Columbia Law School Dean Leaving

Dean David Schizer sent an email to Columbia Law School alumni this morning mentioning that he is approaching the end of his ten year term.  (I didn't realize that there is a ten year limit on deans at Columbia, nor did I realize he'd been there so long.  For some reason the past nine years have gone by very, very quickly.)  

This is an exciting time for Columbia, difficult as things are in legal education and law practice more generally.  And my sense -- gathered from afar -- is that Schizer has been incredibly good for the law school.  I've heard about his dedication to helping students find jobs, to helping/encouraging faculty to do great work in the classroom and in their research and service, and to expanding Columbia's engagement with the legal community.  Cribbing now a little from Dean Schizer's letter:

Our goal has been to produce scholarship that engages with the most important issues of our time, and to make our curriculum more connected to the profession, more interdisciplinary, and more international. To do so, we have added outstanding scholars and teachers to our faculty. Our full-time faculty is now twenty percent larger than it was nine years ago. Our student body this year will be about three percent larger than nine years ago, primarily reflecting an increase in our LL.M. enrollment to enhance the international influence of our school. As a result, our student-faculty ratio is the lowest it has ever been. This allows us to provide each student with more individual attention, and to pursue a broad range of innovations in our research and teaching. We have also added a new floor to Jerome Greene Hall, renovated classrooms and other spaces, maintained our exceptional job placement record in a challenging job market, and offered more generous support to students who work in government and public interest organizations over the summer and after graduation.

I'm sure the competition for this deanship will be fierce.  It'll be most interesting to see what happens.

Comments

[Frosh]

I am wondering how many people hold two different named chairs at the same time:

Dean and the Lucy G. Moses Professor of Law; Harvey R. Miller Professor of Law and Economics

It makes for a somewhat unwieldy signature block.

[DrGrishka]

Dorothy E. Roberts:

George A. Weiss University Professor of Law & Sociology, Raymond Pace & Sadie Tanner Mossell
Alexander Professor of Civil Rights, and Professor of Africana Studies

[Me]

"I've heard about his dedication to helping students find jobs, to helping/encouraging faculty to do great work in the classroom and in their research and service, and to expanding Columbia's engagement with the legal community."

From who? I've heard/experience otherwise.

[John Smith]

Good riddance. Schilzer raised a lot of money, but he's deeply unpopular with students. Very little investment in connecting students with jobs. Little to no concern for public interest career pathways.

[Fleetwood MacK]

Is he actually leaving? Or is his term just ending and Columbia can renew him from another term? Also, when is this site going to start acknowledging the layoff notices that have gone out at Seton Hall and the buyouts at Vermont and whatever it is that happened at Florida Coastal? Are there any other layoffs of faculty out there?

[Conspirator]

MacK -- The reason this site not announced the layoffs is because this site is part of a massive conspiracy to keep such infomation from readers of this site. Because if it is not announced on this site there is no other possible source of information where such people can get such information. But now, you have foiled that plan. Curse you, MacK!