Professor Maybell Romero Named Associate Dean for Faculty Research and Programs
Tulane Law Professor Maybell Romero has been appointed as Associate Dean of Faculty Research & Programs at Tulane Law School, a role where she will oversee faculty research support.
In her new role, Romero, the McGlinchey Stafford Associate Professor of Law, will review applications for research and sabbatical funding, assist in program planning and help to highlight scholarly achievements of faculty. She will also play a vital role in supporting colleagues at key points in their careers and in encouraging engagement with the intellectual life of the Law School. The appointment is effective immediately.
“Professor Romero brings both a deep record of scholarship and a strong commitment to fostering collegiality and innovation across our faculty,” said law Dean Marcilynn Burke. “I am confident her leadership will enhance our research mission and build on Tulane Law’s reputation for scholarly excellence.”
A Distinguished Scholar with National Impact
Romero is a nationally recognized scholar whose work engages critical questions in criminal law, procedure, and rural justice. She holds a B.A. from Cornell University and a J.D. from University of California, Berkeley School of Law, where she served as editor in chief of the Berkeley Journal of Criminal Law.
Her scholarship appears and is forthcoming in some of the nation’s most distinguished law reviews, including the Virginia Law Review, Georgetown Law Journal, Washington University Law Review, and Emory Law Journal, as well as leading specialty journals such as the American Criminal Law Review, Journal of Criminal Law & Criminology, and Washington University Journal of Law & Policy.
Her recent piece “Shamed” in the Virginia Law Review illustrates both the originality and the national reach of her work. Her research has been supported by multiple grants, including the Lavin Bernick and Newman grants for research and travel. In 2022, Tulane University recognized her scholarly achievement by awarding her the Research Innovation Award, which honors a scholar who develops and explores novel ideas, approaches, and insights through interdisciplinary scholarship aimed at addressing societal challenges.
Romero’s work is distinct in its combination of rigorous criminal-law inquiry, a focus on rural justice systems, and personal narrative and autoethnographic methodology. Her earlier career included nearly a decade of legal practice — as a prosecutor, defense attorney, and general practitioner in a small community in northern Utah — experiences that inform her scholarly lens.
Impact on Academic Life at Tulane
At Tulane, Romero has been a dynamic and generous contributor to intellectual life. Before taking on her new administrative role, she served as Chair of the Intellectual Life Committee, organized and led key initiatives such as the Faculty Scholarship Symposium and the Gordon Gamm Comparative Law & Justice Symposium, and convened the Bayou Scholars Workshop—bringing together faculty from all four Louisiana law schools to share works-in-progress and strengthen the scholarly community. Moreover, she has served in a range of leadership roles within the Law School and national professional associations, reflecting her deep commitment to mentorship, inclusivity, and the advancement of legal scholarship.
Looking Ahead
Romero’s appointment reflects the law school’s expressed commitment to cultivating a vibrant and supportive scholarly community, and amplifies Tulane Law’s commitment to research excellence, interdisciplinarity, and engagement with pressing issues of justice.
