Tag: Center for Law Engagement And Politics

Reagan Dinner 2024

Morgan Robertson

In what amounts to a Republican “President’s Day” event, many GOP counties host a “Reagan” (or Lincoln) Dinner in February. This year, some (Republican) LEAP Students volunteered to help, so Jessica Cuevas, Chrissy Biello, Ashlyn Parker, and I found ourselves assisting and enjoying the Walker County Reagan Dinner.

We received our direction from Linda McKenzie, Walker County Chair, and coordinated with other volunteers as guests began arriving. Chrissy and Ashlyn were the first to welcome people in and direct them to their tables or to the enticing array of baked goods.

Each year the Walker County Republican Women host a dessert silent auction to raise money for the organization, and supply guests with delicious desserts. This year, over 45 desserts were donated.

Jessica enjoyed perusing the donated desserts and snapping photos of some serious bidding deliberation.

Mrs. McKenzie began the evening by thanking everyone in attendance, thanking us for our assistance, and recognizing each elected official and candidate. Constable Gene Bartee gave the invocation and County Clerk Kari French led the Pledges.

This year, we were honored to dine with 10th Court of Appeals Justice, Matt Johnson and his wife Melissa and 12th Judicial District Court Judge David Moorman and his wife Christie. Our conversation varied between the upcoming 10th Court of Appeals Hearings at SHSU on April 3 and our favorite musicals– Melissa Johnson, it turns out, is a Professor of Musical Theatre Voice at Baylor University.

In anticipation of the second part of our volunteer duties, Mrs. McKenzie sent our tables to eat first, so we may deliver the desserts to the highest bidders. Dinner was catered by Humphrey’s American Grill and everyone was beyond pleased with the meal.

County Judge Colt Christian, and Congressmen Morgan Luttrell and Pete Sessions addressed the crowd briefly and thanked both the County Party and Republican Women for hosting such an event.

The keynote speaker this year was Dr. Robin L. Armstrong, MD and Galveston County Commissioner. Dr. Armstrong spoke on his experience as a doctor during the COVID-19 pandemic when a majority of is patients were in nursing homes. He spoke of some of the struggles he faced during the unprecedented times and how he overcame many of the challenges.

Dr. Armstrong concluded his speech by encouraging the crowd to continue to stay active and make sure to vote. Speaking of, early voting began on Tuesday, 2/20!

It wouldn’t have been a Walker County Reagan Dinner without a coordinated photo with the present elected officials and one with the candidates…

We were able to thank Dr. Armstrong for his time and even snap a selfie with him and some of our friends.

PLS Meeting: Spring 2024 Kickoff

Pre-Law Society

McKenna Nonnenmann

Although the PLS has been involved in several informal events this spring, our first official meeting was February 21. And what a meeting! We had the honor of hosting two past Pre-Law Society presidents: Victoria McClendon, a first-year attorney; and Quinn Kobrin. a third-year law student at the University of New Hampshire. We also had the pleasure of having Blake Roach, an Associate Legislature Director at the Texas Farm Bureau, back on campus.

 Our meeting started off well, as we learned that we had 96 members, our highest-ever membership total!

The meeting continued on this note, as McClendon and Kobrin offered great advice on what law school is like. “It hits everyone like a brick wall,” noted Kobrin. Noting that undergraduate classes at SHSU are nothing like law school, McClendon and Kobrin suggested going out of our way to take challenging courses that teach us to think critically, read a lot, and to write.

Blake Roach also offered much-valued advice. He described his time as an advance-man for Greg Abbott, teaching him skills in preparation, event planning, research, flexibility, and networking.

All members of the panel encouraged students to push themselves, to get out of their comfort zones so that they can navigate more comfortably in the professional world. Going to professional events, taking on internships, working professional jobs, surrounding yourself with other professional students all work to make you more successful in the long run.

The meeting ended on a high note. After several years of fundraising–including work done by our past Presidents (including, of course, Victoria McClendon and Quinn Kobrin), we were able to donate $25,000 to SHSU to endow a scholarship. We closed the meeting with a “check presentation.”

Thanks to all our great panelists, and to all those who joined (or rejoined) PLS this semester. For future events or information, visit our Instagram @prelawshsu or email President Olivia Discon: ojd004@shsu.edu.

Our next meeting is March 20 at 6pm!

As a special note, we’d also like to thank all of our PLS Presidents who have helped us achieve this endowment: Megan Chapa (our first PLS President), Kaitlyn Tyra, Victoria McClendon, Quinn Kobrin, Heather Noman, Yvette Mendoza, Jade Miller, and Olivia Discon.

Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead at SHSU!

by Christina Biello

Following a long week, LEAP students headed to the theater to decompress by watching SHSU’s rendition of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead. This group, in particular, had varied tolerance for theatrics. Regardless of our backgrounds, we waited with anticipation for the curtain to open and allow ourselves to be immersed in the fictional world.

