Law, Justice & Culture Certificate Announces 2015 Cohort

The Center for Law, Justice & Culture is proud to present this year’s cohort of certificate students in Law, Justice & Culture.

“We’re thrilled with this year’s cohort of LJC certificate students,” said Dr. Kathleen Sullivan, the CLJC faculty member who teaches LJC 2000: Core Course in Law, Justice & Culture. LJC 2000 is the mandatory seminar offered to the incoming cohort of certificate students each spring. “These students are the high-achieving students we hope to serve, they’re engaged on campus, and they want to study law from a liberal arts perspective.”

The certificate program brings together interdisciplinary coursework from departments across the social sciences and humanities to provide students with intellectual training in a “law and society” perspective. It also provides opportunities for faculty mentoring through research projects, internships, externships, study abroad, and career guidance.

Enrollment in the certificate program is a competitive process modeled after selection for law and graduate schools. Students with an overall GPA of 3.4 or above are eligible for 25 slots per year. During the fall application cycle, students are asked to submit a statement of intent as well as a current transcript. Those who do not meet the GPA requirement may submit an optional essay explaining their qualifications.

Once accepted into the program, Law, Justice & Culture students enroll in LJC 2000. They are then required to take at least one LJC elective course outside of their majors to ensure that they are exposed to interdisciplinary perspectives. As they proceed through the certificate coursework, LJC students participate in the intellectual life of the Center and engage in practice-oriented learning opportunities such as internships and research projects, all dealing with issues of democratic governance, social justice, and human rights.

The program is appropriate for students who plan to pursue professions in law, rights advocacy, justice administration, public policy, government, nonprofit organizations, and academic research and teaching.

Several students in this year’s cohort learned about the certificate program after enrolling in CAS 2500: Breaking the Law last semester, which is the gateway course to the Making and Breaking the Law academic theme. Taught by an interdisciplinary team of CLJC faculty, the theme course introduces new OHIO students to the challenges of law and justice in the 21^st century, and students with a special interest are encouraged to apply for the certificate program.

“I’m really looking forward to continuing my study of American law in our world today, and all of the related events I’ll be exposed to that occur on campus,” said Niara Stitt, one of the LJC students who enrolled in the theme seminar last semester.

The 2014 cohort of students in the Law, Justice & Culture certificate program includes:

• Zachery Ashford is a freshman in Political Science – Pre-Law with an interest in law and society.
• Kathleen Basalla is a freshman in History – Pre-Law with an interest in racial inequality and racial justice.
• Sallie Cohen is a sophomore in Sociology/Criminology with a minor and an interest in criminal justice processes and the challenges of reentry.
• Caleb Covert is a junior in Sociology – Pre-Law and a cadet in AFROTC on campus. He wants to work one day in a prosecutor’s office.
• Hayley Dashiell is a junior in Journalism – News and Information, and she is specializing in both English and French languages.
• Destiny Fordham is a junior in Sociology/Criminology with a minor in Spanish. She wants to works with prisoners and reentry to reduce recidivism.
• Ethan Hirtle is a freshman in Political Science – Pre-Law with an interest in racial bias in the U.S. criminal justice system.
• Ellenore Holbrook is a sophomore in HTC Political Science with an interest in how wealth and gender impact public policies. She is in the pre-law fraternity Phi Alpha Delta and is going on the Northern Ireland spring break study abroad program this semester.
• Alena Klimas is a junior in Political Science and Global Studies – War and Peace with a minor in History. She is in the Scholar’s Program in Arts and Sciences and is interested in the study of law and society in relation to achieving justice and equality in the international system.
• Phalen Kuckuck is a junior in Sociology/Criminology and is carrying out a spring LJC internship with the TEDx program at Marion Correctional Institution through the CLJC.
• Philip Moncla is a junior in Political Science. He is interested in international law.
• Angelina Moore is a junior in HTC Business Administration. She wants to combine her studies of law and business and appreciates the interdisciplinary aspects of the law.
• Chloe Musick is a sophomore in Political Science. She is interested in the relationship between law, conflict, governance, and peacebuilding.
• Selina Nadeau is a sophomore in HTC Journalism with a minor in Political Science. She is interested in human and civil rights, politics, media, and the law.
• Juliana Scheiderer is a senior in Journalism – Strategic Communication and Spanish. She is interested in the law and society intellectual community as well as what journalism can contribute to legal studies.
• Niara Stitt is a freshman in Political Science – Pre-Law with an interest in economics.
• Courtlen Vizzuso is a sophomore in Political Science – Pre-Law with an interest in civil rights in the U.S. and international legal movements.
• Kalten Walter is a sophomore in Philosophy. He is an on-campus activist and has an interest in grassroots movements.
• Sarah Welch is a senior in HTC Music with minors in Math and Physics. She is on the Board of Directors of the Center for Student Legal Services.
• ShawnDea Woods is a sophomore in Sociology – Pre-Law. Before coming to Ohio University, she participated in a number of social justice-related volunteer programs, including one in New Orleans.

Of these students, nine learned about the certificate through the CAS 2500: Making and Breaking the Law class last semester: Zachery Ashford, Kathleen Basalla, Sallie Cohen, Ethan Hirtle, Phalen Kuckuck, Niara Stitt, Courtlen Vizzuso, Kalten Walter, and ShawnDea Woods.

Four students will be participating in the LJC spring break study abroad program ANTH 4620: Human Rights, Law & Justice in Northern Ireland (taught by CLJC Director Dr. Haley Duschinski) this semester: Ellenore Holbrook, Phalen Kuckuck, Angelina Moore, and Kalten Walter. One, Selina Nadeau, was enrolled in spring 2014.