December 6, 2012 — The University of Utah S.J. Quinney College of Law announced today that Hiram Chodosh, the college’s dean since 2006, will leave that post, effective June 30, 2013, to become the president of Claremont McKenna College, a private liberal arts college in Claremont, CA.
Established in 1946, Claremont McKenna is a member of The Claremont Colleges, a consortium of seven independent institutions in Claremont, CA. The college is a highly selective, independent, coeducational, residential, undergraduate liberal arts college with a mission of leadership in the liberal arts. Claremont McKenna is currently ranked 10th in the country by the U.S. News and World Report.
“I am both humbled and honored to be named the next president of Claremont McKenna College.” Chodosh said. “However, I will dearly miss my colleagues, students, and friends at the U and feel great pride in all we have accomplished together.”
Guido Calabresi, senior judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit and a former dean of Yale Law School, said, “Hiram Chodosh has been a great dean and will be a superb president of Claremont McKenna. He is exactly what is needed in higher education today.”
During Chodosh’s tenure as dean, the College of Law focused on leadership experiences for students, expanded clinical and simulated skills training, and interdisciplinary learning. Chodosh also spearheaded the College’s successful campaign for a new College of Law building.
In an effort to improve the human condition while providing students with practical, hands-on experience, the college offered a wide range of service-learning opportunities. In 2011-2012, students contributed a record-breaking aggregate of 47,375 hours of formal public service through the College’s clinical, pro bono and think tank placements.
The college also pioneered an innovative immersive simulation exercise, in which students role-played as government officials to develop decision-making skills. In 2012, the college was ranked among the top 20 Most Innovative law schools and the top 20 Best Value law schools by the National Jurist and was named one of the top twenty most transparent schools by Transparency Law Schools—the only law school in the country to make all three rankings.
During the past several years, the College of Law created or co-created new research centers in biomedical sciences and the law, innovation in legal education, global justice, criminal justice, and veterans’ studies. Chodosh said, “These centers help align faculty expertise at the college with student interests and the University’s core strengths. They will also provide a mechanism for developing unique interdisciplinary contributions throughout campus.”
Earlier this year, the Utah Legislature approved a new, 155,000 square-foot building to replace the College of Law’s current facility, which it has occupied since 1963. Chodosh has described the new building as a “virtual teaching hospital for law,” and predicts that it will “provide a flexible and intelligent space that is as innovative and exciting as the college’s programs.” With groundbreaking planned for June 4, 2013, the building is scheduled to open in 2015.
Chodosh, 50, received his J.D. from Yale Law School and his B.A. from Wesleyan University. Prior to his appointment as Dean of the College of Law in 2006, he served as the Hostetler Professor of Law and Associate Dean for Academic Affairs at Case Western Reserve University School of Law, where he also directed the Frederick K. Cox International Law Center. He currently holds the Hugh B. Brown Presidential Chair, is the recipient of the 2011 Gandhi Peace Award, and was recently named one of the 25 most influential legal educators in the nation by the National Jurist magazine.