We know what policies Barack Obama has pursued as president of the United States, but he opened up Friday about what he would do as the leader of a law school.
His top priority: Cut out the third year.
"This is probably controversial to say, but what the heck, I'm in my second term so I can say it," Obama, a Harvard Law School graduate, said during a town hall speech on college affordability at Binghamton University in New York.
"I believe, for example, that law schools would probably be wise to think about being two years instead of three years—because by the third year—in the first two years young people are learning in the classroom," Obama said. "The third year they'd be better off clerking or practicing in a firm, even if they weren't getting paid that much. But that step alone would reduce the cost for the student."
Obama recognized the challenges in that strategy. "Now, the question is can law schools maintain quality and keep good professors and sustain themselves without that third year," Obama said. "My suspicion is, is that if they thought creatively about it, they probably could."
The speech came as part of a bus tour touting a new education plan to reduce the cost of college.
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