Law School Deans Take Office

The Law School reaffirmed its stated commitment to women and minority students as four new deans begin their tenure this fall.

The new members of the administration include: Joyce Curll, assistant dean for admissions and financial aid; Sarah Wald, dean of students; Victor A Koivumaki, executive director of the Harvard Law School Association; and Bussey Professor of Law Frank E.A. Sander, associate dean.

Dean of the Law School James Vorenberg '49 said that the school had appointed the new deans to succeed four administrators who resigned, and not because he sought to change specific programs. But he said the deans were likely to create new policies and programs.

Both Curll and Wald, who were appointed from outside the school, have worked with and are interested in the issues surrounding women and minority students.

Curll was formerly assistant dean of admissions at New York University Law School, where the number of minority students more than doubled and women increased from 34 percent to 50 percent during her tenure. Curll, who could not be reached for comment, will be combining the admissions and financial aid offices for the first time. She told the Harvard Gazette that because between 65 and 70 percent of the student body now receives some amount of financial aid, combining the two offices "provides continuity for students."

Wald, a former assistant secretary of Consumer Affairs for Massachusetts, said she has worked before on the problems of women in the law profession. She plans to use that experience to focus on the problems that women and minorities face at Harvard Law School. She said she also wants to expand the opportunities for students interested in public interest law, since most of her previous work was done in the public sector.

As former associate director of the Harvard Alumni Association, Koivumaki oversaw all aspects of alumni services not connected with fundraising. His move to the Law School coincides with the integration of the Reunions Program, previously a separate operation, into the Law School's alumni association. He will work with the Reunion Program's director, Donna M. Chiozzi, to strengthen the local associations across the country and in Europe and increase student involvement in alumni programs.

In his new position as Associate Dean, a rotating position, which professors hold for one or two years at a time, Sander will act as assistant to Vorenberg in academic matters. "We address a host of varied problems that the Dean doesn't have time to attend to that make the school run better," Sander said.