The University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law is a recipient of this year’s Empowering Women Award, presented by The Daily Record. The award celebrates Maryland Carey Law’s commitment to supporting and elevating women in Maryland. Honorees are judged on documented hiring and promoting of women; leadership positions held by women; advocacy for the cause of women internally and externally; and efforts to cultivate the next generation of women professionals.
These values are deeply embedded in Maryland Carey Law’s culture and reflected in women’s representation, the curriculum, and student opportunities.
At Maryland Carey Law, women lead at every level, from Dean Renée Hutchins Laurent, Vice Dean Deborah Eisenberg, and Associate Dean Leigh Goodmark to the Alumni Board president and Board of Visitors chair. Women hold 75% of associate and assistant dean roles and lead 54% of academic programs.
A paper was published in August 2022, “Women in U.S. Law Schools, 1948-2021,” which investigates the progress of women’s representation and achievement in law schools following WWII to the present. The study found that Maryland Carey Law placed historically first nationwide for women's representation among faculty, second for students, and 17th for deans.
Maryland Carey Law contributes to the cultivation of the next generation of women professionals through all of its curricular offerings and, notably, through an innovative academic program. Founded in 2002 by Professor Paula Monopoli (pictured above, center), the Women, Leadership & Equality (WLE) Program offers a comprehensive approach to understanding and addressing structural barriers to women advancing in the legal profession. The first program of its kind in the country, the WLE Program is designed to produce lawyers who are aware of the systemic challenges that women face when seeking positions of leadership in law and identify ways to support them in their pursuit of these roles.
Additionally, the WLE Program offers the Rose Zetzer Fellowship for students. Each year, approximately 10 students are selected to participate in a special applied workshop taught by WLE Managing Director Lisa Mebane (pictured above, left), in which they develop skills in personal negotiation, communication, strategic career planning, business development and fundraising, organizational behavior and dynamics, and leadership development.
Zetzer Fellows also meet prominent women lawyers in leadership roles who share their perspectives on the pressures, obstacles, and dilemmas they faced in achieving their positions. Moreover, participants are eligible to do an externship at a women’s policy or direct service organization like House of Ruth, the National Women's Law Center, or the Women's Law Center of Maryland.
Student organizations such as the Women’s Bar Association and Students Supporting the Women’s Law Center also help foster an inclusive and empowering environment. These groups provide events, mentoring, and advocacy opportunities centered on women’s issues. This year’s incoming class is 59% women.
“The 2025 Empowering Women winners know that advancing women in the workplace makes good business sense. These organizations demonstrate how hiring and recruiting women benefit their businesses and the community,” said Suzanne Fischer-Huettner, managing director of BridgeTower Media/The Daily Record, when the winners were announced in August. “We at The Daily Record congratulate this year’s honorees for their ongoing commitment to women leaders in Maryland.”
The award will be presented at The Daily Record’s Women’s Leadership Summit, hosted by the University of Maryland, Baltimore, on Oct. 30. Winners will be profiled in a special magazine that will be inserted into the Oct. 31 issue of The Daily Record.