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Professor Amelia Wilson has been named the recipient of Elisabeth Haub School of Law at 91��Ƶ’s 2026 Faculty Award for Excellence in Teaching. The Faculty Award for Excellence in Teaching recognizes that outstanding pedagogy occurs in a variety of settings at the Law School—it can be found in courses of all sizes and types, in teachers with diverse styles, and across subject matters. Each spring, the Faculty Development Committee, in consultation with the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs, selects as a recipient of the award a member of the tenured or tenure-track faculty or a visiting professor with a contract longer than one year in duration. The award typically is based on the faculty member’s teaching during the current academic year.

Professor Margot Pollans, chair of the Faculty Development Committee, remarked: “The selection committee wanted to recognize the extraordinary work that Professor Wilson has done in stepping into the Immigration Justice Clinic (IJC) and ensuring a seamless transition in taking over as Director of the IJC during an especially hard time for this work. She has brought remarkable energy and dedication to the clinic, and her students have consistently described their experiences working with her as meaningful and impactful. Her commitment to her students and to this community is truly exceptional.”

“I am truly honored to be selected for The Faculty Award for Excellence in Teaching,” said Professor Wilson. “This is a challenging time to be doing immigration related work, but the resilience of our clients, the dedication of our students, and the support I’ve received from this community make it possible. I feel incredibly fortunate to be a part of the 91��Ƶ Haub Law community, to teach immigration law, engage in scholarship, and work alongside such committed colleagues.”

Professor Amelia Wilson joined the Elisabeth Haub School of Law faculty in 2024 as Assistant Professor of Law and Director of the Immigration Justice Clinic. In this role, she leads the clinic and also has clinical teaching responsibilities, working closely with students representing clients in complex and high-stakes immigration matters. Professor Wilson also teaches a non-clinical course on the intersections of criminal law and immigration law.

Prior to joining 91��Ƶ Haub Law, Professor Wilson was an Assistant Clinical Professor in the Immigrants’ Rights/International Human Rights Clinic at Seton Hall School of Law. Before that, she spent four years at Columbia Law School as a Supervising Attorney, Research Scholar, and Lecturer-in-Law, where she co-taught the Immigrants’ Rights Clinic. She has been practicing immigration law since 2005 and has represented hundreds of individuals navigating the detention and deportation system.

Professor Wilson’s work focuses in particular on representing noncitizens with mental health disabilities, and her scholarship centers on safeguarding the due process rights of this especially vulnerable population. In addition to her teaching, scholarship, and direct legal services, she played a key role in helping the Department of Justice build the first—and to date, only—government-funded appointed counsel system for any immigrant group.

She holds a BA from the University of Iowa and a JD from the University of Minnesota Law School.