The Mitchell Hamline School of Law board of trustees released the following statement on August 8, 2023:
The Board of Trustees for Mitchell Hamline School of Law announced today that Dean Anthony Niedwiecki has requested the opportunity to begin his sabbatical this month. In supporting that request, the Board named Vice Dean Jim Hilbert to serve as Interim President and Dean for the 2023-24 academic year.
“As I mentioned in my March announcement about stepping down as President and Dean, I wanted to focus on my and my family’s wellbeing. Since that announcement, I’ve had a few major developments in my life that have led me to conclude that I should take my sabbatical earlier than I had originally planned. Therefore, I will be stepping down effective August 15, and will return to teach in the 2024-25 academic year,” Dean Niedwiecki shared in his communication to the Board.
President and Dean Anthony Niedwiecki, left, and incoming Interim President and Dean Jim Hilbert.
Board Chair Nicole James Gilchrist led the trustees’ selection of Jim Hilbert to serve as Interim President and Dean. “Over the past weeks since learning of the Dean’s preferred timeline for his sabbatical, the Executive Committee focused on the essential qualities and personal attributes for an Interim President and Dean, as well as key challenges that the law school faces for this academic year 2023-2024. We also sought input from selected members of the faculty about these as well. In consultation with members of the Executive Committee, we determined that we have a strong option for interim leadership within our midst, and very much appreciate Jim Hilbert’s willingness to serve the law school in this way for the 2023-24 academic year.”
Professor Hilbert has served as vice dean for academic and faculty affairs since 2020, and he has been a full-time faculty member since 2010, focusing on areas such as police reform, state constitutional law, school desegregation, expert witness testimony, and negotiation. Before joining the legal academy, Hilbert was a civil rights attorney for over 10 years, and he is a longtime executive committee member of the St. Paul NAACP. He will be assisted in leadership in 2023-24 by professors Jill Bryant and Morgan Holcomb, who will serve as vice deans.
Morgan Holcomb
Jill Bryant
“I am grateful to Dean Niedwiecki for his inspiring leadership and vision during the past three years. We are fortunate to have such talented and engaged students, wonderful alums in all parts of the profession and areas of the country, and a strong faculty and staff who have made Mitchell Hamline a thriving law school. I look forward to working with them this year as we search for a new dean,” said Hilbert. He added that he will not be a candidate in the dean search.
Trustee Vice Chair Jim Jacobson chairs the search committee already underway to recommend a permanent replacement for Dean Niedwiecki and expressed confidence that the timeline of welcoming the new President and Dean on July 1, 2024, will remain.