USC announced Wednesday the historic appointment of Franita Tolson as the new dean of the USC Gould School of Law, effective April 1. Tolson is the first Black person and second woman to hold the position in the school’s 123-year history.
President Carol Folt expressed excitement over Tolson’s appointment in a letter from the provost that went out Wednesday. The letter said Tolson would be elevated from her position as interim dean, which she has held since July 1, 2023.
This historical significance of Tolsons appointment was not lost on students at Gould.
“Obviously, we all know she’s our first African American dean and our second female dean, and I think that is a signal for female students of color,” said Zarifah Shahid, a first year law student at USC. “I’m sure that will be encouraging for a lot of students to see a person like that in such a high place.”
Students at the Gould School of Law said they were thrilled to see the permanent job went to someone who already knows the school.
“Hiring in house can be really good to create a lot of stability,” said Lincoln Currie, a first year law student at Gould. “You also encourage people to stay and develop roots, and that’s a really good thing for us.”
Tolson, who will hold the Carl Mason Franklin Chair in Law, brings years of expertise to her new role. Before her time at USC, she worked as an assistant professor of law and Betty T. Ferguson Professor of Voting Rights at Florida State University, as well as serving a visiting assistant professorship at Northwestern University. Tolson has also published two books, numerous essays and opinion pieces.
A nationally recognized expert in election law, Tolson has provided commentary for such notable outlets as The New York Times and CNN. During the fall of 2020, Tolson worked as an election law analyst for CNN, as well as co-hosted an election themed podcast, “Free and Fair with Franita and Foley,” alongside Ned Foley of the Ohio State University Moritz College of Law.
“I’m really happy that we’re choosing somebody who has a lot of experience in voting rights,” Currie said. “It’s really important to be talking about the law and how it intersects with voting rights, election rights, how these issues are getting litigated in courts, and laws are being passed right now.”
Gould students excitedly welcomed Tolson into her new position as someone they already knew.
“She does have an open-door policy,” Shahid said. “She’s been very involved, at least with first-year law students.”
Currie said the students’ familiarity with the new dean helps give her credibility with the students.
“There can be a problem if the leader is just there when something goes wrong, or they need to make a big pronouncement about something,” Currie said. “It is good that we do see her around and she is a familiar face.”