February 2003

For the past two years, Diana Riveira Rangoussis has been working for the National District Attorneys Association (NDAA) located in Alexandria, Virginia. She is the Curriculum Director for the NDAA's National Advocacy Center, located in Columbia, South Carolina. The center offers continuing education courses on a wide-array of topics, such as jury selection, arson, cross-examination, and DNA Evidence, for state and local prosecutors from around the country.

In addition to overseeing the existing programs, Diana is responsible for developing and implementing new courses at the center. "What I love about this job is that it's a blank slate. We're constantly assessing the needs of the legal community and designing programs to fill those needs." One look at the recent course offerings reveals just how timely the center's curriculum is. Over the past couple of years, Diana has introduced new courses on terrorism, courtroom technology, cybercrime (beginner computer forensics and advanced trial advocacy), and a course exploring the prosecutor's relationship with the media.

Diana says there are days that her job makes her nostalgic for her first job out of law school as a prosecutor in the Miami-Dade State Attorney's Office. Diana was in the position for three years. During this time she was responsible for prosecuting, among other serious felonies, domestic violence cases in one of the first dedicated Domestic Violence Courts in the country, established by Janet Reno. "Clearly there are countless professional arenas that seek to employ individuals with law degrees, however I strongly encourage recent UM graduates to seriously consider getting a couple years of experience in a courtroom. It is eye-opening, rewarding work."

Before coming to the NDAA, Diana managed the Violence Against Women Unit at the American Prosecutors Research Institute (APRI) where she continued to specialize in the areas of domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking, and cyberstalking. Over the past few years, she has also had the honor of being published five times on the topics of sexual assault and stalking.

Diana was born in Cuba. Her family immigrated to Spain when she was three years old and when she was seven, her family moved to Miami. As an undergraduate student at the University of Miami, Diana was a trailblazer. She earned her B.A. in 3 1/2 years with a dual major in French and political science. In law school she was a member of the Moot Court Board, the Sports and Entertainment Law Review, and the Environmental Law Society. "I think what made UM Law such a wonderful experience was the diversity of the student body. The daily exposure, inside and outside the classroom, to a collection of different backgrounds was an invaluable preparation for the diversity that I have encountered in my career."

Diana is married to Frank Rangoussis, who is also an attorney. They have two children, Katherine and Annette, and they are expecting their third child in June.