Tania Luma named assistant dean for Office of Inclusion, Diversity, and Equity

Dear Loyola Law Community,

I’m excited to share the news that, after a nationwide search, Tania Luma will join the School of Law as assistant dean for the Office of Inclusion, Diversity, and Equity on July 15. 

Tania comes to us from the University of Illinois Chicago School of Law, where she served as assistant dean for diversity, equity, and inclusion for three years. At UIC, she worked to strengthen the institutional culture and dialogue around diversity, equity, and inclusion principles, and cultivated a sense of belonging for the entire law school community.

After earning her JD from UIC Law in 2009, Tania practiced civil litigation in the Cook County Child Protection Division, representing children affected by abuse and neglect.  In addition, she managed legal teams and created Jobs for Youth, an employment program for disadvantaged youth in Cook County foster care.

At DePaul University, she taught Critical Thinking, Criminal Justice, and Homeland Security, and helped DePaul create assessments of student critical-thinking abilities and collaborated with colleagues to assess incoming students from 2012 to 2016. She also studied public leadership at the Harvard University Kennedy School of Government and used this training to coach and advise individuals and institutions on leadership and organizational development.

As a UIC Law student, Tania chaired the SBA’s Diversity Affairs Committee, a position through which she lobbied for the college to establish an Office of Diversity; the office was created in 2009.

Here at the School of Law, Assistant Dean Luma will lead the Office of Inclusion, Diversity, and Equity, working in partnership with our academic and administrative departments to promote inclusion, diversity, and equity both in and out of the classroom. 

As Tania comes on board, I sincerely thank our alumna, Ginger Mance (JD ’90), who graciously agreed to return to the law school to serve as interim assistant dean of the Office of Inclusion, Diversity, and Equity. Ginger provided crucial support from January through May as the law school searched for its permanent assistant dean. She brought a wealth of knowledge, wisdom, and experience to the office and worked tirelessly with our pipeline programs to attract and support incoming law students. Among Ginger’s most notable accomplishments was curating the School of Law’s inaugural faculty and staff conversational training called Why Mental Health and Suicide Awareness Matters, a training that is set to continue. 

I also want to thank Professor John Dehn, a member of the School of Law’s Inclusion, Diversity, and Equity Faculty Committee, for leading the nationwide search to find our next assistant dean.

Please join me in welcoming Tania Luma to the School of Law.  

Sincerely, 

Zelda B. Harris
Interim Dean
Mary Ann G. McMorrow Professor of Law