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Whittier College Diversity Scam Applied to Law School Backfires

NOTE: For New ETHNIC CLEANSING AND GRADES AND BAR PASS RATE STATS MANIPULATIONS AT WLS EXPOSED and PROF AND STUDENT SUE WLS FOR FRAUD, ADMINISTRATOR FILES EEOC COMPLAINT Content CLICK HERE Or Scroll Down.

In Whittier College v. American Bar Association, U. S. District Court, Central District of California, Case No. CV 07-1817 PA (FMOx), Whittier's request for orders to prevent the ABA from revoking Whittier Law School's accreditation, to enjoin the ABA from extending Whittier's probation, to revoke the ongoing 2005 two-year probation determination re Whittier Law School, and, most disturbing, to cause the ABA to delete all references to Whittier's probationary status from all ABA websites and publications, were all denied by U. S. District Judge Percy Anderson on May 7, 2007.

Whittier College's diversity scam applied from the Whittier campus to the Whittier Law School may be the scam's undoing. While bachelor degree graduates from Whittier College don't have anything like the high school senior exit exam in California to test whether or not a student should be graduated, Whittier Law School graduates have a bar examination to test whether a graduate has been at least adequately educated in the law. Whittier can get away with graduating students who haven't really earned a college degree in the liberal arts, but Whittier hasn't found a way around the bar exam.

. Whittier could lose its accreditation as soon as. August [2007]. - Michael H. Rubenstein, Adjunct Professor at St. Johns and New York Law Schools, and Senior Counsel, New York State Unified Teachers.

Judge Anderson points out that Whittier has known all along that the bar exam pass rate is the standard by which all law schools are ultimately judged. While agreeing that diversifying the attorney pool is praiseworthy, the Court found that interest doesn't outweigh the facts that no one is well-served by inadequate standards, nor by censorship.

Although being placed on probation has resulted in no small amount of difficulty for Whittier, the integrity of the ABA's accreditation process, and the interests of prospective students in being informed of the history of the poor first-time bar passage rate of Whittier's graduates, argues against the issuance of the injunctive relief Whittier seeks.

Whittier Law School has lost faculty members, and higher achieving students have transferred from Whittier to other law schools, in their own best interests - for which Whittier College would project responsibility onto the ABA, rather than accept that responsibility for which it takes student families' money. Current Whittier College Law students report a previously absent sense of cutthroat every student for him- or herself on campus, reflecting Whittier's evident sense of desperation.

Whittier has taken action to try to raise its graduates' bar passage rate. The Whittier Law School has reduced enrollment and raised school standards, that is, Whittier has backed off at least in part from trying to apply its diversity scam to its Law School. While presenting itself as a champion of opportunity for minority students, Whittier is indeed exploiting such students. The ABA's expressed concerns about Whittier have not been limited to the Law School's below average bar passage rate, but have included, too, its high attrition and low career placement rates.

No doubt there are numerous graduates of Whittier Law School, as there are of Whittier College, who can or have distinguished themselves in their fields of action. This is not to insult Whittier graduates, it is rather to put a light to this dark institutional determination to exploit minorities for financial gain, in the name of diversity, which when said of domestic students gives support to an outdated view of society that retards integration, works against equality, and saddles dropout and graduate alike with crushing debt that was as easily avoided as avoiding enrolling at Whittier.

The obviousness of this scam should embarrass Whittier, but President Herzberger seems to have no problem at all suggesting the SAT, evidently like bar passage rates, is only one measure of success, that there are better ways of predicting success. Like asking a psychic, or your accountant maybe?

The Federal Court's not having any of that, and if minority students, especially Hispanics, who have to constitute 25% of Whittier students, half of whom have to be Hispanic and poor, for Whittier College to get loan money and federal Title V money out of you, do have the potential to succeed, then you should be able to do the math: Whittier wins, you lose. Did you notice how Hispanics are exactly 25% of the undergraduate student body? 25% is the absolute minimum necessary to receive the federal Title V monies.

