Nancy J. Knauer is the Sheller Professor of Public Interest Law and the Director of the Temple Law & Public Policy Program. She teaches in the areas of Law and Public Policy, Political and Civil Rights, Property, and Taxation. Professor Knauer has received numerous awards for teaching, service, and scholarship.
An internationally recognized scholar, Professor Knauer’s scholarship focuses on the intersection of law, policy, and politics, with an emphasis on civil rights and democratic institutions. She is a subject matter expert in LGBTQ rights, health law, disaster law, property law, taxation, and law and aging. Professor Knauer is the co-editor of the 40-chapter interdisciplinary and international Research Handbook on Law, Society and Ageing (forthcoming 2024). She is also the author of more than fifty academic articles, books, and book chapters, including the book Gay and Lesbian Elders: History, Law, and Identity Politics in the US (2011). Her article LGBT Elder Law: Toward Equity in Aging (32 Harvard Journal of Law & Gender 1 (2009)) received both the Dukeminier Award and the Stu Walker Prize from the Williams Institute at the UCLA School of Law in 2010.
In 2012, Professor Knauer created the Temple Law & Public Policy (L&PP) Program where students study at the intersection of law, policy, and politics. Based in Washington, D.C. and Philadelphia, the L&PP Program combines theory, practice, and professionalism and allows students to gain experience with policy making on the federal, state, and local levels. Professor Knauer’s innovative approach to legal education earned a profile in the book What the Best Law Teachers Do, published by Harvard University Press in 2013. The book featured 26 law professors who were selected from more than 250 nominees teaching at over 100 law schools.
Professor Knauer is the co-founder of the Aging, Law & Society Collaborative Research Network of the Law & Society Association and served on the Executive Committee of the Family Law Institute of the National LGBT Association.
Education
Research & Teaching Areas
Areas of Expertise
Selected Publications
Publications and Media Appearances SSRNAwards and Recognition
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What the Best Law Teachers Do (subject of study) (2013) -
Outstanding University Faculty Service Award (2012) -
Dukeminier Award (2010) awarded for best article on sexual orientation and gender identity law: LGBT Elder Law: Toward Equity in Aging, 32 Harvard Journal of Law & Gender 1 (2009) -
Stu Walter Prize (2010) awarded for outstanding scholarship in the field of sexual orientation and gender identity: LGBT Elder Law: Toward Equity in Aging, 32 Harvard Journal of Law & Gender 1 (2009) -
Friel-Scanlan Award for Outstanding Scholarship (2004) awarded for Science, Identity, and the Construction of the Gay Political Narrative, 12 LAW & SEXUALITY 1 (2003)
Leadership
- Co-founder and Organizer, Aging, Law, and Society Collaborative Research Network (CRN), Law and Society Association, 2012
- Member, Executive Committee, Aging, Law, and Society Collaborative Research Network (CRN), Law and Society Association, 2013-present
- Chair, Program Committee, Aging, Law, and Society Collaborative Research Network (CRN), Law and Society Association, 2013-present
- Member, Executive Committee, Family Law Institute, National LGBT Bar Association, 2012-present
- Peer Reviewer, The Journal of Homosexuality, 2011-present
- Member, Community Property Comment Project, American Bar Association, Section on Taxation, Committee on Teaching Taxation, 2010-2012
- Scholar/Advisor, “Should Same-Sex Couples Have the Right to Marry?”, National Constitution Center, 2009-2010
- Member, Fox Chase Cancer Center Development Advisory Board, 1991-2002
- Board Member, ACLU Foundation of Pennsylvania, 1993-1995
- Secretary/Treasurer, AIDS Law Project of Pennsylvania, 1989-1993
- President, Knauer Foundation for Historic Preservation, 1987-present