Phil Carrasco said to the crowd: “I belong to this community. Nobody is going to kick me out of it.� Anna Lieberman contributed reporting.
đ&#x;”Ś NEWS
The Oregon Supreme Court lowered the requirement to pass the bar exam. (Creative Commons)
Oregon Supreme Court lowers bar passage standard ➥ MICHAEL
The Oregon Supreme Court recently lowered the required score to pass the state’s bar exam — the test required for all law graduates to pass in order to become practicing attorneys. Documents show that in March the deans of Oregon’s three law schools sent a letter to the Board of Bar Examiners (BBX) encouraging them to lower the minimum passing score, citing Oregon’s high standards compared to other states. At the time the letter was sent Oregon had the third highest minimum score (284) in the country, behind Delaware and California. The deans of Oregon’s three law schools proposed that the score be lowered to 266, but the BBX decided to settle on 276. Vice President of the Faculty Senate Bill Harbaugh says that lowering the requirement will have a significant impact on student’s futures. “This turns out to be a very big change,� Harbaugh said. “It would have increased the pass rate for July 2016 from the 58 percent it was to 68 percent — meaning 49 people who failed under the old score would have passed had the new score been in place. A score of 266 would have meant 90 extra students passing, raising the pass rate to 78 percent.� The Emerald is published by Emerald Media Group, Inc., the independent nonprofit media company at the University of Oregon. Formerly the Oregon Daily Emerald, the news organization was founded in 1900.
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While lowering the score may be advantageous to students taking the exam, some law students are critical of the decision to lower the score. One law student, who wished to remain anonymous given the internal politics of the law school, said that the fundamental issue is that the law school doesn’t prepare students to pass the bar, instead choosing to try to lower the score. The student cites the lack of access to bar prep classes which are offered after graduation and thus keep students from working in order to attend. Critics of the court’s decision claim that lowering the score will lead to an increased amount of incompetent and underprepared lawyers in the state. This concern was not ignored by the deans of Oregon’s law schools, who claimed that the bar exam was only one potential filter to deter unqualified attorneys from practicing law. In the letter to the Oregon Supreme Court, the deans wrote that “...attorneys often assess a graduate’s legal knowledge and skills by reviewing the graduates own work performance in the real world as a law clerk over the course of weeks or months before making any offer of employment‌â€? Another potential filter to limit potentially NEWS EDITORS MAX THORNBERRY ERIN CAREY A&C EDITORS SARAROSA DAVIES ZACH PRICE DANA ALSTON OPINION EDITORS BILLY MANGGALA LOGAN MARKS SPORTS EDITORS KENNY JACOBY JACK BUTLER PODCAST EDITOR ALEC COWAN
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incompetent lawyers before they progress further into law school is the Law School Admission Test (LSAT), a standardized entrance exam which gauges student’s comprehension in reading and writing. A closer look at the LSAT scores of Oregon’s three law schools indicate that the median score decreased over the past five years. Over that period, University of Oregon’s median score dropped by two points (159 to 157) while Willamette and Lewis and Clark’s decreased by four (155 to 151 and 161 to 157 respectively). While there are questions as to how competent future lawyers will be, there are even bigger questions regarding the process that the BBX and the Oregon Supreme Court took to lower the scores. The BBX went into a closed, executive session to make their decision. The Emerald requested transcripts to determine the nature of the meeting, but the Oregon Supreme Court provided a non-specific page of minutes detailing the events of the meeting. Given the lowered score, the results of the July bar exam could potentially be higher. In February, only 67 percent of law students in Oregon who took the exam passed.
