News & Events
Pioneering Family Court Judge Named First Distinguished Lecturer
Most people consider themselves lucky if they find one profession that they love. Sara Schechter considers herself very fortunate to be able to successfully pursue two -- law and education – sometimes simultaneously. And New York City College of Technology (City Tech), by appointing her its first full-time distinguished lecturer this fall, is the beneficiary of her decades of experience as a family court judge and a teacher.
“My greatest strength as a judge and professor is my absolute fascination with people,” explains Schechter, who is teaching in the College’s Department of Law & Paralegal Studies. “I’m a people person and love interacting with them. As a judge, I had to get into people’s lives and become part of their lives. And they, in turn, became part of my life. It’s really the same way with my students at City Tech. I learn at least as much from them as they learn from me.”
The borough of Brooklyn holds special significance for Schechter, who served on the Brooklyn Family Court bench at three different times in her 25-year career as a New York State judge, with the longest stretch being from 1987 to 1996. In addition, for 20 years, she taught one course as an adjunct at City Tech, often just down the block from her court room.
“I feel like Brooklyn is the real New York and have always loved its diversity, especially the newly-arrived immigrants who came here to make their way in the world,” she explains. “That diversity was very prominent in Family Court, with the women in their indigenous clothing, and it’s also present at City Tech.”
Besides serving on the bench, Schechter played a pivotal role in the systemic reform of Family Court as the presiding judge of Model Court, a federally-funded State Court Improvement Project, and as chairperson of the Family Court Advisory and Rules Committee.
“Model Court changed the way judges think about cases,” she said. “We achieved our goals of eliminating unnecessary court delays while at the same time giving families fuller opportunity to be heard and a much greater likelihood of receiving services in a timely fashion.”
She is also proud of her contributions as a participant in New York’s first-ever Child Welfare Roundtable in 2004 (and follow-up one year later), convened by New York State Chief Judge Judith Kaye. The efforts of these roundtables, which included all of the stakeholders in the child welfare system working collaboratively, led to the passage of historic legislation (S5805, also known as the Permanency Bill) that comprehensively reformed the provisions of the law governing court processes for children placed into foster care.
These accomplishments -- which, among other goals, served to tighten up the timeframe for children who are removed from their homes to be permanently placed, either back with their biological family or in an adoptive family -- have a special resonance with Schechter.
As a child growing up in Central Florida, she was in foster care for a year and a half before she was adopted. In that 18-month period, she was moved several times. Her experience demonstrated to her how important it is to quickly yet sensitively ensure that a child is permanently placed and how crucial a child’s extended family can be in attaining this goal.
Her childhood experience colors what she sees as her greatest achievements as a judge. “Everyone’s case is important and every human life that I had anything to do with mattered to me,” she explains. “Model Court and the Permanency Bill positively impacted on millions of people during my time as judge and I consider each of these cases a greatest achievement.”
Schechter, who earned a bachelor’s degree from Barnard College and law degree from New York University, was an English major as an undergraduate. During her junior year at Barnard she had to decide whether she was going to be a professor or lawyer.
“When I looked at my debt for student loans, I decided to choose law,” she explains. “In those days, the sixties, being a lawyer meant being a social activist, being able to change the world, and that was attractive to me, as well.”
Before becoming a Family Court judge, she was a staff attorney and, later, Assistant General Counsel for New York City’s Human Resources Administration. In that capacity, she received good training for her future stint on the Family Court bench by supervising the City’s permanency planning litigation and commenting on pending legislation.
Even as a judge, Schechter had her hand in teaching; she was a regular presenter in training programs for the Unified Court System and other providers of continuing legal and social work education. Virtually every new Family Court judge in New York State and many attorneys were trained by her during her time on the bench.
Schechter is the author of a textbook, New York Family Law, now in its second edition, published by West/Thomson Publishing Company, which is widely used on college campuses.
With her background and professional interests, it’s not surprising that at City Tech Schechter is teaching courses in both the Law & Paralegal Studies and the English departments. “My strength has always been my ability to teach, and I’m very happy to be here at City Tech on a full-time basis,” she says.
11.18.08
