The first class of Root-Tilden Scholars graduated from NYU School of Law in 1954. The members of that class and subsequent classes have shown a diversity of professional interests and have become leaders in public service. A large percentage of our alumni have served in government at some point in their careers, including appointed and elected office. Some serve as federal and state court judges. Many graduates have worked with legal services, nonprofit advocacy organizations, public defenders, prosecutors’ offices, and foundations. In addition, some are employed in law school teaching or administration, or serve as partners in public interest law firms. Each year a substantial number of graduating scholars serve as clerks to federal and state judges.
Some of our notable alumni are listed below:
Jonathan S. Abady ‘90
Founding Partner, Emery, Celli, Brinckerhoff & Abady LLP
Betty Baez-Melo ‘11
Project Director, Advocates for Children Early Childhood Education Project
The Honorable Thomas Buergenthal ‘60
In Memoriam
Derwyn Bunton ‘98
Running for Criminal Court Judge
Managing Director of People, Equity & Institutional Transformation at The Bronx Defenders; Founder & Facilitator at Uproot.ed; Adjunct Professor at Columbia Law School
Amanda David ‘08
Assistant Professor of Law at the CUNY School of Law
Diana DeGette ‘82
US Representative for Colorado's 1st Congressional District
Julia Einbond ‘08
Executive Director of Covenant House New Jersey
Iván Espinoza-Madrigal ‘05
Executive Director, Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights and Economic Justice
Executive Director at the Center for Law and Social Justice, Medgar Evers College; Host, the Lurie Daniel Favors Show on SiriusXM’s Urban View; Commissioner, NYC Racial Justice Commission
Director, Criminal Defense Clinic & Clinical Professor at Duke Law
Karen Freedman, ‘80
Executive Director, Lawyers for Children
Margaret Fung, ‘78
Executive Director, Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund
Co-Founder and Executive Director at One World Exchange
Tsedeye Gebreselassie ‘07
Director of Work Quality, National Employment Law Project
Matthew Ginsburg ‘05
Associate General Counsel, American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations
Anurag Gupta ‘11
Founder and CEO, BE MORE America
Keith Harper ‘94
Ambassador, UN Human Rights Council (Ret.); Partner, Jenner and Block
Mary Haviland ‘94
Executive Director, New York City Alliance Against Sexual Assault
Charlotte Hitchcock ‘91
General Counsel and Chief of Staff, Newark Public Schools
Sharon Hom ‘80
Executive Director, Human Rights in China
Clinical Professor of Law and Director of the Education Law & Policy Institute, Loyola University Chicago School of Law
Annie Lai ‘06
Co-Associate Dean for Experiential Education and Clinical Professor of Law/Co-Director, Immigrant Rights Clinic, UC Irvine Law
Dorchen A. Leidholdt ‘88
Director, Center for Battered Women's Legal Services/Sanctuary for Families
Judge, United States District Court for the Western District of Washington
Sonia Lin ‘08
Senior Fellow at Consumer Protection Bureau
Oscar Londono ‘17
Co-Executive Director at WeCount!
Nancy Lublin ‘01
Founder and CEO, Crisis Text Line; Founder, Dress for Success
Nancy Mahon ‘89
Chief Sustainability Officer at Estee Lauder
Vice President, Policy & Community Engagement, Center for Policing Equity
Julie Mao ‘11
Co-Founder and Deputy Director of Just Futures Law
Terry A. Maroney ‘98
Robert S. and Theresa L. Reder Chair in Law and Professor of Medicine, Health and Society, Vanderbilt Law School
U.S. District Judge, District of Minnesota
Exective Director at Alabama Forward; Advisor, Fund for New Leadership
Chief Executive Officer, Compass Working Capital
Judge, United States District Judge for the Eastern District of New York
Child Rights Division Director, Human Rights Watch
Civil Rights Activist, Co-Founder of Advancement Project
Dennis Riordan ‘74
Partner, Riordan & Horgan
Jenny Rivera ‘85
Associate Judge of the Court of Appeals, State of New York
Lourdes Rosado ‘95
President and General Counsel at LatinoJustice
Rachel Rosenbloom ‘02
Professor of Law and Associate Dean for Experiential Education, Northeastern University School of Law
Janet Sabel ‘84
Director of the Access to Justice Initiative, Center on Civil Justice
Johnathan Smith ‘07
Deputy Assistant Attorney General, Civil Rights Division, US Department of Justice
Ría Tabacco Mar ‘08
Senior Staff Attorney, Director of the ACLU’s Women’s Rights Project
Legal Director, Children’s Law Center and Associate Dean for Academic Affairs; Professor of Law, David Clarke School of Law
Project Director, Red Hook Community Justice, Center for Justice Innovation
Jenny R. Yang ‘96
Deputy Director of the Domestic Policy Council for Racial Justice & Equity