Helping Students Discover Themselves | Alumna Jo-Ann M. Verrier DC’80

For Jo-Ann Verrier DC’80, Douglass was where she learned to become a truly engaged student. Mentors like professors Mary Hartman, before she was dean, and Maurice Lee encouraged her to excel and view herself as a serious participant in society. Jo-Ann now passes along these lessons to the Douglass women of today.

Graduating from Douglass with a degree in history, Jo-Ann pursued a Juris Doctor at the University of Pennsylvania Law School and later received a Master of Science in Education from the University’s Graduate School of Education. She is currently the Vice Dean for Administrative Services at the University of Pennsylvania Law School.

“When I was a student, I was very torn between a career in academia and a career in law,” she said. “Douglass gave me the room and space to explore my interests. It’s interesting to me that I ended up on a path that combines both.”

Jo-Ann wanted to give current students the opportunity to explore their interests, and so she decided to participate as a site mentor in the Douglass Externship Experience. Site mentors host Douglass students at their company for one or two weeks, giving students a close look at their given profession.

“I have the good fortune of letting students participate in the life of a law school,” she said. “Our externs receive two benefits: they are able to work on a serious project for the university, and they also get to attend some classes and interact with faculty.”

Jo-Ann said the school embraces each student’s abilities, giving them constructive projects like reviewing the program’s website alongside other law schools. The students are then tasked with preparing a report for senior leadership to present their findings.

“For the students, they get the experience of completing research applicable to a profession and receiving feedback on the quality of their work and presentation.”

In addition to her work at the University of Pennsylvania, Jo-Ann serves as a Special Master in the NFL concussion case. This opportunity came about thanks to her relationship with the Honorable Anita B. Brody, for whom she first worked after completing law school. Judge Brody continues to teach Jo-Ann many lessons, including the importance of networking and staying in touch with colleagues—a lesson she shares with her externs to this day.

“I’ve stayed in touch with many of my externs. Right now, a former extern is starting her second year at Penn Law and is completing research with a faculty member on the Puerto Rico credit crisis.”

Overall, Jo-Ann strives to pass along the wisdom she learned during her time at Douglass and beyond.

“I’ve always enjoyed the young women I’ve met over the years, and the externships gives me an opportunity to give them that same seriousness of purpose I learned at Douglass.”