KU News Release

Outstanding students recognized at law school hooding ceremony

LAWRENCE – The University of Kansas School of Law honored graduates at a hooding ceremony May 17.

During the ceremony, four students were recognized for distinguishing themselves in scholarship, leadership and service to the law school and community.

Lindsey Heinz received the Justice Lloyd Kagey Leadership Award. She served as managing editor of the Kansas Law Review and participated in Women in Law and Phi Alpha Delta, the law school’s legal fraternity. During her third year of law school, Heinz was a member of the Moot Court Council and qualified with teammate Michael Crabb to compete in the national finals of the National Moot Court Competition, finishing in the Sweet 16.

The Robert F. Bennett Award went to Beau Jackson. The award is given to a graduate whose undergraduate degree is from a Kansas university or college and who has demonstrated leadership qualities through public service. As vice president of his first-year class, Jackson motivated his classmates to participate in a series of community service projects aimed at assisting elderly members of the Lawrence community. He served on the Dean’s Student Advisory Board and the Graduate and International Programs Committee, and was involved in the Public Interest Law Society and the American Constitution Society. He served as director of administration for the Kansas Journal of Law and Public Policy. Jackson interned at the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative and the House Ways and Means Trade Subcommittee in Washington, D.C. He also served as president of the International Law Society. He was a member of the school’s European Law Students’ Association Moot Court team, which competed in the international finals last week in Taipei. Jackson was named best oral advocate for the preliminary rounds.

Julie Larson received the Walter Hiersteiner Outstanding Service Award. Larson volunteered at a legal aid society in Khartoum, Sudan, the summer after her first year of law school, followed by work during her second year of law school at Catholic Charities and Sudan Sunrise, a refugee services organization. The following summer, she interned at the World Organization for Human Rights in Washington, D.C. She also participated in the Paul E. Wilson Defender Project, the law school’s prisoner assistance program, and the Family Health Care Legal Services Clinic, which provides legal services to indigent patients in Kansas City, Kan. Larson participated in the Public Interest Law Society and Women in Law and served as treasurer of the International Law Society.

The Samuel Mellinger Scholarship, Leadership and Service Award went to Justin Hendrix, the first editor-in-chief of the Kansas Law Review to guide the publication back to an on-time publication schedule in recent memory. He earned multiple best-paper awards during his time in law school and won the Media Law and Policy Intellectual Property Law Prize in 2008. He served on the Dean’s Student Advisory Board and the Intellectual Property Law Students Association. Before beginning his career at one of the top intellectual property law firms in the country, he plans to volunteer at the Children’s Law Center in Washington, D.C.

Following the ceremony, Gail Agrawal, dean of the law school, announced four additional awards.

Jomana Qaddour received the Law Class of 1949 Award for Leadership. Qaddour was a founding member of the Muslim Law Students Association and served as its president. She co-coordinated the law school’s first Human Rights Symposium and helped ensure its place as an annual event by assisting with its second installment in 2009. Qaddour also served on the Dean’s Student Advisory Board and as vice president and secretary of the International Law Society.

The Janean Meigs Memorial Award in Law went to Brutrinia Arellano, who served as president and vice president of the Black Law Students Association. She was a competition editor for the Midwest Black Law Students Association Law Journal and participated in the inaugural semester of the Family Health Care Legal Services Clinic.

Christina Elmore and Bethany Shelton each received the Faculty Award for Outstanding Academic Achievement. Shelton served as a note and comment editor for the Kansas Law Review and had a note published. She participated in the Public Interest Law Society, Women in Law and International Law Society and was the second-year class secretary. Shelton also took part in the Family Health Care Legal Services Clinic and was a Dean’s Fellow, serving as a peer mentor for incoming law students. Elmore was a note and comment editor for the Kansas Law Review. She received top-paper awards in Lawyering and Civil Procedure and was a member of the International Law Society. Elmore was part of the European Law Students’ Association Moot Court team that competed at the international finals in Taipei.

Student award winners are listed below by hometown, parents’ names, high school and award.

JOHNSON COUNTY
From Overland Park 66212
Bethany Shelton, daughter of Rob and Elaine Munyan; Shawnee Mission West; Faculty Award for Outstanding Academic Achievement.

From Overland Park 66221
Jomana Qaddour, daughter of Jihad and Rouyda Qaddour; Olathe East High School; Law Class of 1949 Award for Leadership.

From Prairie Village 66208
Julie Larson, daughter of Roger and Chris Larson; Shawnee Mission East High School; Walter Hiersteiner Outstanding Service Award.

PAWNEE COUNTY
From Larned 67550
Christina Elmore, daughter of George and Kay Elmore; Larned High School; Faculty Award for Outstanding Academic Achievement.

RENO COUNTY
From Hutchinson 67502
Justin Hendrix, son of John Hendrix and Hazel Hodgson; Central Christian High School; Samuel Mellinger Scholarship, Leadership and Service Award.

SEDGWICK COUNTY
From Wichita 67230
Beau Jackson, son of Courtley and Kristen Jackson; Andover High School; Robert F. Bennett Award.

OKLAHOMA
From Norman 73072
Lindsey Heinz, daughter of David and Judy Morse; Norman High School; Justice Lloyd Kagey Leadership Award.

TEXAS
From Fort Worth 76112
Brutrinia Arellano, daughter of Bruce and Delphine Cain; Eastern Hills High School; Janean Meigs Memorial Award in Law.

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