KU Law students win grants, committed to serving rural Kansas
LAWRENCE – Two third-year students at the University of Kansas School of Law will receive grants from the Kansas Farm Bureau Legal Foundation. Mary McMullen and Luke Sunderland are recipients of the foundation's Rural Law Practice Grant.
The grant is awarded to law students who intend to practice in rural Kansas after graduation, bringing legal information and advocacy to those with limited access to resources. A maximum of three students each year can win the $16,500 grant.
“Serving rural Kansas in the law is important to me because rural Kansas needs lawyers and better access to justice, and I felt that was a need I could contribute to,” McMullen said. “I also feel that a legal career in rural Kansas will give me greater autonomy with my decision making in how I practice law, and I will experience a wider breadth of legal issues.”
Practicing in rural Kansas provides a unique opportunity for young lawyers to experience a vast array of legal matters early in their careers. Sunderland said he plans to focus his rural practice after graduation on real estate contracts and estate law, agriculture-related law, and law related to schools and municipalities.
“The types of legal issues in a rural area are immense, as a rural attorney is really the first point of contact for most every public or private legal issue,” Sunderland said.
The program helps fill an overwhelming need for practicing attorneys in rural Kansas, said Heather Spielmaker, assistant dean for career services at KU Law.
“We are so proud that the Career Services Office was able to offer support for these students as they found their way to this important work,” Spielmaker said.
Both grant winners see value in rural Kansas beyond their legal careers. As a mother of three, McMullen knew the advantages rural Kansas would offer not only to her, but to her young family.
“Rural Kansas is a great place for my children to experience their upbringing,” McMullen said. “There is a lot to explore, and you learn a lot about taking care of not just yourself, but your whole community. I want my children to learn that sense of community and responsibility to others at a young age.”
Sunderland’s family has lived in rural Kansas for over 150 years. He looks forward to bringing advocacy to the community and facilitating cooperation and growth in the area.
“My wife and I really enjoy the community and can count many friends and family there,” Sunderland said. “Rural practice presents a real blank-slate opportunity to create what one wants to. This opens up an exciting opportunity to challenge myself and carve out a career that is rewarding.”
Read this article on the KU News website.
Photo: Rural Law Practice Grant winners Luke Sunderland and Mary McMullen.