South Texas College of Law, The Annotation (Houston, Tex.), Vol. 14, No. 1, Summer, 1985 Page: 3 of 12
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Summer, 1985
THE ANNOTATION—
Page 3
Bonewell Accepts Challenge
By William L. Yanger
Editor
Newly elected SBA President
Linda Bonewell realizes the organi-
zation she now oversees may have
an image problem.
In an interview with Annotations,
she readily agreed that some stu-
dents have lost faith in their repre-
sentative organization.
"We lack respect," she candidly
admitted. But, she said, that is her
challenge.
"I want to make the SBA a credi-
ble organization," Ms. Bonewell
said. But she realizes she cannot do it
on her own.
"An organization is composed of
people working towards a common
goal," she said. "People with enthu-
siasm, motivation and dedication to
those goals make the organization
succeed.
"The recently elected Board of
Governors," she continued, "is
destined to succeed as each officer
has already exhibited an outstanding
degree of enthusiasm as well as dedi-
cation to the goals thus far estab-
Linda Bonewell
lished by the Board."
When asked whether she, herself,
had any particular goals in mind for
her tenure, the Kansas native said,
"As President of the SBA, I am not
vested with the power to establish,
set or impose a certain course of
action or a specific goal on the
Board of Governors. I am, however,
in a position to suggest and en-
courage certain courses of action
and programs."
She continued, "A list of 37 ac-
tivities and services that I would like
to see the Board undertake is pres-
ently available in the SBA office."
Having served as interim secretary
of the SBA in the past, Ms. Bone-
well said she understands the impor-
tance of advice.
"I plan on getting help from
faculty advisors, the Honor Court
and others," instead of tackling the
sometimes tricky questions con-
fronting her office alone.
The mistakes of the most recent
administration directly affected Ms.
Bonewell in her election campaign.
A misreading of the Constitution by
the SBA election committee forced
her into an illegal runoff and subse-
quent litigation before the Honor
Court. She emerged, though, a vic-
torious candidate, exonerated of any
election violations.
And from that experience she
learned a valuable lesson. "The
Board and I will be very conscien-
tious in following the Constitution,"
she said.
600Attend Banquet
At least 600 persons attended the
March 29 Spring Banquet at the
Shamrock Hilton, according to
Mabel Welch, Director of Public
Affairs and Alumni.
The banquet included a cocktail
reception, followed by dinner, enter-
tainment and awards, and finally a
dance that went on past midnight.
Though the faculty and student
skits were well received, the highlight
of the evening appeared to be the
traditional presentation of awards.
The Dean's Student Service
Award was presented to David
Holman and Randy Howry.
Recipients of the Dean's Citizen-
ship Award were Joe Garnett, Jim
Brock, Lauri Goldman, Morris
Weiss, Barbara Pusch and Leon
Russell.
The SBA President's Award for
outstanding student of the year was
presented to both Mary Decker and
Barbara Pusch.
Richard Hogan, Jr., received the
George T. Barrow award.
Professor Peter Lewis was
presented with the Teacher Excel-
lence Award for the outstanding
faculty member of the year and Jay
D. Hirsch received the Outstanding
Adjunct Professor Award.
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m 4
Student award recipients at STCL's Spring Banquet included (L to R) David Holman, Joe Luce, Joe Garnett, Jim
Brock, Lori Goldman, Morris Weiss, Barbara Pusch and Richard Hogan. Not pictured are Randy Howry, Mary
Decker and Leon Russell.
Over 600persons attended the Spring Awards Banquet March 29, at the
Shamrock Hilton.
One-In-Three Fail Bar
By Sondra Kaighen
Nearly one-in-three South Texas
College of Law first timers failed the
February 1985 bar exam, according
to figures released by the Board of
Law Examiners.
STCL's pass rate of 68.8 percent
has declined from the February 1984
bar, which placed South Texas right
at 75 percent.
Baylor topped the ranks again
with approximately 90 percent of
their first timers passing. St. Mary's
was next with 82.6 percent, followed
by the University of Houston at 80.2
percent. University of Texas was
fourth with 77.7 percent and Texas
Tech with 75.5 percent. Then came
STCL at 68.8 percent, with Southern
Methodist University at a close 68.4
percent, followed by Texas Southern
University at 25 percent.
All of the law school's scores
dropped this time with approximate-
ly 72 percent of first-timers passing,
contrasted with the July 1984 results
at 78.4 percent, and February 1984
results at 77.2 percent. Although
when the Texas Procedure section
first accompanied the multi-state
and essay sections in July 1983, the
pass rate fell to 69 percent. Previous
bars, February 1983 and July 1982,
resulted in percentages of 83 percent
and 82 percent, respectively.
South Texas has consistently
stayed in seventh place since the July
1983 bar, except for the most recent
dip of SMU, falling four tenths of a
point below STCL.
When asked for his reaction to the
school's results, Dean Ensle replied,
"No law school is without con-
cern . . ."
The Dean said that some feel the
reason the overall pass rate is so low
is because the Board of Law Exam-
iners has toughened the grading, al-
though the. Board "steadfastly de-
nies" the allegation. "Some," he
continued, "think it's a result of a
lower caliber of student being admit-
ted. Some feel the flaws in the curri-
culum are to blame, while others say
it's because of the few required bar
courses. The exam itself has in-
creased in difficulty over the past
few years, which also accounts for
the poor scores."
Ensle personally feels that "too
many South Texas students take
courses for grades alone, not for a
well-rounded legal education." He
believes that students should not try
to divide their attention by taking
the bar early, while still completing
their studies, or working. Ensle sym-
pathizes, "I know it's hard to ask
someone to quit their job to study,
but if they would only realize that re-
taking the bar only delays their entry
into the legal profession!"
Dean Ensle gives several sugges-
tions to improve STCL's scores.
"Any student who does not take
Marital Property, Family Law, and
Oil and Gas, is running a risk of not
learning those subjects adequately to
satisfy the Board of Examiners. (Oil
and Gas is the most "spotted"
course at STCL.)
When asked to speculate about
the new Lewis/Davis preparatory
course, the Dean spoke favorably.
He expects this innovative program
to be "a significant factor" in rais-
ing South Texas' scores "because it
concentrates on the Third Day,' "
the least passed part of the bar.
Curriculum changes such as con-
verting Legal II into a pass/fail
course, will also have a major im-
pact on the school's performance
since it is not used solely to "inflate"
grades, the Dean expects.
The Dean gives this advice: "If
more students would take necessary
sacrifices to adequately study for the
bar, everyone would be happier with
the results!"
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Yanger, William L. South Texas College of Law, The Annotation (Houston, Tex.), Vol. 14, No. 1, Summer, 1985, newspaper, 1985; Houston, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth144434/m1/3/: accessed April 30, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting South Texas College of Law.