50 Making a Difference profile: Janet K. Levit, University of Tulsa

Journal Record, The (Oklahoma City), Sep 26, 2008

Personal and professional success rest on three basic principles: excellence, decency and community. These values are the bedrock from which I intend to build the best law school in the region." It's a bold statement, but Janet Levit is in a position to make it come true.

Her prestigious law career has included working for international and national firms, leading to her present post as dean and professor at the University of Tulsa College of Law. Under her watch, the college successfully completed a recent American Bar Association accreditation visit. Plus, it boasts the highest Oklahoma bar exam passage rates for February 2008 and has enrolled a first-year law class with the strongest academic profile in the college's history.

In addition to her dean's duties, Levit assisted the U.S. District Court in assessing candidates for the federal public defender position and served as chair for the Oklahoma Bar Association's International Law & Practice Section.

Levit graduated magna cum laude from Princeton University's Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs, was named Phi Beta Kappa, and went on to earn her law degree from Yale University, where she was a an articles editor for the Yale Journal of International Law. She earned her juris doctorate from Yale Law School, as well as her master's degree in international relations. Levit is a widely recognized scholar in the areas of international law, commercial law, human rights, contracts and administrative law. Prior to her TU position, she was associate general counsel for the Export-Import Bank of the United States (where she received its 1999 Meritorious Service Award) and for TradeCard Inc. At The University of Tulsa, she received the law school's 2006 Outstanding Upper Division Teaching Award.

"I have known Janet for 15 years, and she has consistently exhibited the highest standards of personal integrity, excellent leadership skills and dedication to family and community," said colleague and former TU College of Law Dean Robert Butkin. "She is not the kind of academic who secludes herself in an ivory tower. Having openly acknowledged the role which her mentors played in her life, she is actively engaged with fellow scholars here and at institutions around the world. She is rightfully considered by our students to be one of the most accessible and helpful members of the faculty. Yet despite the challenges of her profession, she is always there for her family, emotionally and spiritually."

Levit's involvement extends to her community, as well as academia. She has served on the board of directors of Tulsa Zoo Friends, as a committee member for the Jewish Federation of Tulsa's Holocaust Education Committee, as president of the Simon Estes Educational Foundation, as a patron chair of the American Alzheimer's Association's 13th annual Memory Gala in Tulsa, and as a board member for the Jewish day school Heritage Academy.

"From personal observation, I know that Janet's involvement in these organizations is not the casual involvement of a resume builder or social trophy collector, but rather is a genuine commitment of time and leadership that has played a transformative role in improving these organizations," Butkin said.

About Janet:

Birthplace: Evanston, Ill.

Spouse: Kenneth Levit (executive director, George Kaiser Family Foundation)

Children: Nathan, 10; Rebecca, 6

First Job: Law clerk, Honorable Stephanie K. Seymour, Chief Judge, 10th Circuit, U.S. Court of Appeals

Dream Job: Dean, University of Tulsa College of Law

Pets: Taps (Hamster)

Hobbies: Travel, exercise

Favorite type of food: Chocolate

Favorite type of music: Brazilian samba and Argentine tango

Favorite deal vacation spot: Crested Butte, Colo.