The School of Law announced two new hires in the Office of Career Services Thursday, filling two vacancies that had arisen during the busiest time of year for the office.

Janet Hutchinson, who left the office in the spring to work in an Atlanta law firm, was appointed to succeed former Assistant Dean of Career Services Laurie Hartman, who resigned Tuesday after a brief leave of absence to pursue other career opportunities.

The law school also hired a new Career Services director, Laura Trayham, who will replace Wayne Fishell. Fishell stepped down in September to go on tour with his band and pursue music full-time.

Trayham worked at Emory briefly when she and several law students were displaced from Tulane University after Hurricane Katrina.

Fall is the time of year when students looking for summer work or first jobs are seeking advice and sending out résumés, students said.

“We want to make sure students get the support they need from Career Services,” Vice Dean Jim Hughes said.

Student Bar Association President Evan Cline said the SBA hopes to work with the new Career Services staff to meet the needs of students, especially those in the middle of the class who sometimes feel neglected.

Hutchinson is well known at Emory, Cline said, but not Trayham.

“Everyone’s really excited to meet her and find out what her connections are and see what she has to offer the school,” Cline said.

Hartman said she is considering is working in recruitment and professional training at a law firm.

“This would allow me to see a lot of my students, but from the other side, in professional development,” she said.

Some students have expressed concerns about a perceived lack of information about Hartman’s resignation. Administrators have declined to give information about Hartman’s departure beyond that in her message to the law school on Tuesday.

Hughes said administrators supported her decision but wanted Hartman to be the one to decide what information to share.

“They [the students] were asking questions of us that we didn’t feel it was our place to answer,” he said.

Third-year student Michael Phillips, who started a Facebook group called “Tell Us About Hartman — Or Tell Us Why You Can’t Tell Us,” said Career Services is too important an office for administrators not to answer questions about Hartman’s departure.

“The point is that the process be open, and if they can tell us what’s going on, that’s great for an open and fair process,” he said.

Hartman said she feels she has been open with students and in her resignation message provided her personal e-mail address in the hope of keeping in touch.

— Contact Susan McMillan.