Six LSU Law professors receive promotions

Five LSU Law faculty members—Grace Barry, Jeff Brooks, Marlene Krousel, Kathy Simino, and Heidi Thompson—have received promotions to Professor of Professional Practice, while Jack Harrison has received a promotion to Assistant Professor of Professional Practice.

“The promotion of these dedicated and talented faculty members reflects our deep commitment to academic excellence, which serves as the foundation for everything we do at the LSU Paul M. Hebert Law Center,” said Dean Alena M. Allen. “Cumulatively, these faculty members have well over 100 years of service to the Law Center. They have been integral in training the next generation of legal professionals in Louisiana and beyond. I am proud to call them my colleagues, I am grateful for their contributions, and I look forward to celebrating more milestones with them as we move forward.”

Barry (’89), Krousel (’82), Simino (’87), and Thompson (’93) are all LSU Law alumna. Along with Professors Jennifer Cooper and Tracy Norton, they comprise the Law Center’s legal writing faculty. Harrison, who teaches the Juvenile Defense Clinic, is also a 2004 LSU Law alumnus.

Prior to joining the LSU Law faculty in 1998, Barry was a senior staff attorney for the Louisiana House of Representatives Committee on Judiciary and practiced law in Baton Rouge, specializing in maritime law. She holds the James J. Bailey Professorship in Law and serves as LSU Law Director of Legal Research and Writing.

“I am honored and grateful,” said Barry. “This promotion reflects the university’s commitment to excellence in teaching and learning. I’m proud to be part of an institution that values devotion to student success. I look forward to continuing to serve our students and contribute to the university’s mission.”

Krousel also joined the LSU Law faculty in 1998, having previously practiced law for 13 years with Walter R. Krousel, Jr. and Associates. She holds the George M. Armstrong, Jr. Professorship, and has been honored by LSU for her outstanding contributions to the creation and preparation of course-wide appellate and advocacy materials.

“I am deeply honored to be promoted to full professor at our esteemed law school,” she said. “I look forward to serving our students and to advancing our law school’s tradition of academic and professional excellence.”

Thompson has been an LSU Law faculty member since 2001 and holds the James E. and Betty M. Phillips Professorship. She previously practiced in insurance defense, domestic law, workers’ compensation, and personal injury before leaving private practice to serve as a research attorney for Chief Judge Burrell J. Carter work at the Louisiana First Circuit Court of Appeal.

“I’ve loved teaching at my alma mater for almost 25 years,” said Thompson, who also served as an Adjunct Instructor of Appellate Advocacy at the LSU Law Center in 1997, 1999, and 2000. “It’s invigorating to now have a rank that reflects the time and energy spent teaching the wonderful LSU Law students and serving LSU and the legal community. I look forward to reaching and teaching many more great legal minds at LSU Law and ultimately sharing a special bond with them when they become LSU Law alumni.”

Prior to joining the LSU Law faculty in 2007, Simino was a public defender at the 19^th Judicial District Court for five years and later clerked for several Louisiana judges before going into private practice, with a focus on appellate practice. She also served as an adjunct professor at the Law Center, teaching advanced appellate advocacy for several years, before joining the faculty. She holds the Louis B. Porterie Professorship.

“I’m grateful for the promotion to full Professor of Professional Practice,” said Simino. “Teaching legal skills has been a rewarding way of passing on what I learned in my years of practice to

future generations of LSU Law graduates.”

Brooks joined the LSU Law faculty in 2010 as the Director of the LSU Law Moot Court/Trial Advocacy Programs, and he holds the Preis PLC Director of Advocacy and

Professional Practice Professorship. Through the years, Brooks has helped facilitate hundreds of moot court competitions and coached several teams of LSU Law students that have won national championships. He is also a U.S. National Administrator and volunteer judge for the Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition, which honored him with its Pamela Young Award earlier this spring in recognition of his service to Jessup.

“LSU Law has been my home for 14 years now, and every day I am inspired by the incredible and talented students that I get the extraordinary privilege to work with,” Brooks said. “I am truly lucky to have the opportunity to do what I love, at a place that I love, and with colleagues and students who I love.”

Before being promoted to a full-time faculty position in the LSU Law Clinical Legal Education Program in 2021, Harrison served as an adjunct professor at the Law Center since 2009. He previously spent 14 years as a juvenile defender for the East Baton Rouge Office of the Public Defender.

In 2023, the Louisiana Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers recognized Harrison with the Lucy McGough Juvenile Justice Award for his “involvement with juvenile justice issues that affect our justice systems daily.”

“I view my promotion as more than just a professional achievement but as a reflection of the value the LSU Law Center places on the work we do in the Juvenile Defense Clinic,” said Harrison. “I am the most proud of my alma mater when I hear our students stand in court and introduce themselves by saying, ‘LSU Law Center on behalf of the youth.’”

LSU Law Dean Alena Allen and the LSU Paul M. Hebert Law Center Faculty Committee recommended each of the promotions, and LSU administrators reviewed and approved the recommendations earlier this spring. LSU Law Professors Lisa Avalos, Nick Bryner, and Summer Chandler also received promotions earlier this year.