Seattle University School of Law has chosen Tony Varona to be the new dean for the school and he will start July 1.
Varona previously served as the dean of University of Miami School of Law, leading the school in recruiting its two strongest classes in its history. Varona is the first college graduate in his family, earning undergraduate and law degrees from Boston College and an LL.M. from Georgetown University Law Center. He is also a former co-editor of the AALS Journal of Legal Education and has served on the national boards of directors of the Human Rights Campaign, GLAAD, Stonewall National Museum and Archives, and the Alliance for Justice.
“I am elated by the opportunity to serve as Seattle U Law’s next dean, because this is an extraordinary law school, with a superb faculty comprised of first-rate scholars and teachers and a talented and student-centered staff,” Varona said. “The students are well-rounded and richly diverse, and they graduate to serve as distinguished and justice-minded practitioners and judges, entrepreneurs, and public servants, throughout the Pacific Northwest and the nation.”
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The City University of New York appointed Sudha Setty as the dean of the CUNY School of Law. She is the first person of South Asian descent to lead a CUNY school.
Setty has been serving as the dean for Western New England University School of Law since 2018. At the time of her appointment, she was the first woman of South Asian descent to lead an ABA-approved law school in the U.S. Setty was a member of the school’s faculty since 2006 and was named Professor of the year in 2009, 2016 and 2018. She also served as the school’s associate dean for faculty development and intellectual life.
“I am thrilled and honored to serve as the next dean of CUNY School of Law,” said Setty. “This law school was founded with the mission of public service, social justice lawyering, inclusiveness and accessibility. I look forward to working with all members of the CUNY community as the law school seeks to make the world a fairer, more just, and better place.”
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Michèle Alexandre has been named the new dean of Loyola University of Chicago’s School of Law. Alexandre has spent her career focusing on civil rights law, economic independence, gender equity, and social justice.
Alexandre was named one of Ebony Magazine’s Top 100 influential African Americans of 2013 and one of the 50 “Most Influential Minority Law Professors 50 Years of Age or Younger” by Lawyers of Color Magazine. She has 20 years of higher education experience as well as time spent as a civil rights attorney in Selma, Ala.
“Not only is she one of the most prolific professors of law in the country–her commitment to justice and service for those on the margins is reflected in Loyola’s own Jesuit, Catholic mission,” said Dr. Jo Ann Rooney, Loyola’s president. “We know she will play a critical leadership role in building on the incredible foundation of the School of Law’s mission to prepare students to be ethical advocates for justice and equity.”
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Leah Chan Grinvald will begin serving as the new dean for the UNLV Boyd School of Law on July 1,2022. Grinvald currently serves as the associate dean for academic affairs and professor of law at Suffolk. She will be the first Asian American to lead the law school.
Grinvald oversaw the academic curriculum for Suffolk, and under her guidance new programs such as a hybrid online J.D. program, a Master of Science in Law, and other non-J.D. certificate programs were created. She has been a dedicated scholar of intellectual property, focusing both on intellectual property laws and the way such laws can negatively affect small business and entrepreneurs.
“The Boyd community – buoyed by diverse, energetic, and engaged faculty, students, and alumni – is well-positioned to set the standard for legal education in the 21st century, and I’m excited to lead those efforts,” said Grinvald.
