Jackson State University students will be able to earn law degrees after just six years in higher education under a historic partnership between the historically Black university in Jackson, Miss., and the University of Mississippi in Oxford, Miss.
Latoya Thompson, the wife of Jackson State University President Marcus Thompson, is the driving force behind the Pathway to Law School program. The new program represents a step forward for one of her initiatives as first lady of the institution. Thompson, who earned her law degree from the University of Mississippi, still actively practices law.
“I have four things that I’m working on and one of them is to bolster our pre-law program and to support our pre-law students in a stronger way,” she said. “We have a pre-law program dedicated to them. We are not looking to replace that at all but to supplement it and make it as strong as we can from the perspective of visibility.”
The new program will allow Jackson State University students to begin taking law courses as early as their senior year of undergraduate study. Students can complete the fast-tracked bachelor’s degree and law degree program in three years—one full year less than it would take to earn the two degrees independently. University of Mississippi officials said that the joint degree will allow students to explore options in law “such as concentrations in business law, air and space law, sports and entertainment law, and criminal law.” JSU officials added the program can also significantly reduce the financial burden of continuing education.
“The law is so vast,” Latoya Thompson said. “You can work at a firm. You can work in government. You can work for a nonprofit. You can go into business. You can use a law degree in so many ways. And some people need a lot of time after law school to explore and settle into what we believe is a calling. So this gives you time to figure out what you really want to do with your law degree.”
Jackson State students participating in the Accelerated Law
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