Kevin Washburn, the Rosenstiel Distinguished Professor of Law at the University of Arizona's James E. Rogers College of Law, has just been named Dean of the University of New Mexico School of Law. Washburn is a 1993 graduate of Yale Law School. He received his B.A. in Economics from the University of Oklahoma. Washburn was on the faculty of the University of Minnesota from 2002-08, and was a visitor at Harvard Law School from 2007-08. His impressive list of publications is here. He is the first Native American to serve as law dean at UNM.
There is an interesting, albeit obscure, sub-narrative here for law students interested in academic careers. Washburn attended Washington University in St. Louis for his first year of law school, and then transferred to Yale. Could he have arrived in this same place if he'd stayed put? Perhaps…but probably not.
Congratulations to the folks at UNM. This is an impressive hire – they have to be very pleased.