Former DePaul Dean Jennifer Rosato Perea Begins Her New Job Today As ABA Managing Director Of Legal Education

ABA Journal, Meet Jennifer Rosato Perea, Who'll Lead ABA Accreditation and Legal Ed as Managing Director:

As a marathon runner, Jennifer L. Rosato Perea is used to both considering the long run and taking things one step at a time.

It’s the mindset she’s bringing into her new role as managing director for accreditation and legal education at the ABA, just as hot-button issues are hitting the docket of the council of the Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar. She starts June 1.

Rosato Perea has had her eye on the ABA job for a while, seeing it as an option following 16 years of service as a law school dean.

“I know the standards intimately well,” she says. “I believe in the standards. I believe in accreditation and how it helps law schools become better.”

Stepping down as dean of DePaul University College of Law, she comes to the ABA job as contentious issues such as academic freedom; accrediting online law schools; and considerations related to diversity, equity and inclusion are on the table. She’s aware of the long road ahead, taking it in stride.

“There’s a lot changing,” she adds. “Just like being a dean, you’re not always going to be liked.” ...

With her daughter now grown, she and her husband, Juan F. Perea, a professor at Loyola University Chicago School of Law, live in the Bucktown neighborhood of Chicago. A side benefit of the new job is her commute will be a half-mile shorter.

“I love the city, and I am thrilled to be able to still run by the lake and the river,” she says. “But I’m excited for the opportunity also to travel to different places as well, as part of the job to meet folks where they are.”