May 14, 2009
The St. John’s University Board of Trustees has appointed
Professor Michael A. Simons as Dean of the School of Law effective
July 1, 2009.
Simons, 44,
becomes the School of Law’s ninth Dean in its 84-year history. He
replaces Dean Mary C. Daly who passed away in November after a
successful four-year deanship dating back to August 2004. Since
November 2008, Andrew J. Simons has served as Acting Dean.
“Dean Michael Simons’ reputation for scholarship and for teaching
make him especially qualified to lead our School of Law at this
time in its history,” said Rev. Donald J. Harrington, C.M.,
President of St. John’s University.
A graduate of the College of the Holy Cross, magna cum
laude, 1986, and Harvard Law School, magna cum laude,
1989, Michael A. Simons currently serves as a Professor of Law at
St. John’s. He has been a member of the St. John’s faculty since
1998, and served as Associate Dean for Faculty Scholarship from
2005-2008.
“In the ten years that I have been part of this law school
community, I have never failed to be impressed by St. John’s.
Everything I know about this law school – about our faculty, about
our students, about our staff, and about our alumni – fills me with
great hope for our future,” said Dean Simons. “It is a privilege to
follow Mary Daly as dean. She was both a mentor and a role
model to me, and I look forward to carrying on her work in
advancing our mission.”
The new Dean is a committed and passionate teacher, who has earned
several accolades at St. John’s, most notably the Dean’s Teaching
Award (2006, 2004 and 2000) and Professor of the Year (2000).
He teaches primarily in the areas of criminal law and evidence, and
his scholarship has focused on sentencing, prosecutorial
decision-making, and punishment theory. His articles have
appeared in the New York University Law Review, the
Vanderbilt Law Review, the George Mason Law
Review, the Villanova Law Review, The Catholic
Lawyer, and the Journal of Catholic Legal Studies,
among others. Dean Simons is also a frequent lecturer on
criminal law and evidence.
Prior to his tenure at St. John’s, Dean Simons worked as Assistant
United States Attorney in the Southern District of New York
(1995-1998), as an associate at Stillman, Friedman & Shaw in
New York City (1991-95); as a Staff Attorney for The Washington
Post (1990-91), and as a Law Clerk to the Hon. Louis F. Oberdorfer
of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia
(1989-90).
Dean Simons is married to Karen Moritz Simons and has five
children. The Simons family resides in Westbury, NY.
For more information contact Dominic Scianna, Assistant Vice
President for Media Relations by calling (718) 990-6185 or e-mail
inquiries to sciannad@stjohns.edu.