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Amount: $1,000 (in tuition for Fall Semester)

The mission of San Joaquin College of Law is to educate and develop highly skilled attorneys and problem solvers who will benefit their communities through public and private service. Since its founding in 1969, San Joaquin College of Law has been committed to supporting and empowering first-generation college students, continuing generation college students, second career students, student veterans, LGBTQ and under-represented minority students in their transition to law school.

California LAW is an educational pipeline created by the California State Bar's Council on Access and Fairness aimed at diversifying the legal profession in California to better reflect the population of the state. California LAW is housed at the Foundation for California Community Colleges and is closely aligned with the Foundation’s strategic goal to expand student access, success, educational, and career outcomes through the promotion of student-centered resources and tools. The Central Valley also has a regional pathway to law pipeline that includes Bullard High School, Fresno City College, Fresno State and San Joaquin College of Law.

In accordance with the goals of SJCL and California LAW, the Law Pathway Scholarship (LPS) seeks to aid first-year law students who have been part of these pipelines and are California LAW Scholars. As an applicant, you are required to meet the following qualifications to be considered for this scholarship:

Submit an application to SJCL as an incoming student and be deemed admissible by the SJCL Admission Committee.
Have an established record of receiving the California Law Scholar or Central Valley Scholar designation, meaning that the applicant has successfully completed the seven required courses at a partnering community college with a minimum 3.0 GPA.
Demonstrate a commitment to the goals of California LAW through community service.
Submit an Application for the LPS by June 30.

To Apply

Please email the following items to ltennerelli@sjcl.edu by June 30th (applications will not be considered without these attachments):

A resume demonstrating an established record of community service.
A copy of your community college transcript showing that you took the seven required pathway courses.
Optional: An essay (no more than 500 words) explaining how the law pathway pipeline prepared you for the law school.

The LPS is a Tuition Reduction Scholarship only, which can only be applied to the applicant’s first semester of law school at SJCL. It may not be transferred to another person or institution, and there is no refund if the winner leaves SJCL either due to withdrawal or being academically disqualified. The deadline to accept the LPS is 30 days after it is offered. Only one LPS will be awarded this year to the best-qualified candidate.

Laptop Recommendations

At San Joaquin College of Law you can use a Mac or a Windows laptop. The following software you will be using during your educational experience:

ExamSoft - This software is used for taking your exams - Minimum requirements for ExamSoft
Office 365 - While you are a student, you will have access to Office 365 and will primarily use Word to write your papers.

Online Program Technical Requirements

Internet Connection: For optimal performance during Zoom meetings, it is important to ensure that your internet connection meets certain bandwidth requirements. While Zoom only requires a minimum bandwidth of 1.5Mbps to function, our experience at SJCL suggests that speeds below 5Mbps are insufficient for smooth two-way interactions. Therefore, we recommend a minimum bandwidth of 15-20Mbps for a better Zoom experience.

For example, when viewing the professor writing on the in-classroom whiteboard, a minimum bandwidth of 5Mbps is necessary to ensure that text is legible. For video calling in a classroom-style setting, the following bandwidth recommendations apply:

For 1080p HD video: 3.8Mbps (up) / 3.0Mbps (down)
For gallery view receiving: 2.0Mbps (25 views), 4.0Mbps (49 views)

To ensure a quality video chat Zoom session, your internet service speeds should ideally fall within the range of 10 to 25 Mbps download speed and at least 3 Mbps upload speed. If your current internet service does not meet these recommendations, we recommend contacting the SJCL helpdesk ahead of time to explore alternative options.

For more information, you can refer to Zoom's bandwidth requirements at: Zoom System Requirements.

Camera: You may use the built-in web camera in your laptop. For a better experience, we recommend a stand-alone camera at eye level with a resolution of 1080p.

Microphone: You may use the built-in microphone in your laptop. For a better experience you can use a headset. A headset will be required if you experience feedback issues during class.

General Recommendations

Although there are inexpensive laptops available, SJCL recommends that you purchase a quality computer that will last you for the duration of your law school experience (4-5 years).

Your first decision is a Windows or Macintosh based system. If you have always had one operating system or the other, then we recommend that you stick with what you are used to as both will work for law school.

As an SJCL student you have access to educational pricing and almost every brand has an education store. If you have a question about a specific model of laptop you can email it to the Help Desk at helpdesk@sjcl.edu and we will review it.

Microsoft Surface and Google Chromebooks will not work with ExamSoft and SJCL's liscensing of ExamSoft does not currently support Apple iPads.

San Joaquin College of Law was awarded a sum of $21,241 in Emergency Financial Aid Grants to Students under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. The U.S. Department of Education provided these funds to support the changes and challenges students experienced as a result of COVID-19.

