San Diego, California | January 16–19, 2020
On January 16–19, 2020, NCBE hosted a forum in San Diego, California, for jurisdictions that have adopted the Uniform Bar Examination (UBE). From its inception in February 2011, the UBE has been actively shaped by representatives of the jurisdictions that have adopted it. The UBE Jurisdictions Forum is an opportunity for representatives of UBE jurisdictions to meet with the administrators, board members, bar examiners, and state Supreme Court justices of other UBE jurisdictions to openly discuss policies, administration, scores, grading, and other issues of common interest.
The bar admission administrator, one board member or bar examiner, and one state Supreme Court justice from each UBE jurisdiction were invited to participate in the Forum. Ninety-seven attendees from 38 jurisdictions participated, including representatives from two jurisdictions considering adoption of the UBE. One additional attendee, the chair-elect of the NCBE Board of Trustees, represented a non-UBE jurisdiction, and 14 NCBE staff members also attended.
Attendees were welcomed to the Forum by Hon. Cynthia Martin, chair of NCBE’s Board of Trustees; Judith Gundersen, NCBE president and chief executive officer; and Marilyn Wellington, chair of NCBE’s Uniform Bar Examination Committee. Jurisdiction representatives introduced themselves and shared current issues in their jurisdictions.
Hon. Cynthia Martin (NCBE Board of Trustees Chair, Testing Task Force Chair)
Judith Gundersen (NCBE President & CEO)
Marilyn Wellington (MA)
The Forum included the following sessions:
- Decoding the Data: What We Know and What We Can Learn, by NCBE’s Mark Albanese, PhD; Kellie Early; and Douglas Ripkey
- Current Issues in Uniform Bar Examination Jurisdictions, a facilitated discussion moderated by Daniel Johnson and Jean McElroy and including such issues as interdependence and importance of consistent policies, procedures to implement if a jurisdiction can’t administer an exam, how to break down mobility barriers, and courtesy seating and concurrent applications
- Uniform Bar Examination Grading, by NCBE’s Joanne Kane, PhD; Sonja Olson; and Douglas Ripkey
- Separate breakout discussion sessions for justices, bar examiners, and administrators, followed by reports from each group; popular discussion topics included character & fitness, standard setting and cut scores, MEE and MPT grading, accommodations, and concurrent admission
- NCBE Testing Task Force: Where We’ve Been and Where We’re Going, by Hon. Cynthia Martin
- Report of the Impact of the Adoption of the Uniform Bar Examination in New York, by Diane Bosse; Andy Mroch, PhD; and Hon. Jenny Rivera, moderated by Marilyn Wellington (see this issue’s Testing Column for highlights of the report findings)
- Best Practices in Standard Setting, by Mark Albanese, PhD, and Joanne Kane, PhD, moderated by Marilyn Wellington
- Setting the Agenda: Individual and Collective Perspectives, by UBE Committee members Maureen Ryan Braley, Hon. Zel Fischer, and C. Alfred Mackenzie, moderated by Marilyn Wellington, in which the Committee members discussed the most valuable parts of the Forum to their jurisdictions, knowledge and concepts they planned to examine and implement in their own jurisdictions, and questions that arose for them during the Forum
Kellie Early (NCBE)
Sonja Olson, Douglas Ripkey, Joanne Kane, PhD (all NCBE)
Hon. Jenny Rivera (NY), Diane Bosse (NY), Andy Mroch, PhD (NCBE)
Hon. Zel Fischer (MO), C. Alfred Mackenzie (TX), Maureen Ryan Braley (ID)
Jean McElroy (WA), Daniel Johnson (AL)
Mark Albanese, PhD (NCBE)
UBE jurisdiction representatives shared current issues in their jurisdictions.
