法学院欢迎新生
William & 玛丽法学院 welcomed new students on August 20. The 196 members of the Class of 2015 who arrived that day were chosen from a pool of 5,573 applicants. The oldest law school’s newest students hail from 33 states and Washington, DC, as well as Canada, China, the Czech Republic, and Liberia. The class that enrolled on August 20 has a median LSAT of 164 and a median undergraduate G.P.A. of 3.74 (the highest in the Law School’s history).
In addition to the Class of 2015 J.D. candidates, 27 students joined the Law School community for one year of study in the American Legal System Program as LL.M. degree candidates. These students are citizens of China, India, Jamaica, Nigeria and the United Kingdom, as well as the United States. The Law School also welcomed four exchange students for the fall semester from China, Colombia, and Luxembourg. Eleven transfer students and six visiting students are also continuing their legal studies at William & Mary.
The Law School received 5,784 applications for all of its applicant groups (J.D. 1L, transfer, visiting, exchange, and LL.M.) from 50 states, Washington, DC, and 61 other countries.
“Our new students possess outstanding academic, service, and professional backgrounds,” said Associate Dean for Admission Faye F. Shealy. “They are an impressive group of aspiring citizen lawyers, and we are truly honored that such well-qualified individuals seek a legal education at William & Mary. We welcome each one to the Law School family and to the world of the law.”
The first-year class received undergraduate degrees from 116 different colleges and universities, 10 in Virginia and 106 in other locations. The College of William & Mary and the University of Virginia, once again, were the leading undergraduate institutions, followed by Florida State, University of Florida, University of Maryland at College Park, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, University of Richmond, University of Texas at Austin, and Virginia Tech.
August Johannsen, of Mission Viejo, Calif., is a graduate of the University of California at Los Angeles where he earned a degree in psychology with a minor in political science. He spent one summer studying abroad at Cambridge University and his extracurricular activities included playing clarinet for four years in the UCLA marching band.
“After attending UCLA, a huge school ... , I wanted a much more intimate and supportive graduate school experience,” Johannsen said. “Dean Douglas held a reception in Los Angeles that I attended. That, combined with my visit to William & Mary over spring break, totally convinced me to attend the law school. Meeting with the dean and Elizabeth Cavallari in the admissions office, as well as the extensive email correspondence I had with her, truly showed me the level of interest the William & Mary faculty and staff take in the students here. Plus, Williamsburg is beautiful!”
“Constitutional law is my focus now,” he added, “but I am keeping my mind open to other areas of law, and my Institute of Bill of Rights Law Fellowship will steer me towards a career in that field. My interest was sparked in my junior year when I took a class on the constitutional foundations of federalism and separation of powers. My professor’s passion for constitutional law rubbed off on me and that passion ultimately led me here.”
Political science, English, history, economics, psychology, and philosophy were majors shared by many new students. In the 1L class, 43 members graduated summa cum laude, 37 graduated magna cum laude, and 26 graduated cum laude. Nineteen 1Ls are Phi Beta Kappa graduates and 13 hold master’s degrees in fields such as business administration, classical archaeology, clinical psychology, English, public administration, and public policy.
Colleen Smith of Boise, Idaho, is a graduate of The College of Idaho where she earned a degree in mathematics with a minor in journalism. An avid triathlete, she was a member of the women’s soccer, cross -country, and track teams during college. She was on the All-American Academic Team for four semesters and was a Rhodes Scholar finalist in 2010. Smith also was honored as the Cascade Collegiate Conference Scholar-Athlete of the Year in 2010 and 2011 and as the A.O. Duer Award recipient as the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics' Scholar Athlete of the Year in 2010.
Smith put her journalistic talents to work in spring 2011 as the Capitol correspondent of the Sandpoint Reader, which published her weekly column on major events in the Idaho Legislature. She was both editor-in-chief, 2009-10, and a columnist, 2010-11, for The COYOTE, the College of Idaho’s independent student newspaper.
“My interest in law came from a variety of sources,” she said, “serving as a justice on my college's Honor Council and as student body president. Covering state government solidified my interest, so during my year off I worked for Legislative Services at the Idaho Legislature.”
Smith’s academic and athletic abilities won her the Law School’s Mary Siegrist Hinz Fellowship, which she said was a big factor in her decision to pursue her law degree at William & Mary. “Through the Fellowship, I met students I could relate to, ones who had unbelievable work ethics and who were passionate not just about the law but about leadership, athletics, and their community,” she said. “Through my interactions with them, the Fellowship's selection committee, and the admissions staff, I knew William & 玛丽法学院 has both the network to help me achieve my goals and a culture in which I would feel comfortable and happy.”
Many of Smith’s classmates also found time for a variety of extracurricular activities in which they demonstrated their leadership skills. Like Smith, two of her classsmates also served as editor-in-chiefs of campus publications. Two members of the class, including Smith, were student body presidents and three were vice presidents. Four held leadership positions in Greek life.
Army First Lieutenant Richard Crockett is originally from Colorado Springs, Colo. He is a graduate of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and was on the dean’s list for all eight semesters. He served as the brigade activities officer during 2008-09, a role in which he was responsible for planning events for more than 4,000 of his fellow students. He was an active member of the Latter-day Saints Student Association and also was an avid participant in extracurricular sports.
Following his first two years at West Point, he left for Thailand to serve as a full-time volunteer missionary where he taught religion and English.