If you dropout, you have a five figure debt on your back. If you graduate, you have the third highest debt of all liberal arts college grads in the United States on your back. How do you win? Having gone to or graduated from Whittier College?

Whittier College can use Maria Contreras-Sweet to dress up its Latino Graduation, but there is no separate and equal, there is only separate and unequal. Whittier College can dangle an honorary degree before Anthony Villaraigosa and get a hollow commencement key note speech, but Tony Villaraigosa didn't go to Whittier College. The young Tony Villaraigosa did exactly what this website recommends to all working poor students (See Diversity Scam link below), he went to a community college, East L. A. College, and then transferred to a subsidized university, UCLA, public ivy. No matter how dazzling the Tio Tomas acts may be, they do nothing toward bridging Whittier College's seemingly bottomless bottom line nor addressing serious questions about Whittier's ethics and academic standards.

Anthony Villaraigosa was a fitting Whittier 2007 honorary degree recipient and commencement speaker in one respect: After being graduated with a Bachelor degree in History by UCLA, Tony Villaraigosa - kids, do not make this mistake - went to the unaccredited People's College of Law, and then failed, four times, to pass the California Bar exam. Villaraigosa is still unlicensed to practice law. Perhaps it was sympathy as well as vanity that persuaded Mayor Villaraigosa to swap yet another honorary degree for yet another commencement speech, but it's the students, not the school, who deserve the sympathy.

But then Anthony Villaraigosa's not known for either his character or being sympathetic, much less empathetic, nor for his scholarship. Villaraigosa's Whittier College 2007 Commencement keynote speech wrongly attributed the founding of the College to John Greenleaf Whittier, who as scholars know was never in the area. Villaraigosa was evidently too busy cheating on his wife, again, to check his facts. Villaraigosa's newest affair is with Mirthala Salinas, a tv news reporter and anchor who had the chutzpah (perhaps picked up in the condo complex of Jewish retirees where she resided and was visited by Tony alone bearing takeout and wine before the scandal broke and Salinas moved) to announce the impending divorce of Tony and Corina Villaraigosa on Telemundo's 6 o'clock news, the same news program airing not just one but two Public Service Announcements, featuring who else but Tony Villaraigosa, within its 30 prime time minutes. Salinas has been linked so to speak romantically with not only Villaraigosa, but also with Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez, and former City Council President Alex Padilla, as the L. A. Weekly put it, among others. Corina Villaraigosa, a local school teacher, has filed for divorce, again. The Los Angeles Times reports Villaraigosa has two adult daughters born out of wedlock and his wife filed for divorce in 1994 over a separate affair for which he later publicly apologized. Perhaps Tony Villaraigosa was the perfect keynote speaker for Whittier College after all. Again, kids, don't try this at home.

The most disturbing aspect of the dishonesty of Whittier College in Whittier v. ABA, though, is the effort by Whittier to have public information regarding its probation status, low bar exam passage rate, etc. deleted, kept from the public, from prospective students. The truth is that Whittier College wants to keep the truth hidden from you, blather about the light of learning and diversity, and collect the money. Meanwhile, Whittier's now being referred to as a fourth, not even third, tier school, and is one of only two law schools in the United States currently on probation for failing to meet ABA standards, according to Res Gestae, the University of Michigan Law School paper, and the ABA, the U. S. District Court, Et Al.

Whether Whittier Law School is continued on probation, or loses its accreditation, or is normally accredited, Whittier College has revealed itself in its requests of the U. S. District Court: Whittier College believes it has to control the information you have access to about Whittier College. Whittier's point of view is so antithetical to the school's, any school's, mission, that institutional therapy is clearly in order. There are no demons lurking in the dark so formidable that a college must fear it more than snuffing out the light of learning, and if there are such horrific secrets, then better no school at all than a bad school. Whittier College refused to heed the Friends many years ago, Friends of conscience who birthed Whittier College. Will Whittier College heed the Court?

