Investing in Leadership, Inspiring Generations
How the Rodino Endowed Chair brings scholarship, mentorship, and real-world impact to Seton Hall Law.
Professor Paula Franzese
Endowed faculty ensure students receive the highest caliber of education, blending scholarship with mentorship. At Seton Hall Law, Professor Paula Franzese, the Peter W. Rodino Endowed Chair in Law, exemplifies this impact.
“When I first walked onto Seton Hall’s campus, I knew I had found a place that felt
like home,” she recalls. “Here was a community where excellence is practiced with
compassion, rooted in respect, generosity of spirit, and servant-leadership.” That
ethos, she explains, drives both her teaching and scholarship.
Endowed faculty blend scholarship with mentorship, shaping tomorrow’s leaders in law.
Her research focuses on housing law and the systemic ways the poor are excluded from safe, habitable homes. The Rodino endowment has enabled her to advance legislative reform, raise awareness of substandard housing, and amplify the voices of marginalized families facing mold, infestations, and unsafe conditions.
My work seeks to tell the stories of people living at the margins, reminding us that our common humanity speaks a single language.”
Franzese brings these lessons into the classroom, bridging theory and practice in ways that cultivate empathy alongside intellect. “My work seeks to tell the stories of people living at the margins, reminding us that our common humanity speaks a single language,” she says.
Endowed positions, she emphasizes, sustain groundbreaking research, enrich student learning, and ensure Seton Hall Law continues to attract faculty who inspire future leaders in the legal profession.
