Eboni Nelson takes the reins as dean of the University of Connecticut School of Law in the midst of a global pandemic and during a time of social upheaval, especially in the wake of the May 25 killing of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police.

Nelson, who became the law school’s 18th dean in its 99-year history on July 31, said her immediate short-term goals is addressing the fallout of the COVID-19 crisis head-on as the school prepares to go online.