A federal court is telling Whittier Law School to make itself honestly successful, not to try to hide or rationalize failing to adequately educate its students. Whittier College should be doing better, being open, honestly trying to do the right things, for the stirrings of its own conscience. It shouldn't take a court to order a college, supposedly educating the professionals upon whom our lives may well depend, to be successful the old fashioned way, the way Whittier College should've been operating all along, or face probation or even loss of accreditation - that the public will know about. Poets, it looks as though it's wake up or a wake.

The National Law Journal

Law School loses bid to shed probation status

Whittier decries ABA action, facing ruin.

United States District Court

Central District of California

Whittier College v. American Bar Association

Case No. CV 07-1817 PA (FMOx) Civil Minutes

See how Whittier's Diversity Scam operates: CLICK HERE

See also

'Mayor reveals romantic link with TV newscaster' by Duke Helfand and Steve Hymon, Los Angeles Times, Wednesday, July 4, 2007, A-1

and

'Villaraigosa's Media Affair: Telemundo, where his girlfriend is an anchor, lavishes him with free airtime' by David Zahniser, L A Weekly, July 6-12, 2007, Pg. 32

For a primer on corruption in city politics, and the many affairs of and ethics violations by Anthony Villar-Raigosa (Villaraigosa is a blending as the mayor might describe it of Anthony Villar's and Corina Raigosa's names - will Corina want her name back now that she's finally divorcing Tony?), wade through this revelatory pooling of information by city hall insiders:

Mirthala Salinas wasn't remotely the first nor even the last of Tony Villaraigosa's affairs, many of which seem to involve ethics violations. Many agree that Villaraigosa's city administration is the most corrupt and corrupting since Mayor Shaw's in the 1930's, cleaned up only by rewriting Los Angeles' city charter. Yes, sadly, Tony Villaraigosa was the perfect Whittier College commencement keynote speaker.

Update. More recently, Mirthala Salinas was investigated by her employer, KVEA-TV Channel 52 / Telemundo / NBC Universal, and was found to have violated Channel 52's ethical standards , and was suspended for two months without pay. At the end of Salinas' KVEA suspension, she was reassigned to Telemundo's Riverside bureau, far from Los Angeles' City Hall action. Salinas, however, failed to show up for her first day of work in the Inland Archipelago, which turned out therefore to be her last day of work for her employer the past 10 years. Even though Salinas' contract didn't end until December, her association with KVEA-TV was terminated on October 1, 2007.

Additionally, NBC Universal reprimanded Telemundo stations President Ibra Morales, KVEA General Manager Manuel Abud was removed from that position and is to be reassigned, and KVEA News Director Al Corral was suspended for two months without pay, all for their parts in violating the company's conflict of interest policies in relation to the Salinas-Villaraigosa scandal.

Meanwhile, Corina Villaraigosa NEE Raigosa, public school teacher and no longer long-suffering spouse of philanderer Tony Villar AKA Villaraigosa, has reemerged after filing for a divorce. Corina's first public appearance on her own was before the Girls Today, Women Tomorrow mentoring group, where Corina reminded us all that, when you keep commitments to yourself, it's easier to keep commitments to others.

flapsblog.com/?p=5327 for Villaraigosa scandal updates, including the political and economic consequences to the City of Los Angeles.

Some People Never Ever Learn

Well, Tony has done it again. This time the loser is Francis Louise "Lu" Parker, the second L. A. news anchor to resign after being exposed having an affair with Los Angeles Mayor Villaraigosa.

