Professor Ray Brescia To Lead Government Law Center At Albany Law School

ALBANY, N.Y., May 29, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Albany Law School's Assistant Professor Ray Brescia has been named the new director of the Government Law Center (GLC) effective Aug. 13, 2013.

Professor Brescia specializes in housing policy, the legal ramifications of the financial crises, community economic development and access to justice issues. He is an active, engaged scholar who routinely serves as a resource to the media.

Professor Brescia spent the 2011-2012 academic year as a visiting professor at Yale Law School, his alma mater, where he helped lead a team to measure and rate New Haven banks on their responsiveness to consumer needs, with a focus on home loans.

Before joining the Albany Law faculty in 2007, he was associate director of the Urban Justice Center in New York City, where he coordinated legal representation for community-based institutions in areas such as housing, economic justice, workers' rights and civil rights. He was a law clerk to the late Constance Baker Motley, Senior U.S. District Court Judge for the Southern District of New York.

"The Government Law Center is a critical component of Albany Law School in its legal and policy work on behalf of all levels of government and in the opportunities it gives our students for experiential learning," said Penelope (Penny) Andrews, Albany Law School's president and dean. "Professor Brescia has the vision, energy, experience and intellect to lead the Government Law Center into its next phase."

The GLC focuses on legal aspects of important public policy issues and assists governments in meeting new challenges. The Center's studies often report on recommendations for legal and policy reform using a national and international comparative research methodology. Through cooperative efforts with other academic institutions, the nonprofit sector, the private sector, and governmental entities, the Center has created both an environment for the open exchange of ideas and a laboratory for innovation.

Patricia Salkin led the GLC for 20 years, before going on to become dean of the Touro College Jacob D. Fuchsberg Law Center in 2012. Assistant Professor Robert Heverly is interim director of the GLC.

Full bio of Professor Brescia is available online: http://bit.ly/14yfFIk  

The Government Law Center of Albany Law School is the first and most comprehensive government law program at any ABA-approved law school in the country. Visit www.albanylaw.edu/glc.

CONTACT: Nick Crounse, 1-518-445-3208, [email protected]

SOURCE Albany Law School