DETC Presents Distinguished Recognition Award To Jack Goetz, Dean Of Concord Law School, For Outstanding Work In Distance Education

Washington, DC/Los Angeles, CA -- May 13, 2002 -- In honor of his achievements in distance education, the Distance Education and Training Council (DETC) presented Jack R. Goetz, Dean and President of Concord Law School, with its Distinguished Recognition Award. The Award, given at the DETC’s 76th Annual Conference last month, honors Dean Goetz for his outstanding work on special projects that have contributed to the advancement of distance education.

"Jack Goetz has worked tirelessly on behalf of the Council to strengthen standards for accreditation and to bring about innovative, instructional concepts,” said Mike Lambert, Executive Secretary of the Accreditation Commission of the DETC. ”He richly deserves this peer group recognition of his many outstanding contributions to distance education, and he has been a pioneer for all distance educators in the area of achieving excellence in online learning."

The founding Dean of Concord Law School, a division of Kaplan, Inc., Dean Goetz is a recognized expert in the field of distance learning. His vision and expertise contributed greatly to the creation of Concord in 1998, and under his leadership, Concord has grown from 6 faculty members and 33 students to more than 60 faculty members serving a student body of more than 900 adults worldwide. Dean Goetz oversees all aspects of the Concord education, including curriculum development, faculty hiring, student services, academic support and counseling, career services, operations, and management of accreditation issues.

Dean Goetz had served on the DETC Board of Trustees from 2000-2002, has participated with on-site DETC accreditation teams and serves on the DETC Task Force on Assessment of Learning Outcomes. In addition, the Board of Bar Governors of the State Bar of California appointed Dean Goetz to a three-year term as a member of the Law School Council, which advises the Committee of Bar Examiners on various law school education matters. Dean Goetz also serves as a member of the State Bar of California's Ad-hoc Task Force for Online Education, which is evaluating Internet legal education. A frequent speaker at distance education and legal conferences, Dean Goetz has delivered presentations on Concord’s innovative education model, as well as accreditation obstacles, faculty training and evaluation, and student retention.

Concord Law School (www.concordlawschool.com)
As the nation's only entirely online law school, and the second-largest part-time law school in the country, based on the size of the first-year entering class, Concord serves a student population of more than 900 adults who, due to geographic location or family, work and travel obligations, would otherwise not be able to attend law school. Concord has been authorized to award the Juris Doctor degree by the California Bureau of Private Post-Secondary and Vocational Education and has complied with the registration requirements of the State Bar of California, which permits its graduates to apply for admission to the California Bar. In January 2000, Concord received accreditation under a pilot program from the Accrediting Commission of the DETC. The Concord Law Center provides an online Master of Laws (LL.M.) in Health Law program to law graduates and attorneys, and will begin offering courses leading to a LL.M. in Taxation, starting in September 2002. Concord is a division of Kaplan Higher Education (www.kaplancollege.edu), a group of fixed-facility and online post-secondary and career schools that offer certificate and degree programs in fields such as healthcare, business, information technology and legal studies. Each of the schools in the division is separately accredited by one of several national or regional accrediting agencies approved by the U.S. Department of Education.

DETC
Founded in 1926 and located in Washington, D.C., the Distance Education and Training Council (DETC) is the premiere association of accredited distance education institutions in the United States. The DETC serves to promote sound education and good business practices in the distance education field.

Press Contacts:

Liz Lindley
Tel: 212-492-5890
liz_lindley@kaplan.com

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