Seth F. Gilbertson is an Associate Counsel with the State University of New York’s Office of General Counsel. Currently, Seth serves as labor and student affairs counsel for Upstate Medical University in Syracuse. Before joining SUNY, Mr. Gilbertson clerked for the New York State Supreme Court,
Appellate Division, Third Judicial Department. Prior to entering the legal profession, Seth was the Mountain Manager of Apple Mountain Resort in Freeland, Michigan while earning his B.A. from Saginaw Valley State University. He earned his J.D. from Albany Law School, where he served as Editor-in-Chief of the Albany Law Review. Since his first year of law school, when he clerked for its publications division, Seth has been active in the New York State Bar Association. He currently serves on the Law, Youth and Citizenship Committee and its Mock Trial Subcommittee, which runs a statewide mock trial competition for high school students across New York.
During his first nine years as a member of NACUA, Seth has been a frequent speaker and/or moderator for Annual Conference sessions on e-discovery, labor, and international programs and he has presented a virtual seminar on study abroad issues. Seth began his committee service as a member of the Committee on Legal Education and then on the NACUANOTES Editorial Board, where he served as a member, Vice-Chair, and Chair. He went on to co-lead NACUA’s first international programs track for the Committee on Program for the Annual Conference. Currently, he sits on the Editorial Board of The
Journal of College and University Law and is a member of the Committee on Strategic Planning. In addition to his NACUA activities, Seth regularly speaks at higher education conferences, such as Educause, Legal Issues in Higher Education, and the Society of Corporate Compliance and Ethics. He is the author of two NACUANOTES, a law review article on the New Hampshire Supreme Court, and a chapter of an American Bar Association book on Town-Gown issues.
His NACUA colleagues specifically noted his ongoing devotion to the success of NACUANOTES, in leading the NACUANOTES Editorial Board and in reviewing, commenting on, and suggesting possible edits to many draft NACUANOTES. NACUA is pleased to recognize Seth F. Gilbertson as a recipient of this year’s First Decade Award for his outstanding service to the Association and to the practice of higher education law during his first ten years of membership.