Changing Ward.

Cheryl Ward, a former top official at the Los Angeles City Attorney's Office, has been named interim dean of the University of West Los Angeles' School of Law.

At the City Attorney's Office, Ward served as chief of the criminal branch operations, supervisor of the trial division and assistant manager of the civil liability division. In 1998, Ward served as special counsel to former Los Angeles Police Chief Bernard Parks. In 2001, she became managing assistant of the police general counsel at the City Attorney's Office.

Most recently, Ward was one of several lawyers at the City Attorney's Office who advised airport police on homeland security and other federal issues. She retired last year.

At the University of West Los Angeles, Ward replaces Anne Arvin, who will become a faculty member and accreditation liaison. The law school, which was sanctioned by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges in 1999, has been working to improve its accreditation status over the past several years.