Skip to main content

This job has expired

Dean, School of Law

Employer
University of New Mexico
Location
Albuquerque, NM
Closing date
Sep 23, 2021

View more

Sector
Law
Organization Type
Corporate
*Opportunity and Challenge Profile*

Search for the Dean, School of Law

University of New Mexico

Albuquerque, New Mexico

The University of New Mexico (UNM) seeks a visionary and student-centered leader for the position of Dean of the School of Law. As the only law school in New Mexico, the UNM School of Law has a tremendous impact on the state and beyond, training future lawyers, judges, lawmakers, representatives, governors, secretaries, and other contributors to the legal landscape. In addition to heading the academic institution that has shaped the legal community in New Mexico for 75 years, in accordance with the New Mexico State Constitution, the Dean has the uncommon and crucial responsibility of chairing the Judicial Nominating Commissions for state appellate and district courts as well as the Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court.

As the state's flagship institution, UNM provides an education to nearly 26,000 enrolled students, more than 80 percent of whom are New Mexico residents. UNM is one of only a handful of Hispanic-Serving Institutions with a Carnegie Classification of Doctoral University - Very High Research Activity (R1). UNM aspires to be a model for how a university can fulfill its missions of academic excellence, research, service, patient care, student success, and access given the changing demographics of the United States. The institution plays a critical role in educating New Mexico's residents and driving its economy. UNM's impact is delivered through research excellence and education in a variety of disciplines, a vibrant health sciences enterprise, branch campuses in Gallup, Los Alamos, Taos, and Valencia, technology incubators, and two medical centers. UNM is a place where cutting-edge research and creative endeavors flourish. Its research generates new knowledge, injects hundreds of millions of dollars into New Mexico's economy, funds advances in healthcare, and provides students with intellectual challenges as well as valuable hands-on training in state-of-the-art laboratories, libraries, courtrooms, and studios. About 58% of UNM alumni remain in the state and provide valuable contributions to the State's intellectual life, economy, cultural community, legal and educational systems, healthcare industry and every aspect of life in New Mexico.

In keeping with UNM's aspirations, the UNM School of Law offers a distinctly student-centric approach to one of the most diverse student bodies of any law school in the country. The school offers enormous value through competitive tuition rates, one of the lowest student-to-faculty ratios in the country (six-to-one), and abundant opportunities for practical experience through a clinical law program ranked 9th by US News & World Report. With the only appellate court located on a law school campus, the Albuquerque office of the New Mexico Court of Appeals offers unique opportunities and access for students. While the UNM School of Law trains excellent lawyers across all practice areas, many students take advantage of particularly highly regarded programs in areas of social impact, including Indian Law and Natural Resources & Environmental Law.

The new Dean will be tasked with uniting the school under a common vision, articulating the value and fundamental importance of the School of Law across the state, strengthening engagement between faculty/administration and the legal community, creating partnerships across UNM and with other institutions in the State, and propelling the School of Law to even greater heights in its vital mission of serving students and the state of New Mexico. In doing so, the Dean will address the following key opportunities and challenges:

* Unify the School around a cohesive strategic vision that centers on inclusion and fosters a robust, collaborative community;

* Enhance academic excellence by stewarding and increasing the resources of the School of Law;

* Reinvigorate the focus of the School of Law on the success of students in the legal profession;

* Propel the visibility and impact of the School of Law locally, regionally, and nationally; and

* Continue to lead the School of Law as a model of access and support for students from historically marginalized backgrounds.

UNM has retained Isaacson, Miller, a national executive search firm, to assist in this search. Screening of complete applications will begin immediately and continue until the position is filled; for best consideration, please apply by August 30, 2021. Inquiries, nominations, referrals, and CVs with cover letters should be sent via the Isaacson, Miller website for the search: [https://www.imsearch.com/search-detail/S7-919](https://www.imsearch.com/search-detail/S7-919)

Julie Filizetti, Hayden Lizotte, and Evan Layne

Isaacson, Miller

1000 Sansome Street, Suite 300

San Francisco, CA 94111

Phone: 415.655.4900

UNM is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, citizenship, disability or protected veteran status.

Get job alerts

Create a job alert and receive personalized job recommendations straight to your inbox.

Create alert