Online course instruction and residencies-in-practice will continue for the spring trimester after Elon Law administrators, in light of statewide stay-at-home orders, announced the closure of all facilities until the end of the 2020 Spring Trimester.
UPDATE on MARCH 30, 2020
In light of Elon University’s announcement that extended online learning on main campus through the end of its spring semester, and to keep Elon Law in alignment with university operations and adherence to North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper’s executive order intended to limit the community transmission of COVID-19, effective March 30:
- In-person classroom instruction has been cancelled for the rest of the 2020 Spring Trimester. All classes will be taught online through June.
- All final exams will be administered online in June.
- Elon Law facilities will remain closed to students through the end of final exams in June.
- All student organization meetings and activities scheduled through the Spring Trimester, including Barristers Ball, are cancelled.
- Summer school 2020 remains on schedule. August session for incoming 1L students remains on schedule. The Fall Trimester remains on schedule.
“I am grateful for the understanding you have shown in these trying and challenging times,” Elon Law Dean Luke Bierman said in a message to the community announcing the changes. “As attorneys and future attorneys, we must adapt to facts and circumstances as they are, not as we wish them to be. Students… your flexibility over the past few weeks is a positive sign that you are preparing well for your careers in the legal profession. Colleagues… your swift adjustments to online teaching demonstrate that innovation truly is baked into our institutional DNA. It is a sign of strength in our student body and our faculty and staff that our law school is able to pivot in such a fashion without losing sight of our important mission: to prepare the next generation of lawyer leaders.”
The Admissions Office also will continue its recruitment of the Class of 2022, which enrolls in August, with applicant interviews to be conducted by phone as part of the admissions process.
PREVIOUS MESSAGE
Elon Law will temporarily close all facilities in downtown Greensboro after Guilford County and the City of Greensboro imposed mandatory stay-at-home orders as the region seeks to slow the spread of COVID-19.
Starting at 5 p.m. on Friday, March 27, the building will be closed. At this time, Elon Law administrators anticipate the closure of facilities, including the Elon Law Library, to run through Sunday, April 29. (Note: Elon Law originally planned to reopen facilities on April 19 prior to North Carolina’s statewide stay-at-home order. This post has been updated with the most current information.)
Online instruction residencies-in-practice for the start of the spring trimester on March 30 will continue as previously scheduled. The Admissions Office also will continue its recruitment of the Class of 2022, which enrolls in August, with applicant interviews to be conducted by phone as part of the admissions process.
Guilford County and the City of Greensboro have announced stay-at-home orders with Greensboro’s taking effect at 5 p.m. Friday, March 27.
Students who have financial aid checks or spring trimester books to pick up from the Registrar’s Office must do so by Friday afternoon. The Registrar is open from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Thursday and Friday. Students who need to retrieve personal belongings from their lockers or study carrels should retrieve those by Friday at 5 p.m.
Faculty and staff with items needed from the law school for the next few weeks also should retrieve them by Friday at 5 p.m. Anyone in the building is asked to exercise appropriate social distancing while interacting at Elon Law.
The Office of Career & Student Development, Office of Academic Success, Registrar’s Office, the Law Library and other law school departments are available to assist students remotely. Students should reach out to Elon Law staff by phone, email and other electronic means of communication.
“Though we are separated physically, we continue to share duties and responsibilities as part of the Elon Law community,” Elon Law Dean Luke Bierman said in a March 25 email to the community announcing the temporary closure. “Faculty, staff and administrators have been preparing for the Spring Trimester and remain available and committed to supporting students. Students should continue to be dynamic learners in your online classes, actively engaging the material, your faculty and classmates through electronic channels. Likewise, we all should continue to interact with the law school community broadly by staying in touch with and supporting classmates, friends and colleagues from afar.
“One of the things that brought many of us to Elon Law is the highly personal, collaborative and supportive environment here. Even while teaching, learning and working remotely, let’s all strive to keep that sense of community, which will continue in our professional lives as lawyers and judges as we all progress in our careers. Let’s do all we can to keep on track despite these unprecedented circumstances, while also staying healthy.”