"Now that we're aware of the relationship, she will no longer be covering local politics." - KTLA-TV News Director Jason Bell

latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow//09/ktla-says-lu-parkers-departure-from-anchoring-not-related-to-her-relationship-with-villaraigosa.html

Not to worry, Lu Parker being yanked could be a plus for journalism. "Parker is best known for the one report she did about waxing her Betty (that is on YouTube) on a local L. A. station. No you could not make this up. She is a "teleprompter reader", not a journalist. Parker looks like she is in her sixties and talks with a heavy southern accent. (Blanche DuBois?) Seriously, L. A. is the number two market. What is she doing on the air in the first place? I guess the next "watergate" story is not coming out of L. A. Channel 5, which has become a parody of itself. At least Telemundo had the ethics to fire their reporter (Mirthala Salinas). Does Channel 5 really have such a hard time replacing this "insightful journalist"? She reported on the mayor and slept with him at the same time. Fire her! Well, I guess at least her Betty was ready. Nobody watches Channel 5 anyway, but now they not only lost their ratings, they lost their credibility." - Dan Markham

whittiergate Note: Telemundo only fired Mirthala Salinas after she refused to report for her new job (after being yanked from the Telemundo anchor position), reporting from that southern California Siberia, the Inland Empire. And if you look for Lu Parker's Betty on YouTube, be sure to also see the video of her accidentally spitting on Bill Cosby on the KTLA Morning Show (June 14, 2007).

Meanwhile, Mayor Villaraigosa's solution to the City of Los Angeles' severe fiscal crisis is dismemberment. One can only wonder if this mayor applied himself so diligently to finding money for his city as he does to finding 'betty' if he might have been successful. But the odds are stacked against those who aren't among the sharper tools in the shed, and when Tony has failed the California Bar Exam four times - even Pete Wilson passed on his fourth try! - one would think that'd be enough for the voters of Los Angeles. Who knew that former L. A. Councilman Mike Hernandez turning his City Hall office into a cocaine-fueled porn palace could look relatively discreet?!

What do Tony Villaraigosa and Mike Hernandez have between them? Helen??

NEWS UPDATE

The American Bar Association has decided to continue Whittier Law School's probation status until , when the school's performance will be reviewed, yet again, for compliance with ABA accreditation standards. A Whittier Law School attorney claimed earlier this year in federal court that Whittier is facing ruin because of its ABA-imposed probation status. Well, now we'll be able to see whether or not a Whittier College attorney has finally told the truth for a change. Either way, prospective students will not be kept in the dark about Whittier Law School's continued probation status.

Calls for Whittier Law School to publicly admit ABA extension of School's probation status to after whittiergate.com scoop:

Whittier Law School Probation UPDATE. ABA Eases Rules, Whittier Removed From Probation

In December, 2007, the American Bar Association removed Golden State University School of Law from probation, leaving Whittier Law School pretty lonely in the ABA accreditation dog house, where the Whittier College creation had been since 2005.

In May, , the ABA made clear its intention to in effect cave-in to 'minority' special interest groups pressure and the trend away from accountability in higher education, including professional schools, to move from universal measures, most importantly regarding law school's the bar exam pass rate, to a mix of mostly school-specific and more subjective measures, most to be determined and assessed by law schools themselves, in determining a law school's accreditation status. Therefore, in June, , the ABA removed Whittier Law School from probation.

Of further concern regarding the ABA rules changes is that, while the ABA relaxes the traditional emphases on bar passage rate and employment in their evaluations, ABA assessors will henceforth make fewer visits to law school campuses, will rely more heavily upon information provided to the ABA by, again, the law schools themselves. It seems a Buyer Beware alert should now be issued regarding ABA evaluation of law schools. After all, isn't this how schools like Whittier College get away with taking money and handing over diplomas to students manifestly not having earned any kind of college degree, there being no universal measures, no exit exam?

Not surprisingly, Whittier Law School Dean Neil H. Cogan is very pleased by the ABA rules changes, although he overdid it by suggesting the ABA changes were overdue. Like an athlete who scores more by luck than skill and so shouldn't talk much about it let alone brag, Whittier Law School should keep its feet on the ground and keep its eyes on the continuing challenge of not only making money but also of adequately preparing its students, many of whom, according to the ABA, assume severe personal debt for their education in the law, to pass the bar exam and find employment in the law.

