Fordham Law Launches New Center for Judicial
Engagement and Clerkships
It is my pleasure to announce the Law School’s creation of the Center for Judicial Engagement and Clerkships, as part of the School’s increasing commitment to engaging the judiciary and supporting our students and alumni who wish to pursue post-graduate judicial clerkships. Clerkships, at both the federal and state levels, represent wonderful career opportunities for our students that provide invaluable experience and mentorship while opening up broader career pathways. The center will be a new office that works directly with the Faculty Clerkship Committee and students interested in pursuing post-graduate clerkships. The center will be separate from the Career Planning and the Public Interest Resource Centers and will coordinate closely with them and other administrative offices.
The creation of this new center will enable the School to strengthen and build upon its clerkship successes. Over the past five years, in any given term, we had between 45-55 clerks at the federal and state court levels. Moreover, finding new and innovative ways to engage members of the judiciary in the life of our school and also to maximize coordination among the many engagements already occurring will serve to not only strengthen our student life but also the reputation of the law school.
I am pleased to announce that Professor Daniel J. Capra, our long standing chair of the Faculty Clerkship Committee, will be the inaugural Faculty Director of the center. Dan has worked tirelessly to assist students and graduates seeking clerkships and has built bridges to the judiciary that have opened doors for our law school. The members of the Faculty Clerkship Committee will work closely with the new office. Suzanne M. Endrizzi ’96, the Assistant Dean for our Career Planning Center, has agreed to take on the new role of Assistant Dean for Judicial Engagement and Clerkships. As the founding dean, Suzanne will play a key role in shaping the new Center and leading this new initiative.
In her new role, Suzanne will be responsible for developing and implementing the center’s strategic vision, building and strengthening partnerships with the judiciary, alumni, students and faculty as well as strengthening the existing clerkship support for our students and alumni by designing innovative programming, marshaling resources and developing strategic partnerships. The energy and strategic vision that Suzanne has so adeptly displayed in her current role superbly guiding our Career Center through both good and challenging economic times will be an enormous asset in developing this new center.
The Center will officially launch at the start of the Fall Semester 2019. Between now and then Suzanne will begin to develop the new center while transitioning from her current role as Assistant Dean for Career Planning. We will be launching a nationwide search for a new Assistant Dean for the Career Planning Center with the hope to have a new leader in place by the start of the Fall Semester 2019. In the interim, Suzanne will continue to oversee the Career Planning Center to ensure continuity and support for our JD students and support for our incredible CPC staff.
I am grateful to Dan Capra and Suzanne for their extraordinary work to support the students and graduates of Fordham Law and for undertaking this new initiative. I am also grateful to Suzanne for her remarkable leadership of the CPC. Under her leadership, Fordham Law has strengthened relationships with employers, launched innovative programming for students and enhanced our position in the market, as reflected in the recent National Law Journal ranking which placed Fordham Law 15th in the nation in placement at the largest law firms. I look forward to working with Suzanne and Dan in these new roles.
Warm regards,