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ON THE COVER
Outside of the William W. Knight Law center. Photograph from Emerald Archives
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đ&#x;“– COVER
New faces of the UO S ➥ MAX
T H O R N B E R R Y, @ M A X _ T H O R N B E R R Y
Marcilynn Burke limits herself to one cup of coffee a day -- one large cup. After all, being Dean of the University of Oregon School of Law is no easy task. One way she deals with those stresses is her enjoyment of the arts. She said she would never quit her day job to sing but has been privileged to sing with Grammy award winning artists Richard Smallwood and V. Michael McKay. Before she was a lawyer, Burke was a junior company member of the North Carolina Repertory Ballet Company. UO’s reputation, and the aesthetics of the campus, attracted her. She spent time in Oregon when she worked in the Bureau of Land Management and imagined she would enjoy life here. “I thought, ‘this would be a great place to live,’� she said. “It’s an exciting place for business. There’s something for everyone here.� An exciting place incorporates everyone according to Burke, UO’s first Black woman to be dean of the law school, she said the law school will be just that. Despite her own ideas about what she would like the school to be Burke kicked off her “learning and listening tour,� two months ago when she officially started her tenure. “I think it would be foolhardy on my part to say ‘This is the course we are going to chart now,’ without knowing more than I do,� she said. “The big goal for the first year is to figure out what our strategic goals are going to be.� Those goals, as of now, include improving nationally ranked specialty programs in legal research and writing, as well as environmental law — Burke’s own area of expertise. Burke took a leave of absence from her teaching position at the University of Houston Law Center to join the Bureau of Land Management in 2009. She was prompted to apply for the position by a professor she said she only knew “casually.� Burke served as the Deputy Director of Programs and Policy at the BLM for two years before being appointed as the Acting Assistant Secretary for Land and Minerals Management by then President Barack Obama in 2011. In her short time at UO, Burke said she hasn’t had much time to talk with students, but is aware of concerns they have about passing the bar and getting a job after graduation. The job market for law school graduates appears to be improving, according to a 2016 NALP report, but improved percentages mask that 2,000 fewer jobs were filled by 2016 graduates than their 2015 counterparts. Passing the bar exam concerns deans at Lewis and Clark Law School and Willamette Law School, which in conjunction with UO, signed a letter requesting the passing score of the exam to be lowered. “I believe that every student that is admitted to the UO is fully capable of passing the bar,� Burke said. “So we want to make sure we are marshalling resources to help students get to where they want to go.� Besides concerns, students have talked about potential new programs. Burke said that intellectual property, business, corporate and energy law are areas she would “certainly be pursuing.� Burke wants UO to accomplish a long list of things,
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(Courtesy of the University of Oregon)
Marcilynn Burke and while she wouldn’t say she believed she was the only person who could get it done, she was well suited for the role. While she worked for the BLM, she explained she worked with a myriad of stakeholders and managed a budget of more than $1.7 billion. The Bureau, which is responsible for 245 million acres of public land in the West and across Alaska is responsible for managing and regulating countless projects. She said that learning to balance all of the people and interests at the BLM are skills that are “directly translatable to being Dean.� “I think that I’m not a stranger to making difficult choices and I think I can do it in a way that still fulfills our ideals about community and the idea we are all in this together,� Burke said. Difficult decisions will be in store for Burke who takes over for Michael Moffitt who stepped down at the beginning of the summer. Moffitt served as dean of the law school since 2011. He watched the school’s national rank fall from No. 77 in 2011 to No. 100 in 2015 before eventually rebounding to No. 78 in 2017. While the school’s rank fell it operated in a budget
deficit, spurring a transitional support budget from the university to help stabilize it. According to the plan, UO will subsidized the law school to the tune of $3 million in fiscal year 2017. The amount will drop over the next two years until fiscal year 2019 when it is expected the school will be able to return its margins to positive. When the school manages to normalize, it will begin to pay back the university. Despite budget concerns, and decreased enrollment — there were 346 law majors enrolled last year, the lowest in the last 10 years — the hiring plan awarded the school two new tenure track position hires. Burke cautions students to work hard but to enjoy their time in law school, that three years will go very fast, even if it doesn’t always feel like it. “I want to tell students that an education from the UO School of Law opens the world,� she said. “The possibilities are quite boundless. With legal training you are welcome into every circle of life and we have everything here you need to launch yourself on that path.�
School of Law (Courtesy of Rishi Batra)
(Courtesy of Thomas Jefferson School of Law)
Richard Winchester ➡ ESTHER
Rishi Batra
SHERMAN
Professor Richard Winchester joins the UO School of Law as a visiting professor for the 2017-2018 school year. The dryhumored, intimidatingly astute professor carries with him an academic record of excellence as well as substantial experience as a corporate tax planner and international tax attorney. When asked what he would like students to know about him, he replied: “I take my work very seriously, but I don’t take myself too seriously.” And it shows. His impressive resume may intimidate some students from approaching him, but he has the deliberate nature of a teacher: a calm style that is required
to guide students through the complexities of tax law. Professor Winchester notes that his “career path did not take [him] directly to legal education.” Something he hopes “will help [him] enrich the law school community with some fresh perspectives and ideas.” While his accomplishments portray him as a professor and legal scholar, he is also an open water swimmer who loves tax law (some might say this earns him superhero status.) Welcome to the University of Oregon, Professor Winchester. We are delighted to have you join our community, here in Eugene.
