In this season of Thanksgiving, visionary business leader Joe Plumeri, establishes a new center to empower small business owners, including veterans, by providing them with essential legal and business development assistance through the Law School’s clinical program.
New York Law School has received a very generous foundational gift from global business leader Joseph J. Plumeri (H’15) to establish The Plumeri Center for Small Business Empowerment. November is the perfect time to announce this gift as we mark Thanksgiving, honor our nation’s Veterans, and celebrate “National Entrepreneurship Month,” “Veterans Small Business Week,” and “Small Business Saturday.”
This gift enables The Plumeri Center to use the power and breadth of the Law School’s clinics, faculty, students, alumni, and civic profile to provide substantial and meaningful legal and business assistance to strengthen New York’s small business and innovator/entrepreneur community. This financial support further cements Joe Plumeri as among the Law School’s largest benefactors in its 133-year history, as well as one of the most generous supporters of clinical legal education in the nation. His continued support furthers the School’s reach and helps more businesses thrive. Joe Plumeri serves on the School’s Board of Trustees.
In 2015, Joe Plumeri provided generous support to NYLS to build and operate an innovative facility with ground level access that co-located the Law School’s two dozen community-based and partner clinics in one location. Known as the Joe Plumeri Center for Social Justice and Economic Empowerment, the programs enhanced the visibility and accessibility of the School’s clinical services, allowing the faculty and students to serve a wider array of clients in need of legal counsel and representation and served as a role model emulated by other institutions around the country. Now, with this new gift, he is empowering NYLS to further differentiate itself by deepening and focusing the legal services NYLS provides to small business owners and entrepreneurs, including veterans and those from underserved communities. NYLS students will gain critical real world legal experience, and a much greater understanding of the essential role small businesses play in New York, and as a result, the national and global economies.
New York City has over 180,000 small businesses, which continue to open rapidly. Most of these businesses have fewer than six employees and nearly half are immigrant-owned. While a critical foundation to New York City’s economy, they usually do not have the resources to access legal representation and guidance that would help their businesses expand and thrive in the highly competitive, and highly regulated, market in New York. Four clinics will pursue the mission of the Plumeri Center, including the Small Business and Nonprofit Clinic, the United States Patent Office (USPTO) Patent Law Clinic and the Trademark Clinic, and the Veterans Justice Clinic. Each clinic works with a roster of diverse clients who need targeted legal assistance to form and strengthen their businesses, expand opportunities, and protect their ideas and innovations. The Plumeri Center will also establish a cutting-edge Gig Economy Project, focusing on helping both small business owners and the gig workers they increasingly rely upon to understand and navigate New York’s complex regulatory and policy environment.
The Center will also be a gateway to three of the Law School’s most powerful externship programs, where students are working on Wall Street, in New York City government agencies, and Washington D.C. firms and federal departments. In sum, the Plumeri Center offers a suite of cutting-edge leadership development and work experience programs that will prepare new generations of lawyers to make an immediate impact in their communities and on the economy.
Joe Plumeri, Founder, The Plumeri Center for Small Business Empowerment said: “Small businesses are core to a healthy economy. As someone who has mentored entrepreneurs, and helped inspire and invest in the success of small businesses for many decades, I am excited by the power and promise that the Plumeri Center will offer low-income entrepreneurs and innovators, including veterans and others from underserved communities, who seek to make their big dreams and ideas a reality. Providing law students the opportunity to serve these clients also helps us to build in the next generation of lawyers the skills and values needed for modern practice.”
Anthony W. Crowell, NYLS Dean and President said: “Joe Plumeri always tells our students and other future leaders to, ‘Go play in traffic and find out what is possible’. His self-made success, unparalleled generosity, and inspirational messages have resonated with our community for years. With our latest job placement report for the Class of 2023 showcasing 95% are employed, the foundation of that success is tied directly to Joe’s unmatched support throughout the past decade for our best-in-class clinical programs, which have graduated the type of practice-ready students who are greatly needed in our communities.”
The Plumeri Center and NYLS will be advised and guided by an advisory board of the most prominent leaders and advocates in the New York public sector, small business, and academic communities. The Advisory Board will also ensure that the legal services offered reach into the diverse communities and business sectors they represent. In addition to Joe Plumeri, who will serve as Chair, the inaugural members include:
- Susan Plumeri, Co-Founder, The Plumeri Center; Small Business Entrepreneur
- Anthony Crowell, Dean and President
- Lisa Bova-Hiatt, CEO, New York City Housing Authority
- Dynishal Gross, Commissioner, NYC Small Business Services
- Kim Hawkins, Dean for Clinical and Experiential Learning
- Seve Falati, Professor and Director of the NYLS Patent Clinic
- Leslie Abbey, CEO, Hot Bread Kitchen
- Wellington Chen, Executive Director, Chinatown Business Improvement District
- Paul Kelly, General Counsel, Brooklyn Navy Yard Development Corporation
- Andrew Rigie, Executive Director, NY Hospitality Alliance
- Jessica Walker, President & CEO, Manhattan Chamber of Commerce
- Fred Cerullo, President & CEO, Grand Central Partnership BID
- Joam Alisme ’14, Founder and Managing Attorney, Alisme Law LLC
Professor Jae Hyung Ryu, Director of the NYLS Small Business and Nonprofit Clinic, and NYLS Senior Fellow Christopher Bruno ’12, a nationally recognized expert in small business development, are also Advisory Board members and will work together to coordinate the work of the Advisory Board. Joe Plumeri is currently Executive Chairman of Selecta Group. He was a Senior Advisor to KKR and previous senior management roles include Vice Chairman of the First Data Board of Directors, as well as Chairman and CEO of Willis Group Holdings. Before joining Willis, Mr. Plumeri had a 32-year career, including as President of Citigroup and its predecessor companies. Mr. Plumeri is the author of “The Power of Being Yourself: A Game Plan for Success–by Putting Passion into Your Life and Work.” Mr. Plumeri attended New York Law School before joining investment banking.