Newport Beach-based online law school honors inaugural graduating class

St. Francis School of Law has graduated its first class in a ceremony held in late April at the Holiday Inn Golden Gateway Hotel in San Francisco.

“The occasion of our first graduating class is a notable accomplishment for the students, for St. Francis School of Law and for online higher education,” said Bart Daig, Ph.D., St. Francis School of Law president. “This is a big step for legal education as St. Francis is the nation’s first not-for-profit law school that offers a Juris Doctor degree 100 percent online. We congratulate the graduates and the entire faculty and staff on a job very well done.”

Members of St. Francis School of Law’s first graduating class, each of whom spoke at the ceremony, are:

• Mary Elizabeth McCaffrey, of Reno, Nevada, valedictorian, graduated summa cum laude.
• Charles Cresson Wood, of Mendocino, graduated magna cum laude.
• Hai Nguyen, of San Jose.

St. Francis School of Law Dean Carole J. Buckner, J.D., served as master of ceremonies, and the welcome address was given by Jill Langen, Ph.D., St. Francis School of Law vice president of academics.

Professor Michael White gave an address that saluted the first graduating class and focused on peacemaking in dispute resolution. White is an accomplished attorney – having been in private practice more than 40 years – and specializes in arbitration, mediation and alternative dispute resolution. He is a former president of the Beverly Hills Bar Association and a founding director of the Death With Dignity National Center, Portland, Oregon. He holds a Juris Doctor degree from UCLA and a bachelor’s degree from the University of Oklahoma.

Also participating in the event were Daig and St. Francis School of Law Advisory Council member Tod Zuckerman, J.D. Zuckerman is a graduate of Hastings College of the Law, San Francisco, and the University of California, magna cum laude. He has taught business law, civil procedure and research at UC Berkeley Extension and California State University East Bay.

Faculty, graduates, friends and families celebrated with a reception following the ceremony.

For more information about the 100 percent online Juris Doctor degree program at St. Francis School of Law, contact the admissions office at 800.931.2694 or admissions@stfrancislaw.com, or visit www.stfrancislaw.com.

About St. Francis School of Law

St. Francis School of Law is the first not-for-profit online law school in the United States. Unlike colleges organized as profit-making enterprises or subsidized by government funds and alumni donations, St. Francis operates as an independent institution devoted to serving its students and their interests. It has the freedom to invest in quality education and focus on the core values that form its cornerstone.

Recognized by the State Bar of California, St. Francis strives to incorporate the professional and practical curricula, taught by seasoned legal practitioners, that make its graduates practice-ready. For more information, visit www.stfrancislaw.com.

###

Photo captions

Photo1– Officials from the nation’s first not-for-profit, 100 percent online law school welcome the school’s inaugural graduating class. Graduates are, holding diplomas from left, Hai Nguyen, of San Jose; Charles Cresson Wood, of Mendocino; and Mary Elizabeth McCaffrey, of Reno, Nevada. Representing St. Francis School of Law are, from left, Advisory Council member Tod Zuckerman, J.D.; faculty members Michael White, J.D., and Karen Travis, J.D.; President Bart Daig, Ph.D.; Vice President of Academics Jill Langen, Ph.D.; and Dean Carole J. Buckner, J.D.

Photo2 – Mary Elizabeth McCaffrey, of Reno, Nevada, celebrates with his family at the commencement for the inaugural class of St. Francis School of Law, the nation’s first not-for-profit, 100 percent online law school.

Photo3 – Charles Cresson Wood, of Mendocino, celebrates with his family at the commencement for the inaugural class of St. Francis School of Law, the nation’s first not-for-profit, 100 percent online law school.

Photo4 – Hai Nguyen, of San Jose, celebrates with his family at the commencement for the inaugural class of St. Francis School of Law, the nation’s first not-for-profit, 100 percent online law school.