(Photo by Jeffrey Carrion/DePaul University)Jennifer Rosato Perea will step down as dean of the College of Law to become the managing director of accreditation and legal education for the American Bar Association effective June 1, 2024. Her last day at DePaul will be May 18, 2024.
Rosato Perea joined DePaul as the dean of the College of Law in 2015 and brought a wealth of knowledge as an administrator with her. She has been a strong advocate of student engagement and professionalism and is a respected legal scholar in the areas of family law, bioethics and legal ethics. Rosato Perea was one of the first Latina law school deans in the United States and is deeply committed to excellence in legal education and community, service and justice.
“I have spent over 30 years of my professional life seeking to improve legal education, and I am very excited to continue to pursue that passion as managing director – especially during this crucial time for legal education, higher education and the legal profession,” Rosato Perea says. “Although I will greatly miss DePaul, the focus on student success, the value of community and the importance of always asking 'What must be done' will guide me in my new role.”
In her almost nine years as dean, Rosato Perea created programs and reforms that increased student success, including incoming students' academic profiles, graduate job placement and bar passage. She also incorporated diversity, equity and inclusion models into the mandatory curriculum at DePaul and nurtured the school’s longstanding commitment to public service.
“I can’t thank Jenn enough for all her contributions to the College of Law and DePaul," says Provost Salma Ghanem. "She is a true university citizen and will be missed greatly as a colleague and as a friend. I wish her the best of success, and I have no doubt that she will have a lasting impact on law education on the national level.”
Prior to DePaul, Rosato Perea was the dean of the Northern Illinois University College of Law, and before then, she was acting dean and associate dean at Drexel University Thomas R. Kline School of Law.
More information about the search for the next dean of the College of Law will be shared when it is available.