UAlbany professor ranked No. 5 in the nation

The Princeton Review college rankings indicate that the University at Albany has the fifth-place spot for "Professors Get Low Marks."

MtvU's Web site, ratemyprofessor.com, however, tells a different story. School of Business adjunct professor and guest lecturer Paul Morgan Jr. was ranked No. 5 best professor in the country for 2008, said site spokeswoman Sharon Liveten. The list will be released this week.

The lists are compiled annually using a standardized score from 2005, 2006 and 2007, according to the Web site's methodology section. The rankings also include weighted scores, which combine a professor's scores from the past 2 ½ years, but put emphasis on the most current score or ranking.

Morgan was not on the 2007 Top Professors List.

"Only professors with 30 ratings or more, in the years 2005-present, were included to provide statistical significance," according to the site. As of last week, Morgan had 97 rankings.

Morgan has taught at UAlbany since 1998, according to the UAlbany Excellence in Teaching by Teaching Assistants and Part-Time and Non-Tenure Track Faculty Web site from 2005.

He incorporates his "real-world experience as an attorney and as the chief clerk of the Rensselaer County Surrogate's Court," the site indicated.

According to the excellence in teaching site, Morgan's goal is to "present the law to students simply and directly in a challenging, yet non-threatening, environment, and to emphasize how the law affects our daily lives."

And his students say he does just that.

"He makes everything really easy to understand because he uses personal experiences," UAlbany junior Allison Pastel said. "His real-life experiences make the material easier to remember." Pastel took Business Law 220 with Morgan last spring.

UAlbany junior Kait Oliveria's most memorable in-class story involved a car-crash case. "When you get into a car accident you're not supposed to say 'I hit this person,' you're only supposed to talk to your insurance company," she said.

"And professor Morgan was telling us this story about this guy who just kept talking, and he was just bashing him the whole time. It was so funny," Oliveria said. She said the story made her remember the lesson.

"He was always down for people calling him about midterms and finals if they had questions," Oliveria said.

"Being in his class felt like a comedy club," UAlbany junior Jen Sovronsky said. "However his exams were extremely difficult. He would give a paragraph with a whole long story about a particular law, with subtle does or doesn't, or is or isn't' and you had to determine if it was true or false."

According to Morgan's BLAW 321 Fall 2008 syllabus, grades are based off of a mid-term and final exam. Students who attended every class are eligible for a curve on their exam, UAlbany senior Elyse Weinberg said.

When Morgan goes over a review sheet and a particular question or topic will be on the upcoming exam, he'll say "this really turns me on," Pastel said.

Morgan said he was flattered by the ranking, but declined an interview.

"Our faculty are among the best in higher education and we're pleased whenever they are recognized for their hard work, accomplishments, and dedication to students," said university spokesman Karl Luntta.

UAlbany junior Andrew Burg had Morgan for BLAW 220 in the fall of 2006.

"He's the type of professor that makes you really want to sit in class and learn," he said.

Susan-Ray Escudero, a UAlbany junior, is registered for one of Morgan's classes in the spring.

"I heard his class was fun, and he made you want to pay attention," she said.

He's a "great guy," Weinberg said. He has a "great sense of humor, and I wish more teachers were like him. He loves Skittles, and if you're in the front row and have food, he will eat it."

Morgan also loves the Cowboys, Pastel said. When she had him for BLAW 220, his cat Boo-Boo had passed away, so he got a new one named Boo-Boo 2. "He really is, like, the funniest man ever," she said.

His classes are in a three-hour slot, but only lectures for two, said his students. There isn't a break in the two hours of lecture, however.

"There's never a dull moment," said UAlbany senior Adam Kris.

"No one wants to leave," Oliveria said.

Morgan also includes his own catch-phrases in class. Pastel said that these include "top shelf," "lock and load, rock and roll," "boulderdash" and "she-she-foo-foo."

According to the Excellent in Teaching site, Morgan's classes typically have over 200 students in them.

"We are role models," he told the site in 2005. "I try my best to mentor my students on the importance of respecting law and order and, no matter what the circumstances, acting in a mature, dignified manner."

Morgan continues to mentor former students long after they had his class. According to the Excellence in Teaching site, Morgan says his former students often tell him what a difference his class has made to them and others say he is the reason they decided to go to law school.