A Funding Certification and Agreement was signed by SJCL and returned to the grantor on April 28, 2020 certifying that we intended to use at least 50% of the Cares Act funds (required by the grantor) for emergency grants to students. Upon receipt of these funds, SJCL distributed more than 100% of the student grant funds to students.
The total award to SJCL for Student Emergency Funds was $21,241. Another $21,241 was received for the Institutional portion of the emergency grant.
The total amount of emergency grant funds distributed to students was $22,950.
The total number of students eligible to participate in the emergency grant program at SJCL (the number of Title IV eligible students under Section 484 of the Higher Education Act) was 153.
The total number of SJCL students who have received emergency grant funds under the CARES Act is 153.
All 153 students eligible for grant funds received a check from SJCL in the amount of $150. No selection method was used to award the grant funds as all eligible students were included and each received the same amount of funds. At the Dean’s direction, each student received a check for $150, with the excess disbursement covered by SJCL. ($150 x 153 exceeded our award amount of $21,241.)
Individual checks in the amount of $150 were placed in the postal mail to all 153 students on May 28, 2020, along with a letter announcing the Emergency Grant fund award. No direction or instruction to students was necessary as the funds were distributed evenly among all eligible students.

Quarterly Report – Student Aid: October to December 2020

San Joaquin College of Law was awarded an additional grant of $449,120 under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. A condition of this award is that at least 50% of the award must be given to students which would be $224,560.

The total amount of emergency grants distributed to students under this award was $238,668.
The total number of student eligible to participate in this emergency grant program at SJCL (the number of Title IV eligible students under Section 484 of the Higher Education Act) was 179, nearly the entire student population at SJCL at the time.
The total number of students who received emergency grants funds under this award was 179.
All 179 students eligible for grant funds received a check from SJCL in the amount of $1,333.34. No selection method was used to award the grant funds as all students were facing increased needs due to the coronavirus pandemic and the need to attend classes virtually.
Individual checks were placed in postal mail to all students on October 9, 2020.

Quarterly Report – Student Aid: January – March 2021

No emergency grants were made during this quarter.

HEERF II – Coronavirus Response & Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act 2021 (CRRSAA)

Quarterly Report – Student Aid: March–June 2021

On January 19, 2021, San Joaquin College of Law received from the Department of Education its “Supplemental Grant Fund for Students” Notification to receive funding under Section 314(a)(1) of CRRSAA. At least the same percentage of funding for financial aid grants to students as was required under Section 18004(a)(1) of the CARES Act must be used to provide Emergency Financial Aid Grants to Students.

The College received $21,421 for Emergency Grants to Students and $38,034 for Institutional Needs. The College opted to use all the funds for student needs.

First Disbursement

The total amount of emergency funds distributed to students was $15,000 under an Emergency Grant Program. Students were encouraged to apply for an emergency needs grant of $500 each for such immediate needs as food and rent. 30 students applied.
The total number of students eligible to apply to participate in the Emergency Grant Program (the number of Title IV eligible students under Section 484 of the Higher Education Act) was 151. 30 students applied. A committee consisting of faculty and staff reviewed the applications.
The number of students who received emergency grants under this program was 30.
An individual check for $500 was available to recipients on either April 15 or April 22, 2021, depending upon when their application was received and reviewed.

Second Disbursement

The total amount of institutional award funds disbursed to students was $38,034.
The total number of students eligible to participate in this grant program at SJCL (the number Title IV eligible students under Section 484 of the Higher Education Act) was 151.
The total number of SJCL students who received funds under this program was 151. All 151 students received a check in the amount of $251.88. No special selection method was used to award these funds as all the students were eligible and were facing needs due to the start of the summer session under pandemic conditions.
Individual checks were placed in the postal mail to all 151 students on April 29, 2021.

HEERF III – American Recovery Plan (ARP)

Quarterly Report – Student Aid: July – September 2021

On May 11, 2021, San Joaquin College of Law received from the Department of Education its Notification of “Supplemental Award under the ARP".

The total award to SJCL for Student Emergency Funds was $54,889.
The total amount of emergency grant funds distributed to students was $61,130. This included $6,241 in HEERF II funds.
The total number of students eligible to participate in this emergency grant program at SJCL was 161.
The total number of SJCL students who received emergency grant funds under this program was 161. 75% of the funds were distributed to 79 students with a 0 Estimated Family Contribution (EFC) as reflected in their financial aid applications. The balance of the funds was distributed in proportion to the students’ EFC’s. Checks ranged from $580.35 to the students with 0 EFC’s to $100 to students with the highest EFC’s.
Individual checks were available to student on September 24, 2021. One student received a check on September 17, 2021, due to an acute emergency situation.

Quarterly Report – Student Aid: October – December 2021

No emergency grants were made during this quarter as all funds had already been distributed.

Quarterly Budget and Expenditure Reports

SJCL in the News

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Law Pathway Scholarship