A national nonprofit organization that advocates for expanded access and affordability to law school has awarded Elon Law a grant to assist students facing emergency needs related to COVID-19.
Elon Law students financially impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic can now apply for emergency funds gifted to the law school by a national nonprofit that promotes legal education.
The AccessLex Institute, an organization aimed at helping “talented, purpose-driven students find their path from aspiring lawyer to fulfilled professional,” awarded funding to every member institution that has pledged to distribute the money to students in need.
Elon Law’s existing Emergency Student Grant Fund already provides temporary, short-term assistance to students who encounter an unforeseen financial emergency or catastrophic event. Gifts at graduation from the Class of 2018 and Class of 2019 established and contributed, respectively, to the law school’s existing fund.
The newest gift from AccessLex ensures that Elon Law emergency funds due to the impact of COVID-19 will continue uninterrupted.
“We can’t thank AccessLex enough for its generosity during this worldwide public health emergency,” said Elon Law Dean Luke Bierman. “We’re now able to increase exponentially the aid available to Elon Law students in crisis and bring them a measure of comfort as they keep focused on the goals they already set for themselves – to learn the law, pass the bar exam, and serve as lawyer leaders in the profession and their communities.”
A student is only eligible one time to receive emergency assistance of up to $600. Emergency relief funds are administered through the Office of Career & Student Development and applications are reviewed by a committee.
For more information on emergency funds, including criteria and an application, contact Stacie Dooley, director of student life at Elon Law, at sdooley3@elon.edu. Decisions regarding distributions of monies from the emergency relief funds will be disbursed on a first-come, first-served basis until the funds have been exhausted.
The gift from the AccessLex Institute continues a long-standing relationship with Elon Law. AccessLex previously awarded Elon Law a grant to study the school’s adoption of a 2.5-year curriculum, the results of which included stronger success on the bar exam, a reduction in student debt at graduation, and improvements in the diversity of classes at both matriculation and graduation.
About AccessLex
AccessLex Institute is a nonprofit organization committed to helping talented, purpose-driven students find their path from aspiring lawyer to fulfilled professional. In partnership with its nearly 200 member law schools, improving access and positively influencing legal education have been at the heart of the company’s mission since 1983. AccessLex Institute has offices in West Chester, Pa., and Washington, D.C., with a team of accredited financial education counselors based throughout the United States. Learn more at AccessLex.org.
About Elon Law
Elon University School of Law in Greensboro, North Carolina, is the preeminent school for engaged and experiential learning in law. It integrates traditional classroom instruction with highly experiential full-time residencies-in-practice in a logically sequenced program of transformational professional preparation. Elon Law’s groundbreaking approach is accomplished in 2.5 years, which provides distinctive value by lowering tuition and permitting graduates early entry into their professional careers.