FACULTY NEWS


A CENTURY OF TEACHING Three Retiring Faculty Leave Lasting Impacts


BY BRICE HELMS AND KEITH PIERCE


Current and past faculty gathered to honor the careers of Robert Dinerstein, Ann Shalleck, and Jonathan Baker who retired from American University Washington College of Law (AUWCL) aſter more than a collective century of teaching. Dinerstein, Shalleck, and Baker were instrumental in growing the law school into one of the best in the nation. Through prolific scholarly work and dedicated instruction, the three shaped the legal landscape and made profound contributions to not only AUWCL, but law schools throughout the country.


Pioneering Disability Rights and Revolutionizing Legal Education: Honoring the Influence of Robert Dinerstein


Robert “Bob” Dinerstein, a distinguished professor of law and the director of the Disability Rights Law Clinic at American University Washington College of Law, retired aſter four decades of service. During his tenure, Professor Dinerstein became known for his passionate advocacy for people with disabilities, his commitment to clinical legal education, and his innovative teaching methods.


Dinerstein began teaching at AUWCL in 1983 and held various administrative positions over the years. He was the associate dean for academic affairs from 1997 to 2004, the associate dean for experiential education from 2012 to 2018, and the director of the clinical program from 1988 to 1996 and again from 2008 to 2018. He was also the acting dean of the law school from 2020 to 2021.


Dinerstein was a leading expert in disability law, particularly in the areas of mental disabilities law, the Americans with


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Disabilities Act, and the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. He was the author or co-author of several books, including A Guide to Consent and Lawyers and Clients: Critical Issues in Interviewing and Counseling. He also published numerous articles and chapters on disability law and clinical legal education, and in the latter area is known for his scholarship on client- centered counseling.


Dinerstein’s impact on his students was immeasurable. Many of his former students remember him as a brilliant and dedicated teacher who challenged them to think critically about the law and its application to people with disabilities. They credit him with inspiring them to pursue careers in disability law and advocacy.


Mehreen Butt ’05, managing director of the Center for Health Policy and Law at Northeastern University School of Law said, “Congratulations Prof. Dinerstein! Your class led me to a career in helping vulnerable populations including people living with disabilities.”


Dinerstein served on the President’s Committee on Mental Retardation (now called the President’s Committee on People with Intellectual Disabilities) from 1994 to 2001 and was a commissioner on the ABA Commission on Disability Rights from 2018 to 2021. He consulted for the World Health Organization and the Open Society Foundations on mental health law reform and disability rights issues in Africa and Latin America.


“I will never forget my experiences in Professor Dinerstein’s Criminal Justice Clinic,” said Lori Manning ’89, senior counsel in the NYC Office of the Corporation Counsel. “It led to my start as a public defender and 37-plus years later my practice still includes criminal law.”


Celebrating the Legacy of Professor Ann Shalleck, Champion of Equality and Social Progressivism


Aſter 39 years at AUWCL, Professor Anne Shalleck taught her final class; students and faculty lined the hallways of the school, celebrating Shalleck’s years of instruction, guidance, and mentorship.


During her nearly four decades of work at AUWCL, Shalleck instructed students as a clinical lecturer, associate professor, and as a professor of law. She was also the director of the Women and the Law program.


Shalleck said, “I feel so fortunate to have entered this field and to have had the opportunities that I’ve had.”


Shalleck was instrumental in developing the clinical law program into one of the top clinical law programs in the entire country. During her career, Shalleck co-authored Transforming the Education of Lawyers: The Theory and Practice of Clinical Education and received several awards for her work, including the Association of American Law Schools William Pincus Award for outstanding contributions to the cause of clinical legal education and the Clinical Legal Education Association’s Outstanding Advocate for Clinical Teachers award.


Shalleck’s career at AUWCL began in 1984 when she was given “the enormous opportunity” of creating the Women and the Law program, which was created to expand on AUWCL’s commitment toward inclusion that has defined the school since its creation.


Thanks to Shalleck’s vision and leadership, the program ranks among the best programs in the country for preparing lawyers to fight for social equality and defeat gender-based


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