Though Richard Revesz steps down as New York University School of Law's dean in May after 11 years, his next chapter is underway as director of a new NYU interdisciplinary institute on the study of cities and global urban centers. The university recently received a $40 million gift from entrepreneur and philanthropist Donald Marron, chairman of Lightyear Capital, to create what will be called the Marron Institute on Cities and the Urban Environment. It will bring together various schools and faculty within NYU to examine challenges facing urban centers worldwide, such as public health, housing supply, municipal services, transportation, the environment and sustainability.
The center will sponsor fellowships, colloquia, events and multidisciplinary research across schools, Revesz said. Several law school faculty and administrators will be affiliated with the center, including assistant dean for planning Libby Rohlfing. Revesz, who announced the end of his tenure as dean last fall, has spearheaded the institute's creation for more than a year. As law school dean, he launched 12 new centers on legal and public policy issues and overhauled the curriculum for third-year students. He also fostered cooperation between schools, overseeing the growth of Furman Center for Real Estate and Urban Policy, a joint center between the law school and the Wagner School of Public Service, and launching the Mitchell Jacobson Leadership in Law and Business Program, a law school partnership with the Stern School of Business. While running the Marron Institute, Revesz will keep his post as faculty director of the law school's Institute for Policy Integrity and will continue teaching courses in administrative law and environmental law.
