Faculty Arrivals

Nadia Anguiano-Wehde ’17 was named a visiting assistant clinical professor to lead the Federal Immigration Litigation Clinic for the 2022-23 academic year. She and her clinic students represent noncitizens in complex immigration cases before U.S. District Courts, U.S. Courts of Appeals, and the U.S. Supreme Court. 

Elizabeth (“Betz”) Bentley joined the Law School in May as a visiting assistant professor and director of the Civil Rights Appellate Clinic. Bentley previously worked at the law firm of Jones Day. She also served as a clerk for Justice Sonia Sotomayor of the U.S. Supreme Court, Chief Judge Robert Katzmann of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, and Judge Jed Rakoff of the U.S. District Court of the Southern District of New York. 

Matthew T. Bodie joined the Law School in August as the Robins Kaplan Professor of Law. Bodie teaches and writes on labor and employment law, corporate law, data privacy, and algorithmic management. He was formerly the Callis Family Professor at Saint Louis University School of Law. 

David R. Cleveland joined the Law School as a clinical professor of law and director of legal research and writing. Cleveland has been teaching legal research, writing, and analysis in law schools since 2005. His history of service and leadership in the law school setting include roles as a dean, associate dean, and legal writing director. 

Charlotte Garden joined the Law School in August as the Julius E. Davis Professor of Law. Garden specializes in labor law, employ- ment law, and constitutional law. Prior to joining the Law School, she was a professor at Seattle University School of Law where she served as co-associate dean for research and faculty development. 

JaneAnne Murray was appointed as a clinical professor of law. Murray has been teaching atthe Law School since 2011. She specializes in criminal law and government investigations and teaches criminal procedure and sentencing advocacy. Her research interests include plea bargaining, prosecutorial discretion, and sentencing. She is faculty director of the Clemency Clinic. 

Liliana Zaragoza joined the Law School in May as an associate professor of clinical law and director of the Law School’s newly launched Racial Justice Law Clinic. Prior to joining the faculty, Zaragoza was an assistant counsel at the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc., where she worked on federal civil rights litigation and appeals to advance equity for Black people in the areas of voting, policing and the criminal legal system, and school desegregation. 

Other Arrivals

Sarah Brenes joined the Law School in August as the new executive director of the James H. Binger Center for New Americans. Benes has been a strong advocate for the rights of non-citizens, including refugees and asylum seekers, for many years, most recently as director of the Refugee and Immigrant Program at the Advocates for Human Rights. 

Ra'Shya Ghee ’13 joined the Law School in August as its inaugural assistant dean of diversity, equity, and inclusion. Ghee practiced criminal defense and family law in Ohio at the municipal, state, and appellate levels for several years before moving into DEI consulting work. Her consulting work focused on cross-racial coaching, providing commentary on racial tensions to news and journalism outlets, and helping organizations center racial equity and operationalize anti-racist frameworks. 

Mackenzie Heinrichs ’18 joined the Law School in June as immigration & human rights clinical fellow. Heinrichs previously served an Equal Justice Works fellow with the Immigrant Law Center of Minnesota. 

Seiko Shastri ’21 joined the Law School in June as an immigration litigation fellow. Shastri served as an immigration fellow for the Immigrant Defense Project from 2021-22. 

Kiri Somermeyer joined the Law School in June as executive director of the Corporate Institute. Somermeyer previously served as associate general counsel at Post Consumer Brands for six years. She served on the board of directors for Volunteer Lawyers Network and is on the Minnesota State Bar Association Access to Justice Committee. She also engages in a wide variety of pro bono work. 

Promotions

Jay Wong, formerly director of student affairs, was promoted to assistant dean of students. 

Departures

Abby Loyd, major gift officer since 2019, left the Law School in August to become director of development at the University of St. Thomas Law School. Loyd was with the University since 2013 and with the Law School since 2015. 

Erin Keyes ’00, assistant dean of students for 17 years, departed from the Law School in September to take on new challenges. "Decades of Minnesota Law lawyers, many of whom are now leaders of the legal profession and beyond, have been affected by Erin, her support, and her outstanding leadership,” observed Dean Garry W. Jenkins. (Read our tribute piece on Erin Keyes and her many contributions to the Law School).