Professor Rishi Batra, an analytical, mild-mannered professor fresh from Texas, is ready to take on the task of teaching law students at the University of Oregon. As a visiting Professor for UO School of Law, he will teach Civil Procedure and Negotiation in Fall 2017. In attempting to summarize his thoughts on pedagogy and the journey to this point in his career, he poses this question: “Have you ever had a class that changed your life?” Many students can recount some tale of a professor or course material engaging enough to alter their trajectory, and most legal scholars can. For Professor Batra, the class that changed his life was Negotiation. From his first course on the subject, he found himself absorbed by the
blending of law and alternative dispute resolution – a perfect fit for the dual programs offered at UO – and he set about mastering the field. Professor Batra took the scenic route on his way to becoming a law professor and legal scholar -- most notably, his undergraduate degrees in both Electrical Engineering, Computer Science and Cognitive Science. This path seems to have carved a vein of patience and understanding into his style of teaching. Students who take one of Professor Batra’s courses should take heed: he is one of those professors with the profound ability to change your life. And we are lucky to have him join the faculty at the UO School of Law.
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đ&#x;‘? ENTERTAINMENT
Preview: Project Pabst ➥ EMERALD
Fidlar
Aug. 26 at 4:55 to 5:50 p.m. (Unicorn Stage)
Project Pabst seems like the perfect home for a punk band that sings about “Cheap Beer,� “Bad Habits� and spending neurotic days alone with an endless supply of 40 oz. beers as company. Since its unhinged 2013 self-titled debut, FIDLAR has learned that all parties have to end at some point, as singer Zac Carper has gone completely sober after several near-fatal overdoses and has documented his struggles on “Too.� The band’s October 2015 Portland performance was rowdy and the air was thick from sweating teenagers. Carper claims you “can’t buy liquor in Oregon� in the anthemic road trip song “West Coast,� but the festival’s discounted PBRs should suffice for the band’s adrenaline-fueled performance — regardless of your sobriety.
Lizzo
Aug. 26 at 4:00 to 4:50 p.m. (Captain Pabst Stage) Minneapolis R&B and hip-hop star Lizzo will be bringing a sense of self love and nourishment to Portland this weekend. Hot off the release of her new single, “Water Me,� on Aug. 17, she is sure to bring an empowering and rambunctious live set to the festival. With the break-up anthem “Good as Hell,� and the sultry, self-assured “Humanize� from 2016’s “Coconut Oil� EP, Lizzo is sure to make even the downtrodden a little more confident. Her Twitter campaign to play the 2018 Super Bowl is the perfect example of this. Check out Lizzo’s performance if you need someone saying “Yas, lord� in your life. Guitarist Max Kakacek plays a solo as Whitney performs at the WOW Hall in Eugene, Ore., on Thursday April 13, 2017. (Aaron Nelson)
ARTS DESK
Music Fest Northwest’s Project Pabst is taking over the Tom McCall Waterfront in Portland this weekend from Aug. 26 to 27. With a robust lineup, plenty of Pabst Blue Ribbon and a warm weather forecast, the festival is sure to be the a great late summer event.
Die Antwoord
Aug. 26 at 7:05 to 8:10 p.m. (Unicorn Stage)
Hip-hop/rave duo Die Antwoord will certainly stand out from the rest of the acts set to perform at this weekend’s Project Pabst. The South African-duo, comprised of vocalists Ninja and Yolandi Visser, is known for their abrasive lyricism and performance, not to mention their wacky wardrobe. Most songs feature a dance-inspired beat with an overload of synths, while the pair rap and sing in three different languages. The group is heavily inspired by Zef culture, which is a South African countercultural movement that has inspired, among many things, music, fashion and political ideologies. The duo’s often vulgar and borderline disgusting language is derived from the Zef movement’s emphasis on a “hold nothing back� attitude. The combination of that attitude and musical talent has made Die Antwoord one of the most polarizing international musical acts in the scene.
The Last Artful, Dodgr Aug. 26 at 1:00 to 1:30 p.m. (Captain Pabst Stage) Before breaching Portland’s local hip-hop scene with her stylish sound, The Last Artful, Dodgr was simply Alana Chenevert from Los Angeles. That was before she graduated from Humboldt State University in 2011 and became a local fixture, radio DJ and in rap shows. She’s been rapping ever since — her first mixtape dropped in 2013 — and been challenging the norms of the genre. Her EP “Fractures� certified her underground cred two years later. A queer artist with an ear for socially conscious prose, her first LP “Bone Music� evokes the style of Vince Staples, Frank Ocean and A$AP Rocky with a deeply personal edge. Throbbing bass lines abound, especially on the highlight “Jazz Crimes.� She delivers a drive-by scene in short lyrical spurts, blurring the line between hallucination and cold reality. The “Artful� moniker is well-earned. Fans of trippy hip-hop will find plenty to love.