The story takes place in Denmark during the Elizabethan era and focuses on Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, lesser-known characters from Shakespeare’s Hamlet.

Even though it appears light-hearted, it profoundly touches the audience; leaving a significant impact, its exploration of human nature and existential questions left me thinking throughout the night.

Rosencrantz and Guildenstern frequently find themselves in predicaments, unsure of their location or identities. Further, the actor’s line delivery elicited plenty of laughter from the audience. This quickly turns when the narrative causes viewers to ponder the pointlessness of trying to rationalize a world lacking logic or purpose.

The two attempt to control their destiny as the crisis worsens but are trapped in a cycle of events beyond their influence or understanding. As the characters fall to an unavoidable end, the audience is saddened as we realize what has happened to the characters we have come to adore.

“How to Get Into Law School” with University of Tulsa College of Law

McKenna Nonnenmann

All pre-law students ask at some point, “How do I get into law school?” As SHSU undergrads ourselves, many of us have the same question. Half of Sam Houston students are first-generation, many of whom have not even met an attorney. That changed last week, when Megan Henson, Associate Dean of Admissions at The University of Tulsa College of Law, came to SHSU to provide pre-law students with an overview of the application timeline, answer questions, and, in general, to help us understand the process.

Professor Yawn introduced PLS President Olivia Discon, who in turn, introduced Dean Henson.

Many factors play into the success of a law school application. Applying to law school is like applying to any other higher educational institution: it is important that you put your best application forward. Apart from a good GPA and LSAT score, law schools are looking for grade progression throughout one’s undergrad years. Megan Henson noted that a good grade progression points out a student’s work ethic and sets them apart from other applicants.

Also important is a strong personal statement, one that reflect a student’s character, writing skills, and their ability to follow instructions.

When applying to law schools, organization is also important; simply listing the schools and their application deadlines allows a student to organize their time instead of scrabbling to put it together at the last minute.

We also gained some insight on the typical law class. Law classes rely heavily on the Socratic Method, which involves reading outside of class and deliberating over the cases in class. We also learned that the American Bar Association requires law students to take a minimum of 6 clinical hours. This helps law students better understand the workings of a lawyer in and out of a courtroom.

In short, we learned “how to get into law school,” but also much more! There are many moving parts that go into practicing law, and many of us are about to take our first step to get there. We greatly appreciate Megan Henson for taking the time to travel to Huntsville, Texas and speak with us about the law school admissions process and to all the students who attended!

Simulated Law-School Class: 2024

For the past ten years, SHSU pre-law students have anticipated participating in the Mock Law School Class presented by Professor Val Ricks, Professor at Houston’s South Texas College of Law, and author of law school casebooks on contract law.

This semester, the LEAP Center was excited to welcome the following guests to the Mock Law School Class: Judge Kim Webb, an SHSU alum and a current Justice of the Peace in San Jacinto County; and Ryann Bauer with student members of the Huntsville High School’s Criminal Justice Program.

As in an actual law school class, Professor Ricks expected the 46 registered students to come to class prepared by reading and briefing the case beforehand. After briefly stating the relevant facts of the contract case, Ricks used a random number generator to select students to discuss the legal issue of the case. With skillful Socratic questioning, Ricks led the pre-law students through the analysis of the legal issue in the case, the rule of law, and how the court applied the rule of law in the case.

Neehal Ahmed appreciated Professor Ricks’ teaching style. Ahmed commented, “Professor Ricks made contracts, a daunting subject, seem far less scary through his patient and thorough explanation of concepts and their functions.”

At the conclusion of the contract case discussion, Professor Ricks presented the students with a hypothetical set of facts, similar to a question on a law school exam.

Ricks called on students to analyze the legal issue posed in the hypothetical and asked the class how a court would rule on the legal issue based on the legal reasoning from the contract case discussed earlier in class.

In reflecting on the Mock Law School Class, Christina Biello mirrored the thoughts of a lot of attendees before attending the class. Christina explained, “I was both frightened and eager because I had no idea what to anticipate, even after hours of preparation. However, experiencing Professor Val Ricks’ instruction confirmed my desire to attend law school, and it no longer seems as daunting.”

Neehal Ahmed summed up the experience by recommending “Professor Ricks’ mock law classes to any of those who are interested in attending law school but are scared of the subject matter they may encounter. If you come prepared, this experience can put a lot of your doubts and worries to rest.”

The LEAP Center and Pre-Law Society would like to thank South Texas College of Law–Houston and Professor Val Ricks for their time. As Professor Ricks noted, “I’ve been doing these visits for long enough that I’ve taught students at SHSU in the mock law class, then taught them a class at STCL, and seen them graduate. It’s very gratifying.”

We’d also like to thank Ms. Bauer from Huntsville High School and her wonderful students Hannah Ruth, Riane Davis, and Bethany Bell…

…as well as Judge Kim Webb.

It was a pleasure to have other programs in the community with a dedication to educating students join us for this enriching event!