Ewing steps down as Advocacy Institute Director, Connolly steps up

SUNY Distinguished Service Professor Charles Patrick Ewing will be stepping down after serving three years as Director of the Advocacy Institute. Ewing has led the effort to transform the idea of an Advocacy Institute into a reality – one that is now thriving and benefitting our students in many ways, according to interim Dean James A. Gardner.

Gardner is pleased to announce that Vice Dean and Professor Kim Diana Connolly has agreed to serve as the Institute’s next director. Connolly joined the law school in 2010 as Director of Clinical Education, and soon followed with service as Vice Dean for Legal Skills and then Vice Dean for Experiential and Skills Education. 

Terrence M. Connors ’71, trial attorney, continues as chair of the Advocacy Institute Board of Advisors.

Throughout her academic career, Connolly has dedicated her work to helping law students become profession-ready, says Gardner.  “Her focus on curricular integration and her advocacy experience will help guide the Institute as it continues to evolve,” he says. “She also brings strong fundraising, management, and law firm experience, skills that are crucial to the Institute’s success. 

“I look forward to working with her during this next phase of the Institute’s development.”

Gardner praised Ewing for his substantial efforts. “Our moot court, alternative dispute resolution, and trial and appellate advocacy programs have been strengthened, and a new Innocence & Justice Project has been founded. He has helped ensure a solid foundation for the future, and I am most grateful to him for his leadership and service.”

Ewing will continue as Editor of Behavioral Sciences and the Law, a position he have held since 1991, and has moved his forensic psychology work to full-time, commuting among DC, New York and Florida. “I believe that I can have the most significant impact through my work as a forensic consultant and expert witness,” he says, adding that “I will miss my friends in Buffalo and the Advocacy Institute.”