Efforts by Hannah Joly L'19 led to the establishment of the School of Law Bar Support Fund managed by the Office of Academic Success.
An Elon Law graduate took a leadership role last year in helping to support fellow law school alumni who are studying for the bar exam.
Efforts by Hannah Joly L’19, an attorney with Furman Kornfeld & Brennan LLP in New York City, gave rise to the School of Law Bar Examination Support Fund.
It’s a resource that Joly said she wishes existed when she was working during her own bar studies. Joly studied throughout the day, then nannied overnight, to cover her living expenses.
“Finances shouldn’t be a reason that someone isn’t able to study for and then pass the bar exam,” she said. “That was my motivation for helping to create this fund – to ease the burden for Elon Law graduates in a financial emergency at an important moment on their path to practicing law.”
Graduates who demonstrate financial need qualify for assistance through the Office of Academic Success, which is managed by Associate Dean Wendy Scott.
“When I joined Elon Law, I learned how several law schools provide financial support to their graduates studying for the bar, so one of my goals was to do the same,” Scott said. “I was so delighted when Hannah reached out to us with her idea. Easing financial woes will also contribute to the upward trajectory in our bar pass rate.”
Joly said she hopes those who mentor Elon Law graduates studying for the bar exam, and others who recognize the importance of meeting financial shortfalls, will consider making a gift to the School of Law Bar Examination Support Fund.