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Three Noted Law Schools Hire Deans

‘Tis the season to fill your vacancies. And three celebrated law schools did just that this month.
The University of Indiana, which ranks #25 in the latest U.S. News and World Report law school rankings, has named Austen Parrish as the new dean, effective January 1. Parrish previously served as CEO and Interim Dean of Southwestern Law School in Los Angeles, California. He earned his J.D. at the Columbia University School of Law, where he was Managing Editor of The Columbia Journal of Transnational Law and Student Editor of The Columbia Journal of European Law.
Professionally, Parrish practiced law at O’Melveny & Meyers. He has co-authored two popular texts: Effective Lawyering: A Checklist Approach to Legal Writing, and Hard-Nosed Advice From A Cranky Law Professor. He has also published scholarly works in outlets like the Notre Dame Law Review and the George Washington University Law Review.
Meanwhile, Southern Methodist University has chosen Jennifer Collins as the new dean of the Dedman School of Law. Collins joins SMU from Wake Forest University, where she was Vice Provost. In addition to her administrative responsibilities, Collins taught classes on legal professionalism and gender and the law. She earned her J.D. at Harvard. Prior to working in academia, Collins served in the U.S. Department of Justice and in the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the District of Columbia. In 2009, the graduating class at the Wake Forest Law School voted her the winner of the Jurist Excellence in Teaching Award. A year later, the dean awarded her the Joseph Branch Excellence in Teaching Award.
Finally, the Law School of Hamline University, which boasts the #4 dispute resolution program according to U.S. News and World Report, has hired Jean Holloway to serve as dean. Holloway, who earned a joint MBA and law degree from the University of Chicago, has acted as General Counsel for medical firms like Medtronic and Boston Scientific. She has also served as President of the Minnesota Women Lawyers and the Hennepin County Bar Association, as well as General Counsel for the Children’s Defense Fund of Minnesota.
Sources: Indiana Daily Student, Dallas News, Minneapolis Star Tribune