Expanding student success in the legal field

“Women belong in all places where decisions are being made. It should not be that women are the exception.”

These poignant words from the late Ruth Bader Ginsburg, American lawyer and jurist, align with the work being done by many Spartan alumni who want to expand opportunities for students at Michigan State. Take René Roupinian, for example, who has a vision for expanding student success in the legal field.

“Women are quite prominent in the law now. Just look around any class at MSU Law and you can see that women know that the law is a profession where they can thrive,” she said. “But if you look closely at who leads firms and who is in the meetings that shape firms, women are significantly underrepresented.”

As a graduate of Michigan State University’s College of Law in 1994, Roupinian recently committed a $250,000 gift to support her alma mater. Her generous gift helps to fund the college’s assistant dean for professionalism, leadership and bar success, a newly appointed position aimed at developing professionalism and professional identity programming, improving bar passage rates and more for all students.

Ieisha Humphrey stepped into the role this summer ahead of the 2025-26 academic year and is eager to prepare students for the practice of law. Her work as assistant dean will involve co-designing curriculum to align with best practices for professional identity initiatives, including mentorship programs and experiential learning opportunities that integrate professionalism, leadership and career readiness.

Roupinian says her inspiration for giving back came in part from a student success initiative launched in 2023 by MSU’s Broad College of Business called the Dashney Women’s Leadership Accelerator. The donor-funded Accelerator is open to all Broad-admitted students and aims to propel business scholars toward the C-suite with professional development opportunities and coaching.

Roupinian’s gift in support of the assistant dean role will benefit all students at MSU Law by preparing them for their legal careers with high levels of professionalism and leadership.

“Supporting the assistant dean for professionalism, leadership and bar success is an important incremental step,” she said. “This will address the more immediate needs of the law school by helping our students and graduates, so they are much more prepared for life and work after law school including, of course, passing the bar exam.”

Roupinian is the founding partner at Raisner Roupinian LLP in New York, the nation’s only law firm dedicated to employees affected by mass layoffs and shutdowns. Her work has helped advance and shape the area of bankruptcy law and recovered more than $200 million in settlements and judgments.

“My parents divorced when I was an infant and my stepfather passed away when my sisters and I were young. So, we were raised by a single mother with a high school degree. She worked long hours managing a medical office to support her three daughters,” she explained. “A few years ago, I started the Joyce A. McCartney Memorial Philanthropic Fund in her honor. My great aunt, Geri Fiorello, who is about to be 103 years old, is a former Marine, drill instructor and a long-time educator and coach who championed what has become Title IX.”

Roupinian has carried the power of these women with her throughout her own career to make a significant impact for others. She has litigated more than 200 Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act cases and takes pride in educating, empowering and helping restore dignity and self-worth to thousands of clients and class members—while holding employers accountable.

“Our firm gives groups of employees a voice and an ability to fight back when the employer they trusted abruptly terminates them without the legally required notice. Often, with no advance notice at all,” she said. “When employees reach out to us for help, they’re vulnerable. They’ve lost their jobs and sometimes as importantly, their health insurance.”

Beyond her generous gift to MSU Law, Roupinian has been an active and dedicated alumna, previously serving on the college’s Alumni Association Board for many years. She also continues to cultivate a strong network of Spartans in New York through young alumni mentoring and events.

“Attending MSU Law—it was Detroit College of Law when I was there—was a formative time in my life,” she said. “It was the perfect place for me, a born and raised Detroiter, to begin my career in the law. I look back fondly on my days as a moot court brief writer and coach, collaborating, traveling and competing with my teams and my first-year classes, which were so scary to me then, but prepared me to think like a lawyer.

“I enjoy and see the merit in helping MSU Law students and graduates,” she continued. “I’m expecting that the new programming we’re collaborating on will keep me involved for a long time.”

As for advice for today’s Spartan Lawyers, Roupinian shared the same insight she uses to encourage her niece and nephew: “You do not need to have your future figured out. Just do your best so your opportunities are not limited by something within your control. Doing your best increases the possibilities available to you as you forge your own unique path.”