Michael S. Wald is the Jackson Eli Reynolds Professor of Law, Emeritus. Deeply devoted to the cause of children’s rights and welfare and a frequent expert advisor on youth and children’s legal issues nationwide, Professor Wald, who has been a member of the SLS faculty since 1967, has had a distinguished career as an academic researcher, teacher, and public official. He is one of the leading national authorities on legal policy toward children, and he drafted the American Bar Association’s Standards Related to Child Abuse and Neglect, as well as major federal and state legislation regarding child welfare.
Professor Wald has served as deputy general counsel for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, executive director of the San Francisco Department of Human Services, and senior advisor to the president of the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation. He is currently a member of a National Academy of Sciences Committee on Parenting and the San Francisco Our Children Our Families Council.
He earned his B.A. from Cornell University in, M.A. from Yale University Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, and his LL.B. from Yale Law.