Admissions chief Rita Jones Simpson is on to the next chapter. For the 2,600 students who’ve enrolled at BC Law over the past decade, the presence of Simpson in the Admissions Office is a familiar one. This June she retired after ten years as assistant dean for admissions and financial aid and nine previous years as associate director.
Simpson was the person at 1L orientation who had scoured all the incoming class’s files for interesting nuggests of information. “One of you headed a music department at a private school,” she might say in her welcoming speech, “one of you was a commercial fisherman,” or “one of you is a filmmaker.” It helped break the ice among the newcomers and made them curious about one another, Simpson says.
In the past ten years alone, 59,059 applications have crossed Simpson’s desk. She feels honored. “I’m happy for the opportunity to give someone else the chance I’ve had to do the work I’ve loved so much,” she says.
“Shaping an incoming class that best represents the unique nature of this institution is a mixture of both art and science,” says Dean Vincent Rougeau. “Without question, Rita was the right person for the job.”