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WASHINGTON – Anonymous evaluations of teachers by their students can be caustic or jerky. But they are also infallibly candid, and collectively they paint a telling picture of the strengths and weaknesses of a teacher.
Over the past decade, approximately 350 law students from Harvard, Yale and Georgetown have expressed their opinions on the courses offered by Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh. , President Trump's candidate for the Supreme Court. With rare exceptions, they praised his mastery of legal material, intellectual rigor, impartiality and accessibility.
"I honestly believe I have taken a course prescribed by a future judge of the Supreme Court," wrote a student from Georgetown in 2007.
Judge Kavanaugh's students did not hesitate to criticize the collection of jurisprudence that he used ("the manual is horrible!") or to comment on little personal attributes related to his teaching ("beautiful hair!"). Many students complained that there was too much reading. At first, some said that it was repetitive and not well organized. There were occasionally some students who dominated the class discussion
But overall, in 12 rounds of assessments covering 700 pages, there was almost nothing but praise for the students. Judge Kavanaugh's teaching. More than a few students said that he was the most impressive law professor that they had met.
"Significantly better than any full-time professor I've had," wrote a Harvard student. "Kavanaugh is the best teacher I've had at law school," wrote another. "The best course I took at HLS by a mile," said a third.
Judge Kavanaugh once taught in Georgetown and once at Yale but did most of his teaching at Harvard, where he was hired by Judge Elena Kagan. She was Dean of the Law School prior to her appointment as Solicitor General and then as Supreme Court Justice by President Barack Obama. Some Harvard students said his class attracted a larger proportion than usual conservative students, especially in the early years.
"A strong inclination of the Federalist Society to class registration," wrote a student seemed very balanced. "
Another student agreed." While most of the students shared rather conservative opinions, "writes the student," the judge very well presented the other party, even though he was not a student. he probably shared most of these conservative views. "The student added that"
A sophomore in 2014 wrote that Judge Kavanaugh "let his personal ideology bleed a little bit in his teaching (but tried to pay attention and fix that, which was great "
In fact, a major complaint from his students concerned the textbook he was using, the students saying that he was" skewed " "," Very inclined "and" very left "Judge Kavanaugh told them that it was the only one
"I am final on the left, "she said." If you did not know – and I actually did not know at the time, and I was told later – that Judge Kavanaugh had worked in the Bush administration, I do not think you could have said that it was a conservative "
Elizabeth B. Wydra, the president of the Center for Constitutional Responsibility, a liberal group, said that would be a mistake to read too much in the assessments, which were made available to the New York Times by the confirmation team of Judge Kavanaugh
"This is not because it is a good guy or a good teacher that he should be a judge of the Supreme Court, "she said. "It could mean that he will be able to persuade his colleagues more easily or speak more effectively to the public in his opinions, but none of this matters in terms of ability." to the judiciary if he has a distorted view of the law. "
"He really did not like it, trying to tear down another argument unfairly," said Mr. Vance, whose wife, Usha Vance, served as Judge Kavanaugh's Judge. "He really wanted you to identify the best version of an argument and do not assume that your intellectual opponents were all idiots." It goes to the way he will treat the litigants. "It deals with how he will treat his colleagues. on the bench. "
At Harvard, he usually taught for a brief semester of winter, in January, for 12 consecutive weekdays in a row, mainly teaching about the separation of powers, but recently, and perhaps auspicious, he turned his attention to the Supreme Court.
Classes lasted three hours and usually began with a discussion of current events.In the afternoon, he held office hours where students said they felt welcome to talk about the class, the law and their future, most of the time they invited six or eight students to dinner, there was a party at night before the last class. [19659002] It was, wrote a student, "the most accessible teacher outside the class I've ever had." Another said that "access outside the classroom was simply without previous". ]Mrs. Sinzdak then served as forensic judge Merrick B. Garland, whose Supreme Court appointment was blocked by Senate Republicans, and Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. She said Judge Kavanaugh was supportive at every step of the way.
"I chose to become clerk for Judge Garland instead of Judge Kavanaugh, and he never stood against me," she said. "I do not know for sure, but I have the impression that he has helped me a lot in getting my internship with Chief Justice Roberts.
Some students may have enrolled in Judge Kavanaugh's courses in hopes of obtaining an internship. him, which was prestigious in itself and often a stepping stone for an internship at the Supreme Court. But only three of his students became his employees
. On Thursday, dozens of former students of Judge Kavanaugh at Harvard published a letter describing him as "a rigorous thinker, a dedicated teacher, and a kind person."
Justice Kavanaugh's class at Yale, in 2011, was in national security law. It included a visit to Washington, where students witnessed a Supreme Court argument in a major case of separation of powers and met with Judge Anthony M. Kennedy, whom Kavanaugh J. now hopes to replace, and Paul D. Clement, a former United States Solicitor General.
Fifteen students submitted course evaluations, all of which contained superlatives. The class was "outstanding", "excellent", "my favorite", "the best", "maybe the best", "one of the most fascinating", "incredible" and "fantastic".
"It was very"
Although Judge Kavanaugh's students held him in high esteem, his appointment divided the main law of the nation. schools, leaning to the left, and particularly to the Yale Law School, which he graduated from.
More than 700 Yale law students and alumni signed an open letter reprimanding the administration of the law school for issuing a statement. "The appointment of Judge Kavanaugh," says the letter, "presents an urgency – for democratic life, for our security and freedom, for the future of our country."
ne The release of Mr. Kavanaugh was similar to that pronounced after the appointment of other elders to senior positions, including Judge Sonia Sotomayor and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton .
A second open letter signed by more than 300 students, wrote that Judge Kavanaugh "was a valuable friend to the Yale community" and was "eminently qualified to serve as Justice of the Supreme Court."
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