LaVonda N. Reed Named Dean of the College of Law Effective July 1

From Provost Hensel on April 26, 2021:

Dear university community,

I am pleased to announce the selection of LaVonda N. Reed, Associate Provost for Faculty Affairs and Professor of Law at Syracuse University, as the next permanent dean of the College of Law at Georgia State, effective July 1.

In her current role, Associate Provost Reed is responsible for the oversight of a wide range of areas involving more than 1,700 full-time and part-time faculty, new faculty orientation, research and administrative leaves, promotion and tenure review, policy development and enforcement, awards, honorary degrees and emeritus recommendations, among other duties.

She created two faculty-focused university-level centers, one dedicated to teaching and learning, and the other to faculty leadership and professional development. Associate Provost Reed’s experience with initiatives to diversify the professoriate in recruitment and retention will prove invaluable as Georgia State moves forward with ambitious initiatives in this area. She has led many committees and work groups and has served as a member of numerous other university committees, including Syracuse’s Council on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion.

In advancement and donor relations she has been responsible for the stewardship and oversight of the Lender Center for Social Justice, as well as the stewardship of a multimillion-dollar endowment to support teaching excellence across the university.

As an academic, her teaching, research and scholarship are in the areas of wills and trusts, property, and communications law. Her concern for students, especially to the inclusion of students from underrepresented backgrounds, is in line with many of Georgia State’s student success efforts, including strategic efforts to encourage diversification among students in graduate and first-professional degree programs.

Prior to her appointment at Syracuse University in 2006, she served on the faculty of the Louis D. Brandeis School of Law at the University of Louisville. She also previously held the position of judicial clerk for the Honorable Donald W. VanArtsdalen of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania and practiced law with the international firm of Paul Hastings LLP. While in practice, she represented businesses and financial institutions in various aspects of communications and corporate law.

She earned her Juris Doctor degree from the University of Southern California Gould School of Law in Los Angeles, and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from the University of Virginia.

I look forward to Associate Provost Reed’s arrival as part of our leadership team and hope you will join me in welcoming her to Georgia State.

Before I close this letter, I must thank Leslie Wolf, who has served as interim dean of the College of Law during an incredibly challenging period for our university and for society. Dean Wolf performed this service while continuing her work as a leading scholar in health law and supporting the Center for Law, Health and Society. She also was an instrumental member of the university’s COVID-19 Task Force. I am deeply grateful for her service and dedication to this university.