Note: This release was originally published on http://www.marist.edu/.
POUGHKEEPSIE, N.Y. (February 6, 2016) – David Yellen, Dean and Professor of Law at the Loyola University Chicago School of Law, has been named the fourth President of Marist College following a unanimous vote today of its Board of Trustees. He will succeed President Dennis J. Murray, who announced last year his plan to step down from the position on June 30 after 37 years leading Marist.
“David Yellen is one of the nation's top legal educators, an innovative leader highly respected among his peers, and a man of great integrity and commitment to public service,” said Ellen Hancock, Chair of the Board of Trustees. “His work as a law school dean, a faculty member, and an attorney gives him a unique appreciation of the distinctive blend of the liberal arts and pre-professional programs that define the Marist experience and positions him well to lead the College to ever-greater heights.”
Yellen writes and speaks frequently on legal education, and National Jurist recently named him to the 7th position on its list of the “25 Most Influential People in Legal Education,” calling him “an innovator for his leadership in the national dialogue addressing today's challenges facing legal education.” Under his tenure, National Jurist also named Loyola University Chicago School of Law one of the nation's ten best law schools for experiential learning, and Yellen and his school both earned reputations as innovators in the delivery of legal education. Yellen implemented new degree programs, including online, helping Loyola Chicago to earn the distinction of enrolling more online students than any other law school in the country. He also created the Dean's Diversity Council, which helped increase by more than 50 percent the number of students of color enrolled at the school.
Yellen's appointment comes almost a year to the day after President Murray announced his transition plan and follows an intensive search process, the success of which was due to broad and active engagement on the part of the entire Marist community.
“David's skills, interests, and leadership style are ideally aligned with Marist's mission and heritage,” said Ross Mauri '80, Vice Chair of the Board of Trustees and Chair of the Presidential Search Committee, which consists of a diverse group of fifteen faculty and staff members, trustees, student and alumni representatives. “What the search committee saw throughout his career as an educator and a lawyer was a mutually-beneficial commitment to both student success and public service.”
Outside of academe, Yellen was appointed Special Master by Cook County Criminal Division Presiding Judge Paul P. Biebel Jr., working to identify inmates who may be entitled to new trials, having suffered torture by a former Chicago police commander. He also serves on the Illinois Sentencing Policy Advisory Council and is a member of the Board of Directors of Cook County Justice for Children. He has written extensively on sentencing issues and served as an advisor on white collar crime to President Clinton's transition team. As an attorney, he has also argued a federal criminal case before the United States Supreme Court.
Yellen earned his J.D., cum laude, from Cornell Law School, and his B.A., magna cum laude, from Princeton University.
For the full release, please go to: http://www.marist.edu/publicaffairs/fourthpresident/
