Harvard Law School

Harvard Law Gets New Dean For Administration

Harvard Law has appointed a new dean for administration.

L. Tracee Whitley was appointed at the law school’s chief administrative officer last Wednesday. Whitley will be responsible for overseeing the law school’s administrative affairs from facilities to finance and human resources, The Harvard Crimson reports.

“I am delighted to announce that Tracee Whitley has agreed to serve as our new dean for administration,” John F. Manning ’85, the Morgan and Helen Chu Dean and Professor of Law at Harvard Law School, says in a press release. “Tracee’s proven success as a leader, as an innovator, and as a creative and thoughtful administrator, combined with her deep ties to Harvard and her extensive legal background, make her the ideal candidate to oversee the School’s administration. Her collegiality, creativity, and institutional acumen will make her a superb administrative dean.”

YEARS OF LEGAL AND BUSINESS EXPERIENCE

Whitley, a Harvard graduate, is a veteran legal industry executive and former lawyer with more than 20 years of professional legal and business experience.

Before joining Harvard Law, Whitley served high level roles such as chief operating officer at global law firms including Houston-based Norton Rose Fulbright US LLP and Boston-based Bingham McCutchen LLP. During her management tenure, Bingham was voted one of Fortune’s “100 Best Companies to Work For” for 10 years in a row.

Whitley earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Modern European History, Cum Laude, from Harvard-Radcliffe College. She received her Juris Doctor from Juris Doctor from Northeastern University School of Law as well as an executive MBA, with honors, from the Boston University Questrom School of Management and a Master of Liberal Arts in American Government from the Harvard Extension School.

Whitley succeeds Matt Gruber, who is departing to become the chief financial officer and chief operating officer at Sagamore Capital Management.

“I am incredibly proud and pleased to be returning to Cambridge to undertake the role of dean for administration at Harvard Law School, a role very akin to the law firm COO roles I’ve previously held,” Whitley says in the press release. “The opportunity to serve faculty, students and staff at Harvard Law School is the culmination of both my educational and professional experiences in the Harvard University and Greater Boston communities, and of my business operations experience in the global legal industry. I look forward to learning about the Harvard Law School community and to working every day to support the teaching, research and service that makes HLS the unparalleled leader in legal education.”

Sources: Harvard Law, The Harvard Crimson