AccessLex Institute Announces Grant Winners

WASHINGTON, March 20, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- AccessLex Institute and the Association for Institutional Research (AIR) have announced the winners of more than $270,000 in grants awarded through their Research and Dissertation Fellows Program. The program is funded by AccessLex Institute and administered by the Association for Institutional Research (AIR) to promote scholarship on issues related to access, affordability and the value of legal education specifically, and graduate and professional education more broadly. Grants of up to $50,000 for scholars and $25,000 for doctoral students are awarded to help fund year-long research projects.

"The Research and Dissertation Fellows Program is a vital component of AccessLex Institute's grantmaking platform," said AccessLex President and Chief Executive Officer, Christopher P. Chapman. "We believe strongly that access to accurate and actionable data is critical to informed decision-making by policymakers, school administrators and aspiring students. The work of these grantees will make new and important data available to all those with a stake in graduate and professional education."

The selected proposals can be viewed on AIR's website. This year's recipients are:

• Andrea Curcio, Georgia State University – a $50,000 research grant to determine whether law schools will choose a test option if it becomes available and if that option is not available, how much weight should be given to the LSAT or other standardized tests in the admissions process;
• Kevin Escudero, Brown University – a $50,000 research grant to examine the post-college educational trajectories of undocumented students;
• Frank Fernandez, University of Houston – a $46,722 research grant to examine gender and race intersectionality in public law school admissions and enrollment;
• Ya-Chi Hung, The Pennsylvania State University – a $25,000 dissertation grant to examine what shapes students' graduate degree aspirations;
• Ryan Wells, University of Massachusetts Amherst – a $49,816 research grant to explore how the lack of affordability and positive aspirations for further education may play a role in disproportionate access to graduate and professional education; and,
• Liang Zhang, New York University – a $49,973 research grant to evaluate the overall impact of the Post-9/11 GI Bill on graduate and professional school attendance among veterans, as well as its potentially heterogeneous impact across veteran groups of different age, gender, race/ethnicity, and disability rating.

Since launching its grantmaking activities in 2014, AccessLex Institute has awarded nearly $5 million in support of its research priorities.

About AccessLex Institute: In partnership with its nearly 200 nonprofit and state-affiliated ABA-approved member law schools, AccessLex Institute has been committed to improving access to legal education and to maximizing the affordability and value of a law degree since 1983. The AccessLex Center for Legal Education Excellence advocates for policies that make legal education work better for students and society alike and conducts research on the most critical issues facing legal education today. The AccessLex Center for Education and Financial Capability offers on-campus and online financial education programming and resources to help students confidently manage their finances on their way to achieving personal and professional success. Learn more at AccessLex.org.

SOURCE AccessLex Institute