Athornia Steele Named Dean of Nova Southeastern University’s Law School

June 20, 2008

Professor Athornia Steele has been named dean of Shepard Broad Law Center of Nova Southeastern University (NSU) in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. His tenure there begins August 2008.

Professor Steele began his affiliation with Capital in 1970 as a student. He earned his BA and JD at Capital, and then joined the faculty at the Law School in 1980 teaching Business Associations and Decedents Estates. He later taught Corporate Finance, Securities Regulations and the Law of Higher Education. In addition to his professorship, Steele has served as Director of Student Activities, Director of Academic Support, Interim Associate Dean, Associate Dean and Interim Dean.

“It is always difficult to leave a place and people who have become so much a part of your life” said Steele, “At the same time, I look forward to the future and to new opportunities and challenges.”

NSU Law offers a full and part-time division with an entering student enrollment of approximately 350 as well as two exchange programs (Barcelona, Spain and Venice, Italy).  It has a strong clinical program and was twice named the Most Wired Law School in the United States by the National Jurist magazine. NSU has strong graduate programs in business, education, allied health, humanities and social science and is very interested in creating interdisciplinary study and degree programs.

Before joining the law faculty, Steele was an Assistant Attorney General of the State of Ohio. From 1984 to 1986, he was a visiting professor at Washington & Lee Law School. Professor Steele has been extensively involved in the work of his church serving on boards, committees and task forces of the former American Lutheran Church and the current Evangelical Lutheran Church of America (ELCA).

Professor Steele also is also actively involved with the Law School Admission Council (LSAC) and has served on its Academic Support Workshop, Test Development and Research Committee, Minority Affairs, Finance, and Legal Affairs committees. He has served on the executive committee of the Association of American Law School's Section on Academic Support, as well as the ABA’s Section on Legal Education and Admission to the Bar Committee on Law School Administration.