UA Little Rock Announces Finalists for William H. Bowen School of Law Dean
The University of Arkansas at Little Rock has announced two finalists who are being considered for the deanship at the William H. Bowen School of Law.
As part of the interview process, each candidate will meet with the search committee, members of the Bowen School of Law, and offer a presentation to the campus community.
The two finalists include Colin Crawford, dean and professor of law at Golden Gate University School of Law, and Christian Johnson, Commonwealth Professor of Law and Business Advising and director of the Business Advising Program at Widener University Commonwealth Law School.
Colin Crawford
Crawford previously served as dean of the Louis D. Brandeis School of Law at the University of Louisville, following tenured positions at Tulane University, Georgia State University, and Thomas Jefferson School of Law. He founded and co-directed the Center for the Comparative Study of Metropolitan Growth at Georgia State University.
Crawford holds a bachelor’s degree in history from Columbia University, a master’s degree in history and is pursuing a Ph.D. in modern history from the University of Cambridge, and a law degree from Harvard Law School. His scholarship focuses on environmental, property, urban development, and land-use law questions, especially in a comparative and international context.
His international experience includes having developed and taught courses throughout Latin America and the Caribbean, serving as the project director for the Environmental Law Capacity-Building Initiative in Central America funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development, and publishing books and articles in English, Spanish, and Portuguese. Crawford has also lectured and taught in China, Cuba, France, Japan, Panama, and South Korea, and was a Fulbright scholar in the Dominican Republic.
He will be meeting with campus representatives at the UA Little Rock Bowen School of Law on Friday, March 3.
Christian Johnson
Johnson was the inaugural dean for Widener University Commonwealth Law School. Prior to joining Widener, he served as the Hugh B. Brown Presidential Endowed Chair of the Law and the associate dean for academic affairs at the University of Utah College of Law. Before moving to Utah, Johnson was a law professor at Loyola University Chicago for 13 years.
Johnson has 27 years of experience in legal education. He is a frequent commentator and academic focusing primarily on global capital markets. He has co-authored five books and written over three dozen articles on capital markets and central banks. Johnson holds a bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree in accounting from the University of Utah and a J.D. from Columbia University School of Law.
He will be meeting with campus representatives at the UA Little Rock Bowen School of Law on Monday, March 6.
Paula Casey, professor emeriti of Bowen and former U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Arkansas, serves as chair of the search committee.
Additional search committee members from UA Little Rock include Anastasia Boles, professor of law; Terrence Cain, professor of law; Rebecca Feldmann, director of the Veterans Legal Services Clinic; Shanna Fitzgerald, budget director; Rejena Grotjohn, assistant dean for student affairs and diversity initiatives; Wanda Hoover, assistant dean for external relations; Almas Khan, assistant professor of law; Joni Lee, vice chancellor for university affairs; Melissa Serfass, professor of law librarianship; and Kelly Terry, associate dean for experiential learning and clinical programs.
The new dean is expected to start during the summer and will succeed Theresa Beiner, Bowen’s first permanent female dean who has served in that position since 2018. Beiner, who joined Bowen in 1994, is stepping down to return to faculty.
