ABOUT US:

Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, founded in 1976 and named for an eminent Supreme Court Justice, is now firmly established as an international and national leader in legal education. The School’s curriculum balances rigorous scholarship and research with experiential learning opportunities which include extensive clinical programs. Given its prime location in the heart of NYC’s Greenwich Village, Cardozo also offers a vibrant learning environment, with significant opportunities for students to gain legal experience through internships and summer positions with a broad array of legal employers.

The University offers an excellent compensation package, and a broad range of employee benefit plans, including immediate participation in the University’s retirement plan. Staff members are typically eligible for four weeks paid vacation each year.

The Position:

The Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law invites applications for the position of Director of Externships. The position will manage and continue to develop the law school’s strong externship program. The position calls for a dynamic, creative, and highly motivated individual to manage an integrated and comprehensive program of supervised field placements that provide students with significant and academically rewarding legal experiences. The Externship Director must have excellent communication skills to interact effectively with members of the legal community, law school faculty, and students and must have excellent organizational skills.

POSITION RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Responsible for the creation and oversight of credited placements for law students in public agencies, not-for-profit organizations, the private sector and other appropriate organizations
• Conduct ongoing outreach to apprise appropriate lawyers and organizations about the externship program and create student opportunities by conducting site visits, developing agreements with placement sites, attending relevant legal community events, and developing other networking opportunities
• Meet with and advise students on externship placements
• Work with fieldwork supervisors at the placement sites to assure adequacy of supervision of the students. The Director will develop informational materials and training sessions for supervising attorneys and judges
• Administer the externship program, including creating and maintaining data related to registration, credit requirements, and grade processing for participating J.D. and L.L.M. students. The Director will manage an application and assessment process and materials in compliance with ABA requirements, coordinating the processing and preserving of information using Word, Excel, Symplicity, Angel, and Banner
• Manage a program of “field clinics,” or group externships based in one practice area or organization, supplementing the law school’s offerings by creating practical work experiences in areas to complement other clinical or doctrinal course offerings. In consultation with the administration, the Director will identify critical practice areas and highly qualified practitioners to hire as adjunct faculty, work with outside agencies to build educational placements, create a selection system in conjunction with the Clinical Director, and establish processes to assess field clinics
• Oversee an academic program of seminar classes and training sessions for externship students that will be taught by law school faculty and outside practitioners on topics including ethical issues and substantive law that students confront in their externships, as well as how to reflect upon and learn from the externship experience. The Director will identify and participate in the hiring of these instructors as adjunct faculty
• Manage a training and oversight program to ensure quality clinical teaching for externs, including designing and teaching Master Classes on clinical teaching techniques for practitioner-adjuncts teaching field clinic and externship seminars, assist in the development of course syllabi, and conduct selected class observation
• Liaise with other departments and units in the law school and University as needed on student issues, including the Dean’s Office, Communications, Student Services, Student Finance, Admissions, LLM Program, and YU’s General Counsel
• Represent the law school in the local and national clinical legal education arenas, including participating in conferences, issue advocacy regarding ABA changes affecting externship programs, and special projects involving the Clinical Legal Education Association (CLEA), the ABA, the AALS, and the New York Consortium on Externships (NYCE)
• The Externship Director may also have the opportunity to design and teach seminar classes

QUALIFICATIONS:

Experience and Educational Background:

• JD required
• Five years of prior related experience

Skills and Competencies:

• Must possess excellent communication skills
• Must possess excellent organizational skills