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Lara Schwartz Professorial Lecturer Department of Government

Contact
Send email to Lara Schwartz
(202) 885-6682 (Office)
SPA - Government
Kerwin Hall - 241
Tuesdays 2:30-5:30pm
Additional Positions at AU
Director, Project on Civil Discourse
SPA Honors Program Director
Degrees
AB, English and American Literature, Brown University 1993 JD, Harvard Law School 1998

Languages Spoken
English and Legalese
Favorite Spot on Campus
Garden behind Kay
Favorite Place in Washington DC
In the shade
Book Currently Reading
Julie Schumacher, the Shakespeare Requirement
Bio
Lara Schwartz specializes in civil discourse and campus speech, constitutional law, civil rights, politics, communications, and policy. Drawing on her experience as a legislative lawyer, lobbyist, and communications strategist in leading civil rights organizations, Lara brings an advocate’s-eye view to her teaching. Prior to joining the SPA faculty, Lara served as Director of Strategic Engagement at the American Constitution Society for Law & Policy. Previously she served as Courts Matter director at Media Matters, Legal Director at the Human Rights Campaign, and Vice President of External Affairs at the American Association of People with Disabilities. Lara worked in litigation at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher, and Flom and Gilbert, Heintz, and Randolph. She also served as a law clerk to Judge Ronald Lee Gilman on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit. Lara has appeared on national and local radio and television programs and written op-eds published in national papers and local papers of record.

Twitter Profile

See Also
AU Project on Civil Discourse
Listen to Lara on The Kojo Nnamdi Show
For the Media
To request an interview for a news story, call AU Communications at 202-885-5950 or submit a request.

Scholarly, Creative & Professional Activities

Media Appearances

 
  • Kojo Nnamdi Show November 20, 2018: Belonging, Civility, Ugh: What Happens When Commonly Held Ideals Backfire https://thekojonnamdishow.org/shows/2018-11-20/belonging-civility-ugh-what-happens-when-commonly-held-ideals-backfire 
  • Vice News October 29, 2018 These are Some of the Most Racist Political Ads of 2018
  • Globe And Mail October 26, 2018 Two more suspicious packages found Friday as FBI chases bomb leads to Florida, Trump rails against media 
  • Insight into Diversity October 15 2018, Bridging the Partisan Divide 
  • Wall Street Journal August 15, 2018 New Topic on Campus: Civil Discourse 101

Honors, Awards, and Fellowships

Faculty Fellow, Center for Teaching, Research, and Learning 2018-2019

Outstanding Teaching in a School of Public Affairs Term Faculty Appointment 2016

Selected Publications

  • "Civil Discourse in the Classroom."  Academe Magazine Winter 2019 (with Daniel Ritter)
  • "Advocates of Dignity Can Do Better Than Death."  Savannah Law Review, Spring 2016.
  • "Area Man Supports Garland Nomination?" -With John Burns, SPA 2016, ACS Blog
  • “No Forsaking our Core Principles.” Legal Times, May 26, 2008.
  • "Straight Talk about Hate Crimes Bills: Anti-Gay, Anti-Transgender Bias Stalls Federal Hate Crimes Legislation," Georgetown Journal of Gender & the Law 7, 2006, p. 171-186.
  • Dozens of ghost-written op eds.
  • Huffington Post Archive: https://www.huffingtonpost.com/author/lara-schwartz 
  • Media Matters Archive:  https://www.mediamatters.org/authors/lara-schwartz/208 

Films/Documentaries

Congressional Testimony

  • House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, Subcommittee on Federal Workforce, Postal Service, and District of Columbia. “Ensuring a merit-based employment system: an examination of the Merit Systems Protection Board and the Office of Special Counsel.”  July 12, 2007.

Professional Certifications

  • Member (inactive) of the bars of the District of Columbia, Maryland, and the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth and Fourth Circuits.

AU Experts

Area of Expertise

Civility and civil discourse; free speech on college campuses; judicial nominations; LGBT rights; disability rights

Additional Information

Lara Schwartz teaches in the Department of Government and is the Director of the Project on Civil Discourse. Prior to joining the SPA faculty, she served as Director of Strategic Engagement at the American Constitution Society for Law & Policy; Courts Matter director at Media Matters, Legal Director at the Human Rights Campaign; and Vice President of External Affairs at the American Association of People with Disabilities. Prof. Schwartz has appeared on national and local radio and television programs the Diane Rehm Show, C-Span Washington Journal, the Kojo Nnamdi Show, and CNN. As a ghost-writer, she has published dozens of op-eds in papers of record such as the Boston Globe, Cleveland Plain Dealer, Hartford Courant, Los Angeles Times, among others. Under her own byline, she has published in legal journals such as the Georgetown Journal of Gender and the Law and the Savannah Law Review. In addition to publications such as the DC Legal Times, and Huffington Post, she has been a guest blogger for the blogs of the American Constitution Society and the American Association of University Professors.

For the Media

To request an interview for a news story, call AU Communications at 202-885-5950 or submit a request.

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