AFTER 30 YEARS, PROFESSOR SANDLER HAS CHANGED LIVES AND SET THE COURSE FOR MANY OF HIS STUDENTS TO GO ON AND MAKE A DIFFERENCE.

By: Payten Little  |  August 19, 2020

Professor Len Sandler’s portrait was set to be finished and unveiled in the Spring of 2020; however, in the midst of Covid-19 temporarily closing Iowa Law’s doors, his in-person unveiling had to wait. 

“Len joined the faculty in 1990, meaning that he now has made 30 years of investments in our community, and he has not slowed down,” Dean Washburn said. “It is hard to honor Len adequately for his long service to the College of Law, but the portrait does him justice.”

The portraits lining the corridor at Boyd Law Building represent a long standing tradition dedicated to those who devote their lives to teaching law school. Faculty who have taught law for 25 or more years - 15 of those years being at Iowa - have the opportunity to have their portrait painted if they wish. 

Professor Sandler’s portrait will hang among many esteemed colleagues like Dean Adrien Wing and Professor Emeritus William Buss. 

“I am so grateful to all of you for cajoling me to sit for the portrait, literally, and sponsoring the portrait, most especially artist deluxe Peter Thompson, Marvin D. Cone Professor of Art, Coe College,” Professor Sandler said. 

From his work examining the discrimination that transgender individuals have experienced both in Iowa and across the country to the award-winning community-based initiatives his law and policy in action clinic have created, Professor Sandler continues to devote his time and work to bettering the community. 

“Guided by his strong values related to inclusivity, he and his students have been powerful agents of change in matters across Iowa,” Dean Washburn said. “I daresay that no one has been more committed to engaging students in serving Iowa’s communities, and his students have made a difference in the lives of many Iowans. We are lucky that he continues to serve Iowa Law.” 

After 30 years, Professor Sandler has changed lives and set the course for many of his students to go on and make a difference all over the state of Iowa. 

One of those students is Nicholas J. Wilson. “Prof. Sandler is a zealous advocate whose passion to teach and shape the minds of future lawyers is matched only by his dedication to community and judicial progress,” Wilson said. “It was my privilege to learn from and work with him in the Law and Policy in Action Clinic. I congratulate him on 30 years of service to the University of Iowa College of Law, the State of Iowa, and importantly, the ripples of change he’s sparked through his many students along the way.”

Payten Little is the Assistant to Social Media for the College of Law in External Relations. She majors in Journalism and Creative writing and will graduate from the University of Iowa in December 2020. When she’s not drafting social content or editing web content, she’s writing articles for HerCampus at Iowa.