Crockett served in Iraq, both as battalion liaison officer and as an infantry platoon leader. His most recent assignment was as executive officer of C Company of 1-21 Infantry at Schofield Barracks in Hawaii.
克罗克特说：“我就读威廉玛丽法学院是为了准备在军队中成为一名司法部律师，并加入一个让我着迷了12年的职业，我从高中时参加校际模拟审判小组开始。”从那时起，我的模拟审判教练，我在学院的军事和宪法教授，以及支持我们在伊拉克稳定任务的JAG律师的例子，把我带到了这里。在威廉玛丽的法律教育将给我提供工具，让我成为一名法务部律师，为国家服务，同时帮助我实现加入法律界的目标。”
克罗克特是他班上八名曾在军队服役的学生之一。他和他的一个同学在高选择性的法律教育资助项目的赞助下被录取。在这类未来的公民律师中，有一些人表现出对公共服务的承诺。他们在危机援助和囚犯援助项目中担任导师和教练、诉讼监护人、同伴顾问、导师和志愿者。他们做了很多事情，从为仁人家园做志愿者，成立了一个TOMS鞋子小组，为受虐妇女收容所筹集资金，以及与Light the Night和Relay for Life一起散步或跑步。六名班级成员是鹰级童子军，一名是优秀奖章辅导员
弗吉尼亚州夏洛茨维尔的贝勒马·伊多尼博伊（Belema Idoniboye）获得了爱荷华大学（University of Iowa）政治学和传播学的荣誉学士学位，以及乔治梅森大学（George Mason University）的公共政策硕士学位。他还拥有牛津大学曼斯菲尔德学院的证书。他在大学期间获得了许多嘉奖、助学金和奖学金。Idoniboye曾担任爱荷华大学学生政府司法法庭的助理法官，并被选入Pi Sigma Alpha政治科学荣誉协会和Lambda Pi Eta国家通信协会荣誉协会。作为一名荣誉项目研究助理，他帮助开发和组织了新的政治学课程。从2007年秋季到2008年冬季，Idoniboye担任当时参议员约瑟夫·r·拜登（Joseph R. Biden）总统竞选的学生竞选助理。在威廉玛丽律师事务所开始他的法律学习之前，Idoniboye曾在华盛顿特区的美国退伍军人事务部秘书办公室担任特别助理。在那里，除其他职责外，他对退伍军人服务组织的立法优先事项以及与国会高级领导证词有关的问题进行了广泛的研究。他说：“社会的不公正和不平等激发了我对劳动和就业法、残疾人法和倡导的兴趣。”“法学院的永恒信条是，律师不仅应该是法律的忠实仆人，而且还应该通过其他形式的公民参与不断寻求完善我们国家的方法，这让我来到了威廉玛丽律师事务所。”
卡努·乌菲亚王后和张宇健（文森特）不远万里来到法学院的法学硕士项目继续他们的法律学习。Uffiah毕业于the University of Calabar Secondary School和the University of Calabar，在那里她还获得了法律学位。在成功完成阿布贾尼日利亚法学院的法学院课程后，她成为尼日利亚律师协会的成员。她解释说，在尼日利亚，有抱负的律师必须“在进入尼日利亚法学院获得律师资格之前，在大学法律系接受五年的培训。”除了尼日利亚律师协会的会员外，她还是调解员和调解员协会的成员。她曾在国家青年服务团为国家服务，在河流州司法部担任法律助理。这段经历激发了她成为一名儿童权利活动家的热情。乌菲亚说：“我想让我的国家和世界上的每个孩子都有发言权，让每个孩子的权利都得到重视。”“我希望以此为目的经营一个非营利组织，让世界变得更美好、更和平。我也热爱音乐，自己创作和制作歌曲，这是我希望追求的业余爱好之一。“威廉与玛丽法学院是美国最好的法学院之一，”她说。“它以培养出最好的律师而闻名，无论是在这里还是在世界各地。我喜欢向最好的人学习，这就是我选择威廉玛丽的原因。”毕业于中国四川成都西南交通大学经济法专业，获法学学士和法学硕士学位。在大学期间，他获得了多项奖学金，并在学校的英语辩论赛中获得了荣誉。他还喜欢参加学校的足球和足球联赛，并参加成都足球城市联赛。国际事务处授予他“优秀学生助理”奖，国际武术节授予他“优秀青年志愿者”奖。2010年5月和9月，作为研究员参与了两项东西方法学教育比较研究。他曾在大型建筑公司龙源地产担任法律事务主管，在国内积累了丰富的法律实践经验。2008年夏季，他还在四川西昌市西昌市人民法院实习，担任刑事书记员。“我想成为一名侵权或房地产方面的律师，”张说，“但我也希望在中国促进人权和宪法权利，尤其是儿童权利。”他说，他选择来威廉玛丽学院是因为这所学校的历史和毕业生参与公共服务。张先生在大学期间克服了一场严重的疾病，他说他期待着在威廉玛丽大学开始他人生的新篇章。“来到威廉斯堡，我站在一个新的起点上，为下一个漫长的旅程做准备，我无法抗拒那种英雄般的感觉，”他说。“我知道我能做得更好；我知道我可以走得更远。”编者注：通信办公室希望感谢招生助理主任Elizabeth M. Cavallari对本文的重要贡献。她提供了班级数据总结和班级成员共同兴趣和背景的描述性信息。