Law school honors 2017 graduates for scholarship, leadership and service

LAWRENCE – The University of Kansas School of Law honored Class of 2017 graduates at a hooding ceremony May 13. During the ceremony, nine students received awards for distinguishing themselves in scholarship, leadership and service to the law school and to the community.

The recipients are:

• Craig Boyd, Dallas, Texas, Faculty Award for Outstanding Scholastic Achievement
• Hannah Brass, Wilmore, Justice Lloyd Kagey Leadership Award
• Ethan Brown, Flower Mound, Texas, Janean Meigs Memorial Award
• Tyler Childress, Coffeyville, Robert F. Bennett Award
• Kriston Guillot, Shawnee, Janean Meigs Memorial Award
• Beth Hanus, Elm Grove, Wisconsin, Samuel Mellinger Scholarship, Leadership and Service Award
• Erica McCabe, Emporia, Class of 1949 Leadership Award
• Matt Scarber, Tucson, Arizona, Walter Hiersteiner Outstanding Service Award
• Cody Wood, Leawood, Class of 1949 Leadership Award

Hanus also served as the 2017 banner carrier, an honor bestowed upon an honor student who exemplifies excellence in his or her program.

The award winners were part of a class composed of 121 recipients of the Juris Doctor, as well as one Master of Laws in American Legal Studies and two Doctor of Juridical Science graduates.

Funds for the awards are managed by KU Endowment, the independent, nonprofit organization serving as the official fundraising and fund-management organization for KU. Founded in 1981, KU Endowment was the first foundation of its kind at a U.S. public university.

Student award recipients are listed below by hometown.

COMANCHE COUNTY
From Wilmore
Hannah Brass received the Justice Lloyd Kagey Leadership Award, given to the graduate who has most distinguished him or herself through leadership in the law school. Brass served as editor-in-chief of the Kansas Journal of Law and Public Policy and a member of the Dean’s Diversity Leadership Council. She is the daughter of Dave and Mindy Brass and a graduate of South Central High School and the University of Oklahoma.

JOHNSON COUNTY
From Leawood
Cody Wood received the Class of 1949 Leadership Award, given to the student who has contributed most significantly to the overall experience of students in Green Hall. Wood served as vice president of the International Law Society, a Dean’s Fellow and a KU Law Student Ambassador. He represented the law school in the KU Student Senate and served on the Student Bar Association Executive Board. Wood was also a member of the KU student chapter of the Federal Bar Association and Traffic Court. He is the son of Brian and Lorrie Wood and a graduate of Blue Valley North High School and the University of Kansas.

From Shawnee
Kriston Guillot received the Janean Meigs Memorial Award, given to students who have demonstrated a caring spirit in service to the students of the law school or the community at large. An intern at the Douglas County Legal Aid Society and Legal Services for Students, Guillot served as president of the 3L class, a justice on Traffic Court, a KU Law Student Ambassador, and a member of both the Moot Court Council and the Black Law Students Association. He served as a teaching assistant for the course Lawyering Skills and was a member of the winning team in KU’s 2016 In-House Moot Court Competition. Guillot is the son of Kirby and Joyce Guillot and a graduate of Shawnee Mission Northwest High School and the University of Kansas. 

LYON COUNTY
From Emporia
Erica McCabe received the Class of 1949 Leadership Award, given to the student who has contributed most significantly to the overall experience of students in Green Hall. McCabe served as editor-in-chief of the Kansas Law Review and distinguished herself on several committees, including the Academic Affairs Committee and the Dean’s Diversity Leadership Council. She also served as a Dean’s Fellow and a KU Law Student Ambassador, and she was a member of the winning team in KU’s 2016 In-House Moot Court Competition, receiving the award for Best Oral Advocate. McCabe is the daughter of Jennifer and Brenton Bennett and a graduate of Emporia High School, the University of Kansas and the University of Missouri-St. Louis.

MONTGOMERY COUNTY
From Coffeyville
Tyler Childress received the Robert F. Bennett Award, recognizing a graduate whose undergraduate degree is from a Kansas university or college and who has demonstrated leadership qualities through public service. Childress served in leadership capacities for the KU Law Dean’s Diversity Leadership Council, the KU Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Advisory Group, the KU Student Senate, and the KU Law student division of the Federal Bar Association. He was a note and comment editor on the Kansas Law Review and vice president of OutLaws & Allies. Childress worked as a legal intern at the Johnson County District Attorney’s Office and prosecuted two jury trials during his third year of law school. He is the son of Tracey and Lisa Childress and a graduate of Field Kindley Memorial High School and the University of Kansas.

ARIZONA
From Tucson
Matt Scarber received the Walter Hiersteiner Outstanding Service Award, given to the graduate whose service to his or her fellow students demonstrates the greatest promise for contribution to the legal profession and society. Scarber is known for standing up for causes he believes in and engaging in difficult, but important, conversations. He served as the president of KU Black Law Students Association and was a leader on the Dean’s Diversity Leadership Council, along with supporting and assisting many other organizations at the University of Kansas and in the Topeka, Lawrence and Kansas City communities. Scarber was a student finalist for KU’s inaugural Diversity Leadership Award. He is the son of Freddy and Lillie Scarber and a graduate of Cienega High School and the University of Arizona.

TEXAS
From Dallas
Craig Boyd received the Faculty Award for Outstanding Scholastic Achievement, which goes to the graduating student selected by the faculty as having made the most significant contribution toward overall legal scholarship. Boyd’s article, “Appraisal Arbitrage: Closing the Floodgates on Hedge Funds and Activist Shareholders,” was published in the Kansas Law Review and cited in a Vanderbilt Law Review article written by experts in the field. Boyd served as note and comment editor for the Kansas Law Review. Additionally, he was a member of a KU Transactional LawMeet team that reached the semifinals of the Southwest Regional Round and received the award for best buyer’s side draft agreement. Boyd served as a Dean’s Fellow and was a member of the KU team that reached the quarterfinals of the 2016 National Criminal Procedure Moot Court Tournament. Boyd resides in Lawrence with his wife, Sara. He is the son of Craig and Gina Boyd, and a graduate of Flower Mound High School and MidAmerica Nazarene University. 

From Flower Mound
Ethan Brown received the Janean Meigs Memorial Award, given to students who have demonstrated a caring spirit in service to the students of the law school or the community at large. Brown served as managing editor of the Kansas Journal of Law and Public Policy and as a KU Law Student Ambassador. He was a Dean’s Fellow, president of the Student Intellectual Property Law Association and vice president of the KU student chapter of the Federal Bar Association. He participated in KU’s Medical-Legal Partnership Field Placement Program at KUMC and worked through Kansas Legal Services to serve the elderly population as part of KU’s Elder Law Field Placement Program. Brown helped community members file taxes through the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program. Brown is the son of Norman and Lori Brown and a graduate of Northern State University.

WISCONSIN
From Elm Grove
Beth Hanus received the Samuel Mellinger Scholarship, Leadership and Service Award, given to the graduate who has most distinguished himself or herself in the combined areas of scholarship, leadership and service. Hanus served as executive note and comment editor of the Kansas Law Review, overseeing each of the scholarly pieces written by fellow law students. Her comment, “Rape by Nonphysical Coercion: State v. Brooks” was published in volume 64. Hanus also served as a KU Law Student Ambassador and a student member of the Academic Affairs Committee. She was a teaching assistant for the Lawyering Skills course and served on the executive board of Women in Law and as a member of the Business and Tax Law Society. Hanus graduated at the top of her class. She is the daughter of Susan and Michael Hanus and a graduate of Brookfield East High School and Macalester College.