Even before the pandemic forced law schools to close their doors, forward-thinking educators were working hard to increase the accessibility of legal education through online learning. In this ABA Law Student Podcast, host Meghan Steenburgh talks with Dean Craig Boise and faculty director of online education Nina Kohn about yracuse University College of Law’s JDinteractive (JDi). They discuss their drive to reach a greater diversity of students and outline the JDi program’s ability to offer learners a fully interactive experience.
In an additional segment, Meghan is joined by Mandy Mobley Li, Ernie Sawyer, and Katy Morris, all 2Ls in the JDi program. They offer fellow law students tips and tricks for adjusting to online learning.
Listen to the episode
About the Panel
Craig Boise is dean and professor of law at Syracuse University College of Law where he has established a reputation as one of legal education’s leading innovators. During his nine years as a law school dean, he has established one of the nation’s two largest hybrid online JD programs, the first online joint JD/MBA program, one of the earliest Masters of Legal Studies programs for non-lawyers, the nation’s first law-school based incubator for solo practitioners, and a “risk-free” JD program granting a master’s degree in law to students who elect not to pursue a law career after successfully completing their first year of law school.
Nina Kohn is the David M. Levy Professor of Law and faculty director of online education at Syracuse University College of Law. Nina Kohn is the David M. Levy Professor of Law and Faculty Director of Online Education at Syracuse University College of Law, a faculty affiliate with the Syracuse University Aging Studies Institute, and a member of the American Law Institute. She is also currently a Visiting Professor at Yale Law School. Kohn led the development and development and launch of JDinteractive, the nation’s first fully interactive online J.D. program. She has built on that work by leading the development of the nation’s first online joint JD/MBA program as well as the College’s newly announced “Third Year Away” program.
Mandy Mobley Li is a 2L in Syracuse University College of Law’s JDinteractive program. She is also a technology business developer with an MBA and computer science degrees from MIT. Her former employers include Deloitte, Intel, and IBM. Mandy is focusing her legal studies on the intersection of law and public policy. She is currently based in Atlanta, Georgia, and is a single parent of twin eight-year-old children.
Ernie Sawyer is a 2L in Syracuse University College of Law’s JDinteractive program.
Katy Morris is a 2L in Syracuse University College of Law’s JDinteractive program.
About the Host
Meghan Steenburgh is a 1L in the JDi program at Syracuse University College of Law. She is a graduate of Georgetown University and holds a Master of Science in Broadcast Journalism from Syracuse University’s Newhouse School of Communications. Meghan’s status as a law school student follows a career in broadcast journalism, corporate communications, politics, and state government. Meghan is a fourth-generation harpist; she also enjoys mountain running and mountain biking. Meghan is married with four young children. She and her husband are active members of the Bridge Angel Investors of Sarasota, Florida.