Even then, Bollinger was an "exceptionally bright and energetic thinker," remembers Robert L. Palmer, who was Bollinger's classmate at Columbia and another editor at the law review.

According to Palmer, Bollinger's talents weren't just intellectual--his strong personal skills helped him interact comfortably with professors who submitted their work for consideration.

"He's a real analytical character who is also a very warm human being," Palmer says.

After graduating from Columbia, Bollinger catapulted to legal success, distinguishing himself as a law clerk for both Judge Wilfred Feinberg on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit and Chief Justice Warren Burger on the U.S. Supreme Court.

In 1973, he joined the faculty of the University of Michigan Law School. Fourteen years later he was named its dean.

Bollinger on Diversity

At Michigan's law school, Bollinger established himself as a diversity advocate, focusing on the treatment of the law school's minority students.

In a controversial decision, Bollinger banned the CIA and the FBI from recruiting at the law school. His decision followed court rulings which found that the FBI promotion policy discriminated against Hispanic students and that the CIA discriminated against students based on sexual orientation.