Jennifer Collins

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Jennifer Collins
21st President of Rhodes College
Assumed office
July 1, 2022
Preceded byMarjorie Hass
Personal details
Born
Jennifer M Collins
SpouseAdam Charnes
EducationYale University (BA)
Harvard University (JD)

Jennifer Collins (born 1965) is an American legal scholar serving as the 21st President of Rhodes College.[1][2][3] Collins was previously Judge James Noel Dean of the Dedman School of Law at Southern Methodist University.

Early life and education[edit]

Collins graduated cum laude with a BA in History from Yale University in 1987. She then enrolled at Harvard Law School, graduating magna cum laude with a JD in 1991.[4] At Harvard, she was a notes editor for the Harvard Law Review, working under fellow student and law review president Barack Obama.[5]

After graduating from Harvard, Collins clerked for the Honorable Dorothy Wright Nelson in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.[6]

Legal career[edit]

After finishing her clerkship, Collins worked in private practice in Washington D.C. In 1993, she accepted a position as an attorney-adviser for the United States Department of Justice Office of Legal Counsel. A year later, she joined the United States Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia as an Assistant United States Attorney (AUSA). In this role, she tried more than 30 criminal cases, many of them homicides.[7] Two of her cases garnered major media attention. One involved Aundrey Burno, a teenager and convicted murderer who, before sentencing, told an HBO documentary crew that "I would kill again if I have to."[8] Collins used Burno's words to persuade the judge to grant a 70-year sentence.[9] In the other high-profile case, Collins successfully prosecuted serial killer Joseph Mesa Jr.[10][11]

She remained at the United States Attorney's Office until 2002, returning briefly to private practice at Sidley Austin before transitioning to academia.[12]

Academic career[edit]

Collins joined the faculty at Wake Forest School of Law in 2003 to teach criminal law, criminal procedure, family law, and gender and law.[7] In 2010, she joined university administration as associate provost for academic and strategic initiatives.[13] She was promoted to vice provost in 2013. In this capacity, she launched Wake Forest's LGBTQ+ Center and Women's Center.[14]

In 2014, Collins left Winston-Salem to become Dean of the Dedman School of Law at Southern Methodist University. Collins was the first permanent female dean of SMU's law school.[15] Upon her departure in 2022, she was praised for improving the academic quality and diversity of the law school's students.[16]

Collins was named the 21st President of Rhodes College in December 2021 and formally began her tenure in July 2022.[17]

Personal life[edit]

Collins is married to Adam Charnes, an appellate attorney.[18] They have three children.[12]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Office of the President | Rhodes College". www.rhodes.edu. Retrieved 2024-04-28.
  2. ^ "Rhodes President Jennifer Collins formally installed as school celebrates 175th anniversary". The Commercial Appeal. Retrieved 2024-04-28.
  3. ^ Cain, Erika (2023-11-10). "Rhodes College Installs 21st President". Memphis Parent - Memphis, TN. Retrieved 2024-04-28.
  4. ^ "SMU Law Dean named President of Rhodes College". www.smu.edu. Retrieved 2024-05-02.
  5. ^ "The Quad - Fall 2014 Dedman Law Alumni Magazine". calameo.com. Retrieved 2024-04-28.
  6. ^ "Jennifer M. Collins to lead SMU Dedman School of Law". www.smu.edu. Retrieved 2024-05-02.
  7. ^ a b "Jennifer Collins Archives". Inside WFU - news for the Wake Forest community. Retrieved 2024-04-28.
  8. ^ Slevin, Peter (2023-08-26). "'On a one-way trip to prison': Subject of HBO's 'Thug Life' sentenced in slaying". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2024-04-28.
  9. ^ "The Quad - Fall 2014 Dedman Law Alumni Magazine". calameo.com. Retrieved 2024-04-28.
  10. ^ "joseph mesa case jennifer collins - Google Search". www.google.com. Retrieved 2024-04-28.
  11. ^ "Mental Illness Blamed in 2 Killings". Washington Post. 2024-02-24. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2024-04-28.
  12. ^ a b "Jennifer M. Collins Named 21st President of Rhodes College | Associated Colleges of the South". www.acsouth.edu. 2021-12-07. Retrieved 2024-04-28.
  13. ^ "Jennifer M. Collins to lead SMU Dedman School of Law". www.smu.edu. Retrieved 2024-04-28.
  14. ^ Cicci, Samuel X. (2022-10-06). "A Conversation with Dr. Jennifer Collins". Memphis magazine. Retrieved 2024-04-28.
  15. ^ "SMU Law Dean Jennifer Collins On 'Moving The Needle'". KERA News. 2014-07-18. Retrieved 2024-04-28.
  16. ^ "SMU Law Dean named President of Rhodes College". www.smu.edu. Retrieved 2024-04-28.
  17. ^ "Dr. Jennifer M. Collins Begins Tenure as Rhodes College's 21st President | Rhodes News". news.rhodes.edu. Retrieved 2024-05-02.
  18. ^ "From the courtroom to campus, new Rhodes president always had a mission". Memphis Local, Sports, Business & Food News | Daily Memphian. Retrieved 2024-04-28.
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