April 3, 1997 Contact Maureen Shine (541) 346-3145 EUGENE--Rennard Strickland, renowned Native American legal scholar and Oklahoma City University law dean, will become dean of the University of Oregon School of Law on July 1. UO President Dave Frohnmayer announced Strickland's selection Thursday, April 3. "We are extremely pleased to have attracted a legal scholar and educator of Rennard Strickland's stature," said Frohnmayer. "His breadth of experience makes him a superb choice to lead the UO law school into the 21st century." Strickland, 56, will replace Charles O'Kelley who took over leadership of the 450-student law school in 1994 when Frohnmayer, then dean, became UO president. O'Kelley was not a candidate to continue as dean. The salary for the 12-month appointment is $130,000. Strickland also will become a Knight professor of law and as such will receive annually an additional amount of $20,000 for salary and $20,000 to support his continuing scholarly work and the law school's needs. The announcement of Strickland's selection concludes a nationwide search that began in May 1996. James Mohr, professor and head of the UO Department of History, chaired the search committee that included representatives from UO law faculty and students as well as members of the state's legal profession. "Rennard Strickland will be a tremendous asset to the School of Law and the entire university community," said John Moseley, provost and vice president for academic affairs. "He is a skilled administrator and an accomplished scholar who will help move the law school into a new level of excellence. I want to commend the search committee and the law faculty for identifying such an outstanding person to succeed O'Kelley and Frohnmayer." "I am deeply honored to have been selected and am excited about the possibilities," said Strickland. "I believe that all of the ingredients are present at the University of Oregon School of Law to create a model for legal education in the 21st century. We are poised to build on the school's strong and historic position of greatness." A legal historian of Osage and Cherokee heritage, Strickland is considered a pioneer in introducing Indian law into the university curriculum, having taught one of the first credited courses in Native American law offered at a U.S. law school. He is the author or editor of more than 35 books and is frequently cited by courts and scholars for his work as editor-in-chief of the revision of "The Handbook of Federal Indian Law." His most recent book, "Tonto's Revenge: Reflections on American Indian Policy and Culture," will be published in the fall by the University of New Mexico Press. Strickland was the founding director of the Center for the Study of American Indian Law and Policy at the University of Oklahoma, and the John W. Shleppey Research Professor of Law and History at the University of Tulsa, where he was acting law dean before becoming dean of the School of Law at Southern Illinois University. He has taught American Indian law as a visiting professor or member of the regular faculty at institutions including Harvard Law School and the universities of Washington, Wisconsin, New Mexico, Florida and Kansas. Strickland has been actively involved in the resolution of a number of significant Indian cases and issues including fishing rights, tribal constitutions, gaming, cross-deputization of tribal law enforcement officers and tribal court actions. As a member of the board of Oklahoma Indian Legal Services, he is a leader in working to provide access to legal services and chaired the initial review for the U.S. Department of the Interior of self-governance and tribal contract compacts. Strickland worked closely with tribes and museums in resolving conflicts over skeletal remains and sacred objects as a member of the American Association of Museums Task Force on Repatriation for Ceremonial Objects and Human Remains, and as an adviser to the Panel for National Dialogue on Museum Law and Native American Relations of the Center for Cross Cultural Communications. Strickland serves on the boards of trustees of the Law School Admission Council and of the Society of American Law Teachers and is a past president of the Association of American Law Schools. Past and current memberships include the American Bar Association (ABA), the Native American Arts Service Organization and the Smithsonian Institution planning committee for the National Indian Youth Leadership Congress. Among his honors and awards, Strickland received the ABA's 1997 Spirit of Excellence Award--the ABA's highest award for contributions to minorities in the legal profession. He was recognized in 1995 for outstanding achievement by the American Indian Heritage Center; received the Regents' Award for superior research and creative activity from the University of Oklahoma in 1994; and was cited in 1993 by the Cherokee National Historical Society for his contribution to the study of tribal history. Strickland received an award of excellence in 1982 from the Western Book Association for his work "A Trumpet of Our Own," as well as the 1978 Society of American Law Teachers annual SALT award for outstanding teaching and contribution to law reform. Strickland was born in Muskogee, Okla., earned his bachelor's degree from Northeastern State College, his master's degree from the University of Arkansas, and a doctor of laws degree, J.D., and a doctorate of science of jurisprudence, S.J.D., from the University of Virginia. A resident of Oklahoma City, he is a philanthropist and collector of American Indian Art. Strickland's gift of artwork to the Heard Museum in Phoenix, Ariz., was featured in the traveling exhibit "Shared Visions," which visited the Smithsonian and other major museums including the Portland Art Museum. -30- #O-4067/Local,PDX,OrDailies,OrLaw, LAW,special