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Widener University Commonwealth Law School isn’t just adding new faces to the faculty this fall; it’s welcoming a powerhouse team of legal minds ready to shape the next generation of lawyers.

The four newest full-time faculty members—Rebecca Feldmann, D.S. Pensley, Chiara Pappalardo, and Michael D. O. Rusco—bring deep expertise in veterans law, environmental justice, federal Indian law, and legal writing, along with an unmistakable passion for mentorship and student success.

“We are delighted to welcome these four new professors who will come in and lift our students in their knowledge base, bar preparation, and through individualized mentoring,” said Dean andré douglas pond cummings. “Because each are so prolific in their experience, their connections are going to assist our students in gaining entry to employment areas like veterans protection, property and energy law, and the protection of Indigenous rights and peoples. We’re opening additional practice avenues to our students in exciting and crucial areas of the law.” 

Associate Professor of Law Rebecca Feldmann will teach Legal Methods and Veterans Law. She brings a standout record in clinical legal education and veterans advocacy. She previously directed the Veterans Legal Services Clinic at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock William H. Bowen School of Law, and has taught at Georgetown, Seton Hall, and Villanova. Feldmann began her legal career with Legal Services of Eastern Missouri, advocating for low-income individuals and families in immigration proceedings. Her scholarship centers on trauma-informed advocacy and access to justice.

Associate Professor Michael D. O. Rusco, a citizen of the Cherokee Nation, will teach Legal Methods, Sales, Federal Indian Law, among other relevant subjects. A scholar of American Indian Law with experience in federal policy and advocacy, Rusco most recently served on the faculty at Southern University Law Center. He is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin Law School and is a venerable “Hastie Fellow.”  Rusco’s arrival marks a potential expansion in the school’s curriculum on Indigenous Law.

Assistant Professor D.S. Pensley, who will teach Property I & II and Environmental Law, steps into a co-director role at the Environmental Law and Sustainability Center. Her legal career has ranged from positions in state and local government to advising tribes in Alaska and the Lower 48 on environmental and governance matters. A graduate of Cornell Law School, she also holds a master’s degree in Historic Preservation Planning. Pensley’s research focuses on progressive property, land contamination and forever chemicals, and tribal sovereignty.

Assistant Professor Chiara Pappalardo, who will co-direct the Environmental Law and Sustainability Center together with Pensley, adds a comparative and international legal perspective to the faculty. Originally trained and licensed to practice in Italy, in 2009 Pappalardo was a foreign associate at Fulbright & Jaworski LLP (now Norton, Rose, Fulbright) in Washington D.C. She holds two Masters of Laws from The George Washington University Law School and a Doctor of Juridical Science degree from Georgetown University Law Center. She has worked globally on energy, environmental, and human rights law, and is a former visiting research scholar and adjunct professor of law at American University, Washington College of Law. She will teach Property I & II and Climate Change Law, and continue to advance her research on legal barriers to sustainable innovation.

Dean cummings said the new hires reflect the law school’s national resonance.

“I would hold the quality of our incoming hiring class up to any law school in the United States,” he said. “These are extraordinary teachers, and several are already established national scholars. What energizes me most is that they’re deeply student-focused, and they will enhance the learning experience here in powerful ways.”

He also noted that the Environmental Law and Sustainability Center is poised for a new chapter following the retirement of founding director John Dernbach.

“D.S. Pensley and Chiara Pappalardo are well positioned to build on that legacy with their own energy, their own passion, and their own vision,” cummings said. “We have one of the leading environmental law centers in the nation, and with their leadership, it’s going to grow in exciting new directions.”

Pensley and Pappalardo issued a joint statement as co-directors.

“Professor John Dernbach has articulated a strong conceptual framework for why lawyers should adopt a sustainability lens as they counsel their clients,” they said. “Our aim is to build on John’s vision of what competent and ethical lawyering requires and expand the center’s reach by engaging students, practitioners, legislators and policymakers in Pennsylvania and beyond.”

As Widener Law Commonwealth looks to the academic year ahead, these four new faculty members bring more than impressive résumés. They’re here to help students build skills, grow their networks, and feel ready to take on the world of law.