CollegeNews
CollegeNews
Eight College of Law Associate Professors Receive Tenure
The Syracuse University Board of Trustees approved tenure appointments for eight College of Law Associate Professors: Aviva Abramovsky, Jeremy Blumenthal, Sanjay Chhablani, Juscelino Colares, Ian Gallacher, Nina Kohn, Michael Schwartz and Terry Turnipseed. These professionals represent a broad spectrum of legal scholarship and research and all have brought tremendous energy and insights to their legal instructions.
SAMUEL AND CAROL NAPPI ESTABLISH FUND TO
Pompey, N.Y., residents Samuel (Sam) and Carol Nappi have made a $250,000 gift to Syracuse University that will support the SU College of Law’s Cold Case Justice Initiative. With support from the newly established Sam and Carol Nappi Fund, the CCJI will continue to seek justice for racially motivated Civil Rights Era murders, working on behalf of the victims, their families, local communities and society at large.
Under the direction of SU law professors Paula C. Johnson and Janis L. McDonald, CCJI is an interdisciplinary project that engages College of Law faculty and students in the research and investigation of unresolved cases; offers academic courses, public forums and other special events; and serves as a clearinghouse for sharing and receiving information on active cases. CCJI was founded in response to the 1964 Civil Rights Era murder of shoe shop owner Frank Morris in Ferriday, La., which remains unsolved. College of Law students researched thousands of documents and worked with local investigative reporters, which led to witnesses providing new information, the appointment of a special agent by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and a pledge by the U.S. attorney for a full review of the case. The students’ efforts have ignited the law enforcement investigation of additional deaths long suspected by the community to be racially motivated and committed by the Ku Klux Klan.
“It is our honor to serve this important cause for freedom and justice,” says Sam Nappi. “We are proud to call Syracuse University our university. Carol and I are grateful to Paula and Janis and the students of the law school for having the heart, courage and intellect to seek this long-awaited justice. This important work being done by the students will lift the souls of the soldiers of freedom. They, too, are America’s greatest generation. On behalf of the King Center and the King family, who are also victims in America’s march to freedom, we would like to say a special thank you to Chancellor Nancy Cantor and Tom Walsh, executive vice president for advancement and external affairs, for the leadership demonstrated in deeds over a life’s work.”
As part of his life’s work, Nappi has had a strong commitment to the Civil Rights movement. As a young man, he was drawn to the 1980 presidential campaign of U.S. Sen. Ted Kennedy. As a member of the advance staff for Sen. Kennedy, Nappi developed a bond with the senator and with Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who served as state coordinator for his uncle’s campaign. Through this work, Nappi met and formed a strong friendship with Martin Luther King III, eldest son of Martin Luther King Jr. Over the years, Nappi has been a strong supporter of the Atlanta-based King Center and is actively involved as the King Center moves into an important new era in its history.
“Sam and Carol’s generosity will help us build on the tremendous momentum of our Cold Case Justice Initiative,” says SU Chancellor and President Nancy Cantor. “We know the best learning, teaching and discovery often take place in reciprocal partnerships with members of different communities, each one with something to offer and something to learn. The CCJI is such an effort, one that will continue to demand many minds, many hands and many miles on the road to find out what happened to so many victims who were cherished by their families and friends but abandoned by the criminal justice system and overlooked by history. Justice demands that their stories be told.”
“I am so pleased that our professors received such a generous commitment from the Nappis to continue their important work leading the Cold Case Justice Initiative,” says Hannah Arterian, dean of the College of Law. “Such
20 | SYRACUSE LAW
