A new student loan repayment program is now awaiting approval from President Bush before it goes into effect. The proposal, which is contained in the Higher Education Act, is part of an effort to make higher education more affordable an accessible.
Under the terms of the proposal, the attorney general will assume the obligation to repay the student loans of attorneys who commit to spending at least three years as criminal prosecutors at the state or local level, or as public defenders in criminal cases at all levels of government. The amount of the grant for each student is capped at $10,000 per year or $60,000 total. Repayment benefits will also be given on a preferential basis to those who have the least ability to repay their loans.
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August 13th, 2008
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Dean Elena Kagan was named as a recipient of the 2008 John R. Kramer Outstanding Law Dean Award from Equal Justice Works. The annual award goes to three individuals who have made outstanding contributions to the field of public interest law.
Since she started in 2003, Dean Kagan has enacted extensive and innovative initiatives to promote public interest work at HLS. The Public Service Initiative, announced this spring at the Celebration of Public Interest, forgives the entire third year of tuition for students who commit to five years of public service work after graduation. Other highlights of Dean Kagan’s tenure include a generous loan repayment program, guaranteed Summer Public Interest Funding, and the mandatory Pro Bono Service Program.
Dean Kagan’s public interest efforts have increased the richness of OPIA’s program offerings and have also positioned HLS as the leader of public interest law. To read more, click here.
August 13th, 2008
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A report released last week by the Department of Justice’s inspector general and internal ethics office revealed the widespread politicization of hiring practices within the agency. During the tenures of both Attorney Generals John Ashcroft and Alberto Gonzalez, highly qualified, left-leaning applicants for important civil service positions were passed over in favor of less competent conservative applicants. The practice violated basic Civil Service laws, which forbids the use of political considerations in hiring decisions. Senior aides to the Attorney General, notably Monica Goodling, had illegally used political criteria, including candidates’ stances on “god, guns + gays,” to weed out those with liberal ideologies.
For more on the story, click here. The complete report is also available at the OPIA office in Pound 329.
August 4th, 2008
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