LaVonda N. Reed, J.D., dean and professor at the Georgia State University College of Law, has been named dean of The University of Baltimore School of Law. Following an extensive national search led by an internal committee and the Witt Kieffer search firm, UBalt President Kurt L. Schmoke, in consultation with representatives from the law school, selected Reed from among five finalists. Reed, who will begin her duties at the University on July 1, will replace Ronald Weich, who has been named dean of Seton Hall School of Law. She will be the first female dean at the School of Law.
Reed has been dean of Georgia State University College of Law since July 2021. Her areas of focus in research and teaching include wills and trusts, property, and communications regulatory law and policy.
In announcing Reed’s appointment, President Schmoke said, “I am pleased and excited to welcome LaVonda Reed as dean of our law school. She is an outstanding leader who will build on the strengths of the law school and engage with other deans in developing outstanding interdisciplinary programs. In a short time, she will be viewed as an impactful leader by the state bar and Maryland citizens in general. My special thanks to the members of our search committee, who worked diligently on the process that led us to Dean Reed.”
Reed said, “I am excited to join the University of Baltimore as the dean of the School of Law as the university celebrates its centennial anniversary. The school’s commitment to excellence in teaching, impactful research, and service to the legal academy and the profession is as inspiring as the people who make up this wonderful academic community.
“I look forward to building on the work of providing access to an affordable education and actively engaging the broader law school community in supporting faculty, staff, students, and alumni in achieving their academic and professional goals and advancing the mission of the school. This work aligns with my values, and I am honored and excited about my return to the state of Maryland.”
Prior to her appointment at Georgia State, Reed served as professor of law and associate provost for faculty affairs at Syracuse University. In this position, she had oversight of research and administrative leaves, awards, promotion and tenure review, policy development and enforcement among other duties. She led initiatives to recruit and retain a diverse faculty and created the Center for Teaching and Learning Excellence and the Center for Faculty Leadership and Professional Development.
During her time at Georgia State, Reed focused on five guiding principles: access to the profession; affordability of legal education; academic excellence in faculty scholarship, teaching, and career advancement; student and staff professional achievement; and active engagement of all stakeholders.
Search Committee Chair Prof. Dionne Koller, director of UBalt Law’s Center for Sport and the Law, said, “From the start of this process, the committee heard from every UBalt Law constituency that we must prioritize finding a dean who appreciates our mission and spirit, will amplify our considerable strengths, and will position us well to meet the challenges of legal education today. The community recognized that Dean Reed is unquestionably that person. We are thrilled to welcome her as our new dean.”
Prior to her appointment at Syracuse University, Reed served on the faculty of the Louis D. Brandeis School of Law at the University of Louisville. She also was a judicial clerk for the Honorable Donald W. VanArtsdalen of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, and she practiced communications and corporate law with the international firm of Paul Hastings LLP.
She has published several articles in law reviews and other journals, and is currently working on scholarly pieces covering a range of topics involving the federal regulatory environment, including a piece on the Congressional Review Act and its impact on internet privacy and net neutrality.
Reed earned her Juris Doctor degree from the University of Southern California Gould School of Law and a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics from the University of Virginia.
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