Whitney Aug. 27 at 4:55 to 5:50 p.m. (Unicorn Stage)
Chicago rapper Noname performs at the Doug Fir Lounge in Portland on Thursday night. (Hannah SteinkopfFrank)
Indie pop duo Whitney is returning to Oregon after performances in Eugene and Portland last April. “Light Upon the Lake,� the group’s 2016 release, garnered critics’ attention for its smooth and soulful, but still poppy sound. Drummer/ vocalist Julien Ehrlich croons from center stage during the band’s performances, while Max Kakacek’s guitar licks follow along behind. The band’s intimate and fun sound will provide a nice respite from some of the more intense acts playing the festival.
Noname Aug. 27 at 4:00 to 4:50 p.m. (Captain Pabst Stage) Independent Chicago rapper Noname made her splash into the music scene after providing featured verses on Chance the Rapper’s “Acid Rap� and grammyaward-winning “Coloring Book� mixtapes. In 2016, Noname released her first solo record,“Telefone.� The album, which was released as a free download, was well-received by critics and fans alike. Both Pitchfork and Consequence of Sound ranked the album in their top 50 albums of 2016. Much of the album is presented in the format of a poetic story, providing information on her tough upbringing in Chicago and the growth she has made since then. “Telefone’s� instrumentation features bright piano chords and soft, upbeat percussion that forms a pleasant blend of hip-hop and R&B. The uplifting beats help soften the blow of the record’s mostly grim themes. PA G E 6
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⚡ SPORTS Lindsey Vander Weide (8) keeps her eyes on the ball as Lauren Page (6) and Jolie Rasmussen (15) block the ball. Amanda Shigeoka)
After a troublesome offseason, volleyball is ready for team chemistry to take it to the top ➡ DAPHNE
MARTIN, @DAAPHNEMARTIN
Coming out of a transitional offseason, Oregon volleyball is eager and excited going into the 2017 season. “This is the closest team I’ve ever been on,” said junior Lindsey Vander Weide. “On and off the court we have great chemistry and I think it’s something that’ll really show on the court because great chemistry comes into great plays.” Solid chemistry between the coaches and players was interim head coach Matt Ulmer’s focus during the offseason. A letter written by six ex-Oregon volleyball players and addressed to President Michael Schill and University of Oregon’s athletic directors accused former coaches Jim Moore and Stacy Metro of mistreatment and mental abuse. Moore and Metro were fired in March, and assistant coach Matt Ulmer was named interim head coach. Ulmer made the decision to have Ron Beick and Dave Butler join the staff as assistant coaches shortly after. “I’m excited to see how I can make us better,” he said. “I would really like for us to be fearless and go hard against good competition.” Ulmer spent his first two seasons at Oregon
as an assistant coach where he mentored three All-American selections: former libero Amanda Benson, outside hitter Vander Weide, and middle blocker Ronika Stone. In 2012, he was honored by the American Volleyball Coaches association for the “Thirty Under 30” award where he was one of 10 Division I coaches recognized for being an “outstanding up-and-coming coach.” Ulmer’s experience as an assistant coach for the last several years benefitted the transformation of the team as they spent the last couple months building a new program. This has made it easier to form close bonds with both players and his coaching staff. “I feel like it’s a really solid staff,” Beick said. “Each of us work well together. The players know we are focused on helping them have a great season in terms of emotional enjoyment and high-level competitiveness.” Oregon has run fast offenses in the past, and Ulmer looks to continue to use speed while also focusing on technical assets. “I’m doing my best to integrate both old and new strategies and so far I think we’ve done a good job as far as seeing games from both sides of teaching,” he said. “There will be a few changes but I’m hoping that tactically they’ll put us in
a better position with the strengths we have.” Replacing key players such as Benson is a job that will take the entire team to work together to achieve, but for junior Lindsey Vander Weide, it’s a responsibility she’s willing to take on. “I’m going to have to take on a big role replacing Amanda Benson and take control in the back of the court,” Vander Weide said. “She’s been preparing me for two years to take on this role, so I’m excited for it.” The solid chemistry amongst Oregon volleyball players will be of note in the beginning of the season. As senior Taylor Agost looks forward to her last season as a Duck, she emphasized how positive the overall atmosphere feels. “The feeling inside this area while we’re practicing feels really good. Coach Ulmer is on us a lot, but it’s very positive like constructive criticism,” Agost said. “It gives us the confidence to know he’s behind us and supports us. We trust him, he trusts us. We think it’ll be a great experience.” Oregon will play No. 5 Nebraska Friday, August 25, at 2 p.m., and No. 1 Texas Saturday, August 26. at 4:30 p.m. in Gainesville, Florida. T U E S D AY, A U G U S T 2 2 , 2 0 1 7
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