Against a backdrop of critically urgent discourse around addiction and mental health policy and a broad spectrum of environmental law issues, FIU's College of Law has hired three assistant professors who are expanding FIU Law's scholarship and teaching in these areas of national importance.
Taleed El-Sabawi joins the faculty as an assistant professor whose research focuses on addiction and mental health policy, politics and law. John (Alex) Erwin joins FIU Law as an assistant professor with areas of research in environmental and wildlife law. And Amber Polk joins the faculty as an assistant professor whose areas of research interest include animal rights and environmental law.
"FIU Law is delighted to have these three accomplished teachers and scholars join us. They each have a proven record of success and their work will make vital contributions to our students and South Florida and beyond," said Dean Antony Page.
The addition of FIU Law's newest faculty reflects a trend among top-performing law schools of hiring tenure-track professors with advanced degrees. Each of FIU Law's new hires holds a Ph.D, compared to fewer than half of tenure-track law professors hired nationally last year. More than two-thirds of FIU Law's tenured and tenure-track faculty hold advanced degrees.
"Law professors with Ph.D.s are experts in their cognate fields," noted Dean Page. "This enriches their teaching and allows them to better contribute to increasingly valuable interdisciplinary scholarship."