When Whittier College and Whittier Law School went to federal court, before the ABA rules changes, seeking an order that the ABA remove Whittier Law School from probation, or failing that, to prevent the ABA from letting anyone know Whittier Law School was on probation, the judge explained, in response to the probation removal request, that, while increasing minority enrollment in law schools is laudable, it's most important that students be enabled by their law school to pass the bar exam and find employment. That same opinion also made clear that in the United States prospective student families have the right to know the status of a school, among other things. What was Whittier Law School thinking, and what does that reveal about the character or lack of character of that institution? It's difficult to believe that a law school failing to properly prepare its students to take the bar exam, when the consequence of failure to do so was probation or loss of accreditation, is going to do so now that there may be no consequence at all, for the school, for that failure.

No doubt minority enrollment in law schools will increase as a result of the ABA rules changes, and more minority law school students will graduate. What must be carefully tracked is how many more minority law students pass the bar exam and how many are saddled with the severe debt of a law school graduate without the ability to practice the law. It seems the failure of elementary and secondary education, and even that of higher education - as we've seen in the cases of too many Whittier College graduates - is now finding its way into professional schools. There's no need to wonder why this generation of students is so likely to know less and earn less and even live shorter lives than the generation before them. Which was the last generation to experience that. The wonder is that this generation accepts such a lot.

whittiergate hopes very much that Whittier Law School does a better job from now on of preparing students to pass the bar exam, the universal measure of all law schools, no matter a school's accreditation status, and we wish all Whittier Law School students the very best of luck in trying to meet that challenge. Just remember that the school has used up a lot of luck getting off probation, so don't count on any of that, now. Study! You don't want to end up like Pete Wilson, having to take the bar exam four times to pass it, or, even worse, like Tony Villaraigosa, failing the bar exam four times and still not passing!

Time will tell whether the ABA is onto something or has turned a dependable impartial law school authority into a helpless rubber stamp for every Tom, Dick, and Harry School of Law. Like the old sign above that West Virginia donut shop put it, keep your eyes on the donut, not on the hole; and the donut has been, is, and will continue to be, the bar exam pass rate. If you don't think so, ask any law student, regardless of gender or ethnicity, and that student will set your straight.

Whittier Law School Dean Neil Cogan is out / Penelope Bryan is in

Penelope Bryan, of Denver's Sturm College of Law, will assume Whittier Law School's Dean responsibilities on July 1, .

Bryan's emphasis has been on Family Law, but she has considerable experience in administration, having been involved in Sturm's Lawyering in Spanish, Environmental and Natural Resources programs. The first judgments of Bryan's sense of ethics and law will be made on whether or not this new Dean insists on Whittier College ending its long-running Hispanic-Serving Institutions scam, through which Whittier College has defrauded this federal program of millions of dollars, and returning those monies to the federal government, and disposing of the College's newly-installed health and safety and environmental hazard artificial turf at a licensed hazardous waste facility and restoring natural grass in the campus Stadium.

We would also hope that Bryan will further advise Whittier College to stop interfering with Free Speech and Freedom of the Press on campus, specifically by apologizing to Quaker Campus for administration retaliation for the student paper's scientifically and legally sound, responsible, questioning of the irresponsible decision to install health and safety and environmental hazard artificial turf in the campus Stadium, and allowing the resumption of publication of Quaker Campus issues on the independent College Publisher network website.

And we will all continue monitoring Whittier Law School grads' California Bar Exam pass rate and employment stats.

Penelope Bryan, don't let yourself be used by Whittier College and Whittier Law School for unethical and criminal purposes, don't acquiesce or involve yourself in wrongdoing. Surprise those who hired you: Do the right thing(s).

Avvo's Law School Rankings

Where does Whittier Law School rank in comparison with other law schools nationally and internationally?

According to Avvo, WLS is hardly impressive, even accepting Whittier's questionable statistic s.