Josh Nolan Named Vice President, General Counsel, and Secretary at Oberlin

Josh Nolan, a respected higher-education attorney who has served as Oberlin College and Conservatory’s interim General Counsel since July, has been appointed to the permanent position of Vice President, General Counsel, and Secretary. He will assume the role on January 1.

The Vice President, General Counsel, and Secretary is a key member of Oberlin President Carmen Twillie Ambar’s Executive Leadership Team. As Vice President and General Counsel, Nolan will serve as Oberlin’s chief legal officer and liaison to the Board of Trustees. As Secretary, he will represent the Board in legal matters and serve as a Board liaison when that body conducts business.  

Nolan joins Oberlin following a nine-year tenure at the prominent law firm Bricker Graydon LLP, where he has served as the co-chair of the higher education practice group and has been a partner since 2019. During his time at Bricker Graydon, Nolan was respected for his extensive expertise in higher-education law and for advising on complex legal and regulatory matters, including transformative transactions, Title IX, privacy compliance, accreditation, and student mental-health interventions.

Prior to his interim work with Oberlin over the past five-plus months, he also served as Oberlin’s interim General Counsel in 2021 and 2022—a critical period, as campuses everywhere navigated the transition out of the COVID-19 pandemic. He has provided legal guidance to Oberlin on multiple other occasions spanning a number of years as well.

“Through Josh’s extensive work with Oberlin, he has clearly demonstrated that he is the ideal person to fulfill this vital role on our campus,” says President Ambar. “Josh truly understands Oberlin inside and out: our mission, our people, and our commitment to being responsible stewards of this institution’s remarkable legacy as we approach the dawn of its third century. 

“Josh stood head and shoulders above a nationwide pool of candidates for this position, and I am thrilled to welcome him to our leadership team.”

Before joining Bricker Graydon, Nolan practiced with the Akron-based firm Buckingham, Doolittle & Burroughs. Early in his career, he worked in student affairs at Allegheny College for 10 years, including as its student conduct officer. He is an active member of the National Association of College and University Attorneys and has worked with nearly 100 colleges and universities across the country on higher education risk management and legal issues. 

"I am excited and honored to join the Oberlin College community, a haven for intellectual rigor, musical excellence, transformative relationships, and empathetic leadership,” Nolan says. “I am thankful to President Ambar for providing me the opportunity to partner with passionate students, exceptional colleagues, and the Board of Trustees in advancing Oberlin’s mission of providing access to a world-class education.”

Nolan graduated from Boston College. He earned a master’s degree at Indiana University and a JD from the University of Akron. He resides in Medina with his wife and two teenage children.

Media inquiries: Please contact Andrea Simakis, Director of Media Relations, at asimakis@oberlin.edu.