Erica Smith is the Associate Dean of Student Services at Maryland Carey Law. Dean Smith works closely with the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs on strategic planning, coordination, and implementation related to various academic issues, administrative matters relating to students, and programming initiatives. Dean Smith serves as a strategic partner to School of Law leadership for matters concerning students and serves as the School of Law’s representative in campus-wide student affairs initiatives, related programming, and policy deliberations. Dean Smith is responsible for the effective delivery of a range of services and programmatic support to law students and provides oversight to the Director of Student Affairs, the Director of Registration & Enrollment, and the School’s Manager of Financial Planning, to manage and facilitate delivery of high-quality student services.

Prior to joining Maryland Carey Law, Dean Smith was the Associate Dean of Students at UDC Law where she oversaw the development, implementation, and maintenance of comprehensive student programming related to student retention, career and professional development, professional and health related counseling, and character and fitness for bar admission for students in the Day and Evening Programs. Dean Smith maintained regular communication with all matriculating students; routinely surveying and evaluating the quality and breadth of services essential to retention and successful matriculation.  Dean Smith served as the primary liaison with the University’s Accessibility Resource Center to ensure that reasonable accommodations were provided to qualified students as mandated by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). In addition, Dean Smith supervised the Director and Assistant Director of the Career and Professional Development Office; and oversaw all programming out of that office.

Prior to joining UDC Law, Dean Smith held numerous positions at the University of Maryland, College Park including Assistant Clinical Professor for University Honors, Associate Director of College Park Scholars’ Justice and Legal Thought Program, Lecturer for the School of Public Policy, Lecturer for the Department of English, Lecturer for the Office of Extended Studies, and Facilitator for the Words of Engagement Intergroup Dialogue Program.

Prior to joining UMD, Dean Smith was the Assistant Director of J.D. Admissions at Georgetown University Law Center where she assisted in the development and implementation of programs for student outreach, recruitment, and admissions. In addition to evaluating applications and making recommendations regarding the admission of individual applicants to the Admissions Committee, Dean Smith managed the day-to-day operations of the Alumni Admissions Interview Program which comprised 800+ volunteer alumni conducting more than 1,025 interviews of first-year J.D. applicants annually in 36 states and 15 countries.

A member of the District of Columbia Bar and the State Bar of California, Dean Smith has practiced law as an associate in the business trial practice group of Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton LLP in Los Angeles, CA and as a litigation associate at Wilson, Elser, Moskowitz, Edelman & Dicker LLP in Washington, D.C.