The William & Mary Law School — the oldest law school in America — has appointed A. Benjamin Spencer its next dean. It’s an historic decision as Spencer is the first African American dean of any school at the university.
A nationally-known civil procedure and federal courts expert, Spencer is
A. Benjamin Spencercurrently the Justice Thurgood Marshall Distinguished Professor of Law at the University of Virginia School of Law. He also recently completed a year as the Bennett Boskey Visiting Professor of Law at Harvard Law School.
“Since the beginning of the search process we sought a leader who values all three aspects of the law: the academy, the bar and the bench,” said Dr. Katherine A. Rowe, William & Mary’s president. “Ben brings that broad view of legal practice, together with a deep appreciation of the ethos of the citizen lawyer that has inspired the oldest law school in the country since its founding.”
Spencer holds a bachelor’s degree in political science from Morehouse College, a master’s degree in criminal justice policy from the London School of Economics and a J.D. from Harvard Law School.
