Leah Adams, ’07, was recently hired as the Assistant Dean of Students and Career Services at McGeorge School of Law. Adams oversees and manages the Student Services Office and Career Services Office (CSO), which have become a combined Office of Student and Career Services. Her first day was July 1.
“The most important thing people need to know about me is how deeply I care about our students. I care about the success of the campus and the people I work with,” Adams said. “I’m excited to take on this new role.”
Previously, Adams practiced criminal defense and family law for seven and a half years in the Bay Area. Adams has many years of experience in counseling, advising, and mentoring students. She has been a part of the CSO team since 2014 and has served an adjunct professor in the Global Lawyering Skills program since 2018.
Adams has worked with students and alumni for nearly a decade, giving her a well-rounded background to be able to take on this new role.
“I’m very familiar with the cycles and what students and employers are looking for,” Adams said. “As a professor, and in my role in the CSO, I have learned a lot about student needs and I’m able to provide the necessary support.”
The new position came to fruition when McGeorge’s previous assistant deans of student affairs and career development left the institution for exciting new job opportunities. According to Adams, there have been a handful of law schools in the country that have decided to combine their career development and student affairs offices with promising results. Adams will be taking on the oversight, long-term planning, and strategic vision behind both departments.
“It’s stressful because it’s new. But I also think we have great people on the team,” Adams said. “Our career and student services teams are just really solid. They’re supportive of the students, the department, and each other. That’s going to help with the transition.”