Assistant Professor of Law and Director of Legal Externships and Public Interest

Seton Hall University, New Jersey•Newark, NJ

12d•Onsite

About The Position

Seton Hall Law School seeks to hire an Assistant Professor of Law and Director of Legal Externships and Public Interest. This is a non-tenure track position. The Director works collaboratively with the Office of Career Services and the Associate Dean for Experiential Education, while maintaining primary responsibility for the academic integrity, assessment, and accreditation of the Externship Program. Core responsibilities include providing academic leadership of the externship curriculum, ensuring compliance with ABA standards, student advising and mentoring, placement development and employer outreach, and developing of public interest programming.

Requirements

J.D. degree from an ABA-accredited law school.
Admission to practice law in at least one U.S. jurisdiction.
Minimum of five years of legal practice or closely related professional experience, including experience in judicial, governmental, public interest, nonprofit, corporate, or private practice settings.
Demonstrated commitment to experiential legal education and student mentoring.
Excellent organizational, interpersonal, and written communication skills.

Nice To Haves

Prior teaching experience in legal education.
Experience teaching or supervising students in experiential learning environments.
Experience supervising law students, attorneys, or legal professionals.
Experience administering externship, clinical, public interest, or experiential learning programs.
Familiarity with ABA accreditation standards governing field placement programs and experiential education.
Demonstrated experience developing professional relationships with legal employers, judges, government agencies, nonprofit organizations, or other legal placement partners.

Responsibilities

Direct and administer the externship program to provide students with experiential learning opportunities that foster professional identity formation, ethical judgment, and the development of professional competencies.
Manage enrollment processes, eligibility determinations, registration procedures, and program communications for all externship offerings. Update materials and relevant websites as needed.
Update Memorandum of Understanding with externship placements and other contracts as needed.
Serve as the Law School’s primary administrator responsible for ensuring compliance with ABA Standard 304 and other applicable accreditation requirements governing field placement programs.
Develop and maintain relationships with judges, government agencies, public interest organizations, prosecutors' offices, public defenders, corporate legal departments, and law firms to expand and diversify externship opportunities for students. Recruit, evaluate, and approve new placements.
Monitor placement performance and implement corrective action to meet educational standards.
Develop instructional materials and teach the classroom component of the externship program, including seminars that integrate doctrine, professional identity formation, ethics, reflective practice, and professional skills development.
Communicate regularly with students regarding placement experiences.
Review supervisor evaluations of students and evaluate all assigned student work.
Maintain records to ensure compliance with ABA standards.
Develop, assess, and periodically revise student learning outcomes for the Externship Program; collect and analyze assessment data; and implement program improvements based on assessment results.
Prepare reports and recommendations regarding program effectiveness and student outcomes.
Develop and implement strategic initiatives that advance the Law School's public interest mission and increase student engagement in public service careers in collaboration with Career Services and faculty.
Coordinate public interest programming, networking events, speaker programs, and related initiatives and develop relationships with public interest organizations and governmental agencies to expand student opportunities.
Advise students regarding public interest career opportunities, fellowships, and postgraduate opportunities.
Assist in administration of public interest funding, fellowships, loan repayment programs, stipends, or pro bono initiatives, as assigned.
Support fundraising for public interest initiatives and events.
Participate in faculty meetings, committees, and other governance activities consistent with faculty status and university policies.
Engage in professional development and maintain familiarity with developments in experiential legal education and ABA accreditation requirements.
Represent Seton Hall Law at relevant events as appropriate.
Teach elective courses related to professional development and experiential learning as required and appropriate to meet faculty course load.