On July 26, 2021, Professor Donna Hae Kyun Lee (she/her) rejoins CUNY Law’s faculty after five years of service in her role as Senior Associate Dean for Clinical Programs.
On what drew you to the role of Clinic Dean in the first place:
I first thought about applying when the prior clinic dean announced that he would be stepping down from the role. It was a time of challenge and opportunity at the Law School following the launch of CUNY Law’s part-time, evening program, and I thought that I could contribute to building a clinical program for our part-time, evening students.
On what surprised you about the role (positive, negative, or neutral) that you hadn’t expected:
I was surprised by the depth and breadth of work done by non-teaching colleagues in departments ranging from Student Affairs to Human Resources, Finance to IT, and Career Planning to Communications. Although I vaguely knew that what happens in clinic depends on more than clinic support staff, students, and faculty, I learned with more granularity about the work of many other staff members and administrators who make clinical teaching and clinic client representation possible.
On the most valuable lesson you learned while serving as Clinic Dean:
I think my steepest learning curve was with HR, budgeting, and non-profit management in connection with Main Street Legal Services, Inc., which is the separately incorporated 501(c)(3) organization that houses CUNY Law’s clinical program. The meta-lesson that I learned, though, was about the importance of authentic engagement in our diverse CUNY Law community. Everyone has their own unique perspective and past experiences, and it seems critically important for us to speak and listen to each other.
On your happiest moment in this role:
There have been many happy moments over the past five years — new faculty and staff hired, as well as new developments, iterations, and innovations in our clinical program. I am particularly grateful to the CUNY students who organized the first clinic “race and privilege” gathering of the entire 3L class in fall 2009, and extremely happy for the clinic colleagues and students who have reprised this convening every year, over the past five years, to work on issues of race in the context of social justice lawyering.
What you’re most excited for in the months ahead:
I am excited to be teaching with Professors Charisa Kiyo Smith and Tarek Z. Ismail and working with a great group of students in the Family Law Practice Clinic this fall, and I am especially looking forward to seeing CUNY Law students, staff, and faculty in person when we gather together (masked and physically distanced) at 2 Court Square.
What you hope to change or work on as you rejoin faculty:
I hope to work together with my faculty colleagues, as well as with students, staff, and administrators on doing anti-racism work at the Law School and in the world.
On what you’ll be teaching:
In addition to teaching in the Family Law Practice Clinic in the evening this fall, I look forward to teaching Law and Family Relations in the day next spring.
Words of wisdom as you pass the role on:
It has been an honor and a joy for me to follow in the footsteps of prior clinic deans, including Sue Bryant, Sameer Ashar, Steve Zeidman, and Joe Rosenberg. I always felt like I could count on the generosity and wisdom of clinic colleagues, and I know that the same holds true for you, Carmen!
On giving thanks:
I would like to thank our amazingly dedicated clinic staff, Dorothy Matthew, V Hill, Ayesha Yasmin, Bernice Cohn, and Denise Rojas (as well as Maddie Walsh and Alexa Pollock); five generations of clinic students and clients who worked fiercely for justice; my wonderfully supportive clinic faculty colleagues (too many to name, but you know who you are) and dear faculty colleagues who do not (yet!) teach in clinic; my talented senior administrator colleagues on SLG; and all of the staff colleagues I’ve had the pleasure of working with and knowing. I also would like to thank Professors Emeriti Sue Bryant, Victor Goode, and Julie Lim for their mentorship and friendship.