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Who am I? Why this Blog?
I’m Dr. Jonathan L. Kramer.
In August 2016 I completed my Doctor of Law and Policy (LP.D) degree at Northeastern University in Boston. I received my doctoral hood in September 2016. I was a member in the 8th Cohort of that unique program.
I set up this blog at the suggestion of one of the LP.D program leaders whom I truly respect, Professor Neenah Estrella-Luna, Ph.D. Early in the LP.D program she strongly recommended that each Cohort member track their progress and stand up to the scrutiny of peers, just as we do when we publish or present papers.
I took Professor Estrella-Luna’s suggestion to heart, and this blog allowed me to chart my personal journey from a highly-educated lawyer and masters-level blob to highly-educated lawyer and doctoral-level researcher blob.
At least that was my initial goal…
In real life, I’m a practicing telecom law attorney licensed in California and New Mexico, as well as a radio frequency engineer. My law firm has five attorneys, four staff, and two dogs working in offices in Los Angeles, San Diego, Seattle, and in our covert office on a Southwest Airlines jet (minus the dogs).
I have earned the following academic degrees:
Associate of Science (AS) degree (honors) Los Angeles Trade Tech College. Los Angeles, California.
Juris Doctor (JD) degree (cum laude) Abraham Lincoln University School of Law. Los Angeles, California.
Masters of Law (LL.M) degree (with distinction) Strathclyde University. Glasgow, Scotland.
Doctor of Law and Policy (LP.D) Northeastern University. Boston, Massachusetts.
Having completed my Doctor of Law and Policy degree, just for fun I might go after a few more professional licenses.
My current goal is to become licensed as a Real Estate Broker in California. Done that!
Who knows?
Accountability
I am personally accountable for my education and the work I put in to that education. Because of that, I’ve decided to be transparent about my grades, whether good or bad (but better good than bad).
Q1 – Summer 2014:
Law and Legal Reasoning 1
(LWP 6120) Grade: A
Law and Policy Concepts 1
(LWP 6401) Grade: A
Research Methods
(LWP 6424) Grade: A-
Q2 – Fall 2014:
Law and Legal Reasoning 2
(LWP 6121) Grade: A
Law and Policy Concepts 2
(LWP 6402) Grade: A-
Qualitative Methods
(LWP 6423) Grade: A
Q3 – Winter 2015:
Law and Legal Reasoning 3
(LWP 6122) Grade: A
Law and Policy Concepts 3
(LWP 6403) Grade: A
Quantitative Methods
(LWP 6420) Grade: A
Q4 – Spring 2015:
Law and Legal Reasoning 4
(LWP 6123) Grade: A
Evaluation Research
(LWP 6404) Grade: A
Economics for Policy Analysis
(LAW 6410) Grade: A-
Q5 – Summer 2015:
Methods & Theory Appl Research
(LWP6425) Grade: A
Political/Moral/Ethical Dilemmas
(LWP6431) Grade: A
Doctoral Research Design 1
(LWP6500) Grade: A
Q6 – Fall 2015:
Public Policy Theory & Practice 1
(LWP6450) Grade: A
Doctoral Research Design 2
(LWP 6501) Grade: A
Q7 – Winter 2016:
Public Policy Theory & Practice 2
(LWP6451) Grade: A
Doctoral Research Design 3
(LWP 6502) Grade: A
Q8 – Spring 2016:
Public Policy Theory & Practice 3
(LWP6452) Grade: A
Doctoral Research Design 4
(LWP 6503) Grade: A
July 2016: My final GPA after all program coursework is 3.958 on a 4 point scale. I can live with that.
Day: August 1, 2016
One Chapter Left
I’ve written 5 of the 6 chapters that comprise my thesis. The chapters are:
- Introduction
- Literature Review
- Research Methodology
- Resident Surveys and Interviews
- Hedonic Price Modeling and the Courts
- Conclusions and Recommendations
The final chapter, my conclusions and recommendations for further research, is in progress. I should have it finished later this week, and then off to my editor.
I’m still on track to defend my thesis on Tuesday, August 30th.
I am happy, but I’ll be happier when I’m done.
Jonathan
My editor, Dissertation-Editor.com
In my previous post I mentioned sending off a chapter to my editor, so it occurred to me spill a few words about my editor, Dissertation-Editor.com
I’m using Dr. Alan Roda’s Dissertation-Editor.com service to professionally edit my thesis and ensure that it complies with APA 6th formatting style. I was exposed to Dr. Roda’s service way of a trusted recommendation from member of my cohort who was very happy with Dr. Roda’s services, and I now know why.
Dissertation-Editor.com’s staff of Ph.Ds has done exactly what I need. They have edited my chapters to ensure scholarly tone and style. They have suggested changes to words, sentence structures, and paragraph order to help me clarify my intended meaning. They have challenged me with questions based on what I have written as my Principal Investigator would. What they have never done is to cross the ethical boundary of writing new material for me.
Frankly, I appreciate the cost effectiveness of Dissertation-Editor.com billing practices. They charge a basic rate for their services with their normal turn-around, but offer quicker turnarounds for a modest additional fee. This quicker turnaround service has been valuable to me as I play ‘beat-the-clock’ on some of my chapter deliverables.
Look, it’s impossible to effectively edit your own work. No, you’re not that good. In case I’ve not been clear, I’m happy to recommend Dr. Roda’s group, Dissertation-Editor.com to any doctoral candidate who wants to turn in scholarly work that is coherent and free of errors in grammar and punctuation..
No, I’ve received nothing from them for saying the things I’ve said here. I just appreciate and respect excellent work at very fair rates.
Jonathan
PS: I had to edit this text hours after posting it because (a) I did NOT have Dissertation-Editor.com edit this piece, and (b) I found two errors in the text. It goes